Glossary

Swegmark, Splendide, Lyxita, Criss-Cross    Swegmark's history is reproduced below from http://www.swegmark.com/eng/index_ie.html

1937
Harry Swegmark founds the company H. Swegmark Fabriks AB. The first product made is an ärmlappar?. (A small fabric piece under a blouse, to hide perspiration from the armpit.)

1940
Swegmark manufactures ribbon, plastic items and sanitary pants. At the end of the 1940's production of corsets began.

1953
Production of the brand name corset Splendide begins. Inger Juel, the first Miss Sweden was used as the model in the advertising.

1955
Production of belts and braces begins.

1957
Sales success with Criss Cross, a girdle with two permanently welded tapes, that lay crosswise over the stomach.

1958
Harry Swegmark's sons, Bengt and Gösta, begin working at the company. Bengt was trained at a design school in England and created his first Swegmark collection this year.

1962
The textile industry receives access to new materials such as elastic, Lycra and Fibre K. The development of new materials leads to Swegmark designing the first panty girdle. Swegmark makes its first export deal.

1963
The first bras with elastic shoulder straps are launched.

1964
Cooperation is entered into with Mullsjö Konfektion by way of the brand names Lyxita and Splendide.

1967-68
New factories in Töreboda. The launch of the brand names Linje Bekväm for pensioners and Vinetta Lady for women over 60.

1971
The building of a new factory in England.

1972
Swegmark's first moulded bras are launched.

1975
Production of bathing suits is started.

1976
Swegmark acquires the competitor brand name Fox.

1981
Swegmark acquires AB Corsettindustri Abecita. The production of gym clothes begins.

1990-95
Swegmark concentrate their business activities on ladies underwear, primarily bras in larger sizes.

1993
Swegmark acquires Sia New Rosme in Riga, Latvia.

1995
Needlework groups are introduced, thereby reducing production time from 10 to five weeks.

 

Arnbergs Corset Factory, Höganäs

Arnbergs Corsettfabrik AB was founded by Olof Arnberg in Höganäs, the farmer’s son who didn´t like the agricultural work. Instead, he opened in 1893 as 21-year old, tailor - dressmaker and draper´s shop in his own building at Köpmansgatan, Höganäs. It became the beginning of the corset factory that stood for 80 years.

In 1909, he built a new  big factory at Storgatan. It became the biggest workplace for the Höganäs women. They made corsets with the names Grace, Graciform and Graciella that shaped woman bodies strongly, and the production became an important source of income too many women in this coal-mining and industrial community. Many girls started at 14 years old, as errand girls or cut-threads. The men worked in the delivery or department managers’ offices and by 1939, the number employed there rose to 635 persons, mainly women with 400 dressmakers.

When Arnberg started the company in 1891, he had help of a Danish tailor-cutter with the surname Lerche. Along with her they started to produce corsets. They had problems in the beginning, since glue used in the production pasted itself though onto the tailor´s dummys. In Copenhagen, he learnt of a method a copper dummy was used and shaping done with steam.

Arnbergs did not sell only products in Sweden, they had also an extensive export to Norway and England. Everything from the first tight-fitting corsets, flat corselettes in 1920, and later, models in more elastic materials with pointed breasts. Most of the raw material, 10,000 metres elastic fabric per week, was produced by the factory. Production grew to 50,000 garments each week. In the last years the production, in addition to corsets, corselettes, brassieres and girdles, was also extended to nightdresses.

When Olof Arnberg died in 1953, the youngest son, Lennart Arnberg, assumed the responsibility as MD for the company.

The halcyon period was in the 1950’s when the production increased during the son Lennart's management, from five to 25 millions Kroner, due to improved mechanical parking and marketing. At one point the turnover exceeded 70 millions Kroner.

When Arnberg’s Korsettfabrik started advertising for the first time in 1952, they begun with the big selling girdle Graciette. The anticipated selling 12,000 girdles but it became 60,000!

Then came the down- turn, despite traveling to America to gain new inspiration and purchase new materials. Arnbergs and every other corset makers’ biggest antagonist was the advent of the panty-hose (tights). In 1965, pantyhose came to Sweden and they rapidly became immensely popular. Now, nobody needs suspenders, corset or girdle to hold up the stockings. The skirts became also shorter and shorter. Thus did the corset sector face big losses each year and by 1967, only 186 employees were left on the factory.

In 1969, Arnberg sold the company to German Triumph and narrowly escaped bankruptcy. Lennart Arnberg would continue to work in Triumph’s factory in Turku for another 16 years.

Left in Höganäs were only stocks and offices. The factory building in the block along Storgatan was demolished 1982. As with so many towns, the characterful corset factory was replaced by faceless, anodyne real-estate offices and fast-food outlets. (Ironically, it would be these food parlours that provided modern woman with a desperate need for adequate corsetry, but with neither the knowledge nor the outlets to supply them any more – Ivy’s comment.)