Gabriel 150 years - Flipbook - Page 43
From Kjærs Møller to Gabriel
±∫∏∏-±∫π∂
Significant changes were made in Kjærs
percentage of goods supplied to export mar-
Mølle’s business strategy during the eight
kets.
years from ±∫∏∏ to ±∫π∂.
In ±∫π∞, Søren Gabriel took over as man-
In ±∫∏∫, the company was purchased joint-
aging director. He contacted the current
ly by the employees and the Gabriel family;
chairman of the board, Poul H. Lauritsen, who
the latter already owned the wholesale textile
convinced the pension funds associated with
business, Gabriel Boligtekstiler, in the town
PKA to invest in Kjærs Mølle and Gabriel. In
of Fredericia. Through this combination,
±∫π≥, Gabriel and Kjærs Mølle merged to be-
Kjærs Mølle gained a permanent market for
come a single group with Gabriel Boligtekstil-
its upholstery fabric, and the Gabriel compa-
er A/S as the parent company. In ±∫πµ, the
ny secured a guaranteed, reliable supply of
group was listed by the Copenhagen Stock Ex-
fabric. As to the product range, Gabriel’s in-
change for the first time.
fluence increased the importance of woollen
In ±∫π∂, the entire enterprise moved to
upholstery fabric in relation to other textiles.
Aalborg. That same year, the current manag-
Concentration on this niche market, uphol-
ing director, Jørgen Kjær Jacobsen, replaced
stery fabric, made it necessary to increase the
Søren Gabriel in that position.
All the employees were informed of the
Kjærs Mølle for sale
plans, and the will and ability of the employees
While ±∫∏∏ and ±∫∏π were years of stability for
to contribute capital was evaluated. It soon be-
Kjærs Mølle, the future remained unsure. This
came apparent that a financially strong part-
was due to the financial difficulties of the own-
ner would be needed.
ers, Odense Kamgarnsspinderi.
In Aalborg, office and factory workers alike
The employees and Gabriel make
a purchase
were worried about how the management in
Odense would tackle the situation. Kjærs Mølle
was, after all, the group’s biggest asset, but
The first possible future partner at the negotia-
Odense Kamgarnsspinderi was in dire need of
ting table was the Aalborg textile manufacturer,
additional capital in order to sustain operations.
De Forenede Tekstilfabrikker, but no agreement
Kjærs Mølle’s management considered care-
was reached. The Danish textile wholesaler,
fully how they could influence developments
Kvadrat, was also in the picture at one point.
and speculated as to whether the workers in
The third possibility was the wholesale busi-
Aalborg would be able to buy Kjærs Mølle. A
ness, Gabriel Boligtekstiler ApS, in Fredericia, a
decision was made to make the attempt.
company that carried a wide range of high
1977-1985
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