Our History

 

Axel Christiernsson has a history that goes back to 1888 in developing and manufacturing lubricating products.

 

Axel Abraham Christiernsson (1848-1919) founded our company October 31st 1888 in Stockholm, Sweden. Production was at that time a mix of lubricants and other chemical/ technical products.

 

In the early 1920's lubricating grease was our core product and since 1982 when our grease factory in Nol, Sweden was opened, strategy shifted to produce private label products only.

 

AXEL left Stockholm in the 1980's and concentrated all activities in the Nordic region out of the Nol site, followed by the acquisition of the Timac grease plant in Heijningen, the Netherlands in 1991, now Axel Christiernsson BV, where the majority of our continental European activities occur.

 

In 1997 AXEL was acquired by Fairford Holdings, which owns 99% of our shares.

 

In 2003 and 2004 AXEL invested heavily in expansion, especially at the Dutch site due to an increase in continental European orders and customer outsourcing contracts.

 

In 2006 Axel Christiernsson acquired Christol Grease SAS from Societe des Petroles Shell SAS in France. This represents a milestone for the AXEL Group. The company's business is an excellent complement and adds a strong position in the French market as well as a new and dedicated production unit for food grade lubricants.

 

In 2007 the turnover of the AXEL Group exceeded 470 MSEK which was well in line with the targeted doubling of the 2002 result. A new business plan was prepared where the main difference from previous versions was the inclusion of a geographical expansion outside of the main European platform. After completion of the new production facilities for "EpochTM" technology, this new concept was introduced into the market with advertisements in industry journals and through a dedicated website.