Manufacturer · Sweden · Bodafors · 1918–1971
Bodafors
Bodafors (Svenska Möbelfabrikerna Bodafors, 1918–1971) – Swedish furniture maker, producer of furniture by Axel Larsson, Bertil Fridhagen and Folke Ohlsson.
We have no pieces by Bodafors available right now.
New pieces arrive every week. See what we have offered before below, or browse the shop.
About the manufacturer
- Years active
- 1918–1971
- Country
- Sweden
- Location
- Bodafors
Svenska Möbelfabrikerna was a Swedish furniture company based in Bodafors, Småland (Nässjö Municipality), founded in 1918 through the merger of nine factories. Its roots date back to 1872, when Axel Hägg began small-scale chair production in Boda, on the Emån River. In 1886, the factory was taken over by Frans Zeinwoldt, who had learned furniture making in the United States and began producing furniture sets. In 1897, the company received a silver medal at an exhibition in Stockholm for its birch “bamboo” furniture.
In 1919, Elsa Gullberg organised a competition for furniture designs for the company. At the Stockholm Exhibition in 1930, the company presented affordable mass-produced furniture designed by Osvald Almqvist, Eskil Sundahl and Axel Larsson, while Larsson’s chair 1027 was presented at the New York World’s Fair in 1939. In the 1950s and 1960s, furniture was produced here for the Swedish middle class, including Bertil Fridhagen’s Facett, Bonett and Variett series and the Skandinett series by Sven Engström and Gunnar Myrstrand from 1961. The company also worked with Carl Malmsten, Uno Åhrén, Carl-Axel Acking and Folke Ohlsson.
In 1954, the company was taken over by the Åtvidaberg group; in 1958, an in-house school for cabinetmakers was established, and in 1961 a new factory (C-fabriken) was opened. In 1971, the company was incorporated into Bra Bohag/Dux. The factory buildings, except for the oldest, were demolished in 1992; Emåns Ekomuseum operates in the preserved mill building. Furniture from Bodafors is held in the collections of Nationalmuseum and Röhsska Museum.
