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Wrangling with debt but still having parts and tools, Borgstrom looked for inspiration. The Second World War slammed the booming ABU to a crawl, slumping demand for watches and meters. Within a few years, the company was again hindered, as the disturbing shadow of war crept near. Daily operation of the business landed on his son, Gote Ingvar Borgstrom. Regarded to be of excellent quality, the meter was a success.Ĭarl August Borgstrom died in 1934 and was survived by his wife and two grown children. Consisting of 800 parts, the complicated black metal box was celebrated at the time as the world’s smallest taxi meter. The company’s first taxi meter was introduced in 1926 under the brand name Record. Hiring engineers and workers, the new proprietor continued to produce luxury watches and expanded development of taxi and telephone meter patents. 28, 1921, Borgstrom established Aktibolag Urfabriken (ABU). Purchasing watchmaking parts and machinery, he located a small factory across the Morrum River from Halda. (Halda later reopened.)īorgstrom saw an opportunity. The Svangsta factory shut down in November 1918 and was parted out for liquidation. The First World War shot down sales, adding stress. He left finances to another worker, who was incapable of managing the growing business. Regrettably, Hammerlund was not adept with Halda’s revenue. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. After 10 years, he was promoted to manager of the assembly department. A skilled craftsman, Borgstrom rose to instructor. All production required co-ordination and intricate tool work. The company received a gold medal in a competition with other watchmakers at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893.Įxpanding to include taxi meters, Halda also built typewriters and telephone meters to time calls. Each took “10 months to produce and the production process included about 3,000 different production elements and testing,” according to Halda Sweden’s Fact Sheet. The watches were expensive, costing over six months’ income. The work required a good eye, precise care with minuscule parts and tools, and clean hands to produce the best pocket watches. Owner Henning Hammerlund was in the watch business, manufacturing the finest time pieces in gold and silver. In 1891, Borgstrom began working at the Halda Company in Svangsta, Sweden, a village on the Morrum River. The name translates generally to a “limited company clock factory.” Hmm … no fishing tackle there. The name Abu is not a surname or first name it is the initials of the Swedish company started in 1921 by Carl August Borgstrom, Aktibolag Urfabriken. Universally popular in retail tackle departments, Abu has been recognized as Abu Garcia since 1978, when the company purchased the struggling Garcia Tackle Company in New York.