Grandmother owned an antique shop. The Second World War had just ended and optimism was on the rise again. The well-tended shop was just a stone’s throw from the royal palace on one of the busy, narrow streets in Stockholm’s old town quarter. Passersby stopped on the cobblestones and
stared inside. The shop window was filled with ceramics and decorations. Malmers Antik had a solid reputation and business was blossoming.
One day Grandfather was left in charge of the shop. Grandmother had hurried off outside into the cold on some urgent errand. Grandfather did not know much about antiques, but he had a warm personality and a rare business sense. An elegant lady wearing a fur coat came through the door. The lady walked round the shop and became more and more excited. She turned to Grandfather and asked straight out if the shop was possibly for sale. Grandfather paused for a brief moment. “Yes, yes, of course it is,” he said with a big smile. When Grandmother came back, a contract proposal had already been typed up. First she was angry, but soon she was a housewife. The reconstruction of post-war Europe was under way and the demand for steel was huge. Grandfather had this idea that trading in scrap metal was what he should be doing. He started up Järnmalmer T. Malmer AB, the T standing for his name, Torbjörn. It’s a name that is still going strong 70 years later.
All businesses have their origins in something unique. This is ours. Maybe things were simpler in times gone by. Sometimes conviction and determination are all that are needed. Today Järnmalmer has annual sales of around EUR 30 million within recycling, dismantling and transport.
Mattias Malmer CEO, Järnmalmer
