Arthur Soltvedt Møbelfabrikk
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Arthur Soltvedt Møbelfabrikk, also known as Pega Furniture, was a Norwegian family business established in 1942. It was one of the first Norwegian furniture manufacturers with a focus on
serial production Serial may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media The presentation of works in sequential segments * Serial (literature), serialised literature in print * Serial (publishing), periodical publications and newspapers * Serial (radio and televisi ...
and one of the major participators in Norwegian furniture exports during the 1950s and 1960s. Production was discontinued in 2011.


History

First established in
Øystese Øystese is a village in the municipality of Kvam in Vestland county, Norway. It is located along the Hardangerfjord about east of the municipal centre of Norheimsund. Norwegian County Road 7 passes through the village. The village had a populat ...
during the Second World War, the business relocated to the village of Florvåg on the island
Askøy Askøy is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The island municipality is located in the Midhordland district of the county, sitting in a large group of islands immediately northwest of the city of Bergen. The administrative centre of the ...
, just north of
Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula o ...
, in 1948. The business originally manufactured simple bedroom furniture, like small beds, but during cooperation with Danish designer Ib Juul Christiansen in 1952 the Pega furniture system was developed. This system would become the breakthrough of the company both nationally and internationally, and was based around the concept of being able to combine the various different furniture types in many different ways. Over 50% of production were for exports, mainly to the US and Germany. Exports to the US were handled by the companies Scandialine and ScandiCraft. Due to the massive amounts of production needed for exports, the company moved to new locales slightly north of the area where they first were located. This increased the production are from 500 sq m to 2600 sq m, and opened up the possibility of employing more personnel for the production. The company moved yet again in 1979, this time to Follese on the western side of Askøy. During the 1980s the company started suffering financially due to the market shifting towards larger corporations, making it more difficult for smaller, independent manufacturers to compete. The decline continued during the '90s and parts of the market for exports disappeared. The need for employees was reduced; in 2003 the company had only 12. The financial crisis ruined the last part of the export market, and the board of directors decided to discontinue production in 2011.


References

: Familien Soltvedts Klassiker
Bergens Tidende. Visited 17.12.2012
Fossen, Anders B.: Askøys Historie III - Vår Egen Tid. Bergen 1998, s. 124 Fossen, Anders B.: Askøys Historie III - Vår Egen Tid. Bergen 1998, s. 188
Bergens Tidende. Visited 17.12.2012
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arthur Soltvedt Mobelfabrikk Furniture companies of Norway Defunct companies of Norway Manufacturing companies established in 1942 Manufacturing companies disestablished in 2011 Norwegian companies established in 1942 2011 disestablishments in Norway