The company’s history began back in 1965 when the Widman family’s paint shop started selling bags on a roll. In 1984, Olle Widman (father of our CEO Jonas) started the company AB Bärkassen to focus on carrier bags, with many years of strong growth and a strong market position. In 2006, AB Bärkassen was one of the first companies in the industry to start to increase its imports from Asia.

At around the same time, in 1998, the Jorius brothers founded the company Swedbag AB in Jordbro outside Stockholm, Sweden’s first manufacturer of paper bags with twisted handles. The company became FSC® certified in 2010. The story took a new turn in 2013 when the two family businesses merged to work together as Swedbag AB. In doing so, they created a unique business in the industry, with their own manufacturing and trading operations.

The third generation of Widmans and the Jorius entrepreneurs now run an outstanding family business that delivers the final important piece in the retail infrastructure jigsaw – the sustainable carrier bag.