A CENTURY STRONG ON THE WATER
Since 1926
1911
The Idea - Pre Grundéns
Rain doesn't get you wet like it does when fishing, especially when you have to cast your nets in the bitter cold of the North Sea. That's what Carl A. Grundén, the son of a fisherman from Grundsund, Sweden, thought, and in 1911 he started manufacturing his own waterproof clothing to last a whole day at sea. Dry and comfortable.
Back then, waterproof didn't mean Gore-Tex or three-layer materials. It meant oilskin. A raw cotton cloth, soaked in boiled linseed oil, left to dry for two weeks, then covered with a layer of varnish. It was a heavy, stiff piece of equipment, sticky when wet, but it offered what mattered most to those who sailed the seas every day. Durability.
As more and more fishermen asked for such clothes, Carl began to produce them on a larger scale. However, everything came to a halt in 1914, with the outbreak of World War I, when the raw material became impossible to procure.
1911-1926
Local Workshop to Launch Of Grundéns
After a break of over a decade, in 1926, Carl started all over again and founded the company Grundéns Regnkläder AB. A name that would eventually become synonymous with fishing clothing in northern Europe. Grundéns mainly produced thick, handmade capes and jackets, each tailored to local requirements. There was no actual production line yet. The equipment was made to order, in small batches, for fishermen in western Sweden and the archipelago.
1930’s
Rubber Textiles
The 1930's Grundéns began innovating with rubberized gear, looking for protection balanced with mobility. The new material was lighter and offered more flexibility and movement than oilskins. This also eliminated the strong smell of linseed oil, and was even more abrasion resistant, comfortable, and allowed faster production. Grundéns was becoming more than a local workshop at this point.
1950’s
Birth Of Herkules
The revolution came in the 1950s with the introduction of PVC-coated materials. Grundéns applied a protective layer over special textiles, and the result was a garment that no longer absorbed anything. It was easy to clean, did not stain, and was resistant to blood, salt, fish, water, ice, and everything that comes with working on the deck of a fishing boat.
The piece de resistance becomes, in 1954, the Grundéns Herkules model, a heavy duty overall, made of PVC-coated material over a poly/cotton base, 610 g/m², still manufactured today in a similar form, unchanged in its essential design. The history of Grundéns is rewritten again. Herkules and Grundéns become an orange emblem of protection, on the water and against its most rugged conditions.
1950’s-1970
Growth & Expansion
The first serious orders came from Norway, Iceland and Canada, then from the United States, where Grundéns quickly became a favorite among commercial fishermen. Those who spent months at sea, in the North Atlantic, the Gulf of Alaska or the Barents Sea, found in Grundéns an ally that could withstand moisture, cold and wear. If you went to sea, you took your Grundéns.
1972
Portugal Factory, America’s Cup
In 1972, Grundéns moved production to Portugal, in Lisbon, where it opened its own factory. The move allowed for better quality coordination and a gradual expansion of the product line. Grundéns became the official sponsor of yachting equipment for the America's Cup in 1977 and began to become increasingly well-known on both coasts of America.
1991
Grundéns USA & New Markets
In 1991, brothers Mike and Dave Jackson took over the distribution rights for North America and founded Grundéns US. Three years later, in 1994, the Grundéns South America division was opened in Santiago Chile. An important step in the history of Grundéns for everything that was to follow globally.
2015
Sport Fishing Introduction
Grundéns launches the first collection dedicated to sport fishing, as sport fishermen continued to request the Grundéns standard of rugged on the water protection paired with lighter weight materials and advanced technical feature sets.
2017
Technical Footwear
The dampness and coldness of the feet were also taking their toll, so in 2017 the 15-inch Deck Boss boots launched, continuing to further Grundéns lineup of on deck protection. Sturdy, comfortable and built for a full day on the water. It was just the beginning of an increasingly diverse range of technical footwear, adapted to modern fishing.
2019
Gore-Tex® Collaboration
Grundéns begins its collaboration with Gore-Tex® and launches the first waterproof equipment with a breathable membrane, designed specifically for the full range of sport fishing applications. A durable, field-tested line that enters the market in 2020 and marks Grundéns expansion into delivering premium performance fishing products at Grundéns standards of on the water protection.
2021
Bass & Open-Water Collection
Grundéns becomes the official footwear sponsor for the USA bass fishing tournaments and MLF Pro Tour. An important addition to the brand's expansion of technical fishing products and its trusted use by professional sport fishermen around the world.
2023
Waders & Wading Boots
Grundéns launches its first-ever wader collection in the GORE-TEX® Boundary Wader, featuring laminated GORE-TEX® Pro materials. A natural step in performance protection merging a century of protection on the water experience with technical wade fishing product lines. Wading boots follow, with the Bankside Wading Boot featuring Vibram soles for superior grip and Grundéns grade durability.
2026
Continued Innovation
A century ago, a fisherman's son in Grundsund soaked raw cotton in linseed oil because protection from the elements on a fishing boat was not the same as protection anywhere else.
From hand-oiled cotton capes to GORE-TEX® , from a Swedish fishing village to our own ISO-9000 certified factory in Portugal, the through-line has never moved: make gear that protects people, and stand behind every piece of it.
The next century is already underway. New materials, new water, new generations pulling a living from it. Yet the mission remains the same as the one Carl started with. Keep them dry. Keep them working. Keep them protected.
Since 1926.