C. Geijer & Co
C. Geijer & Co was a Norwegian industrial company that began as a metals wholesaler and became a major producer of wire, fencing products, and a small number of automobiles.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
C. Geijer & Co was a Norwegian industrial company founded in 1869 in Kristiania, the former name of Oslo, by Swedish expatriate Carl Axel Geijer. The business initially operated as a wholesaler of iron and other metal products, serving the expanding industrial and construction economy of nineteenth-century Norway. It subsequently developed manufacturing operations, particularly in wire and fencing-related products, and became one of the leading Norwegian companies in that field. The company’s history combined metalworking, infrastructure-related production, and vehicle-body manufacture. Its fencing activities formed the core of the business, while a separate subdivision produced automobiles under the Geijer name from 1923 to 1930. The car project used imported powertrain and transmission components but manufactured several other parts, including coachwork, at the company’s Kristiania facilities. Approximately 25 Geijer cars were produced. The company also built around 300 bus coachworks, making its vehicle operation more significant as a body-building activity than as a mass automobile manufacturer. No Geijer cars are known to have survived. After Carl Axel Geijer died in 1899, control eventually passed to C. J. Aasgaard. Management then moved within the Aasgaard family: Torleif Aasgaard assumed leadership in 1927, followed by Tor and Iver Aasgaard in 1952. This succession preserved the company as an established industrial enterprise during a period of changing ownership structures and technology in Norwegian manufacturing. From 1983, C. Geijer & Co cooperated with Trondhjems Jernindustri in the fencing-products business. The company’s financial position deteriorated toward the end of the 1980s. In 1989, Trondhjems Jernindustri sold Geijer to the Swedish company Gunnebo. The available reference material does not establish the company’s precise legal status or the extent to which the C. Geijer & Co name continued after that transaction. Historically, the company is notable for its role in Norwegian wire and fencing manufacture, its family-led industrial management, and the short-lived Geijer automobile and bus-body operation.
History
C. Geijer & Co was established in 1869 in Kristiania by Carl Axel Geijer, a Swedish expatriate. Its original business model was wholesale distribution of iron and other metal products. As the enterprise developed, it moved beyond trading into manufacturing, especially the production of wire and fencing-related goods. These activities placed the company among Norway’s leading businesses in its sector and gave it a durable role in industrial supply and infrastructure-related manufacturing. Following Geijer’s death in 1899, the company eventually came under the control of C. J. Aasgaard. Management remained associated with the Aasgaard family for much of the twentieth century. Torleif Aasgaard took over leadership in 1927, and in 1952 responsibility passed to Tor and Iver Aasgaard. The available account does not provide complete dates for every ownership or management transition, but the succession indicates that the company retained a family-led structure across several decades. Between 1923 and 1930, a company subdivision pursued automobile production under the Geijer name. The cars were assembled using engines supplied by Hershell-Spillmann initially and by Lycoming Engines from 1926. Their gearboxes came from Mechanics Machine Co. Other components, including the coachwork, were produced at the company’s Kristiania works. The total output was approximately 25 automobiles, and none is known to survive. C. Geijer & Co also manufactured approximately 300 bus coachworks, suggesting that vehicle bodies and commercial transport construction were more substantial activities than the small number of complete cars might imply. The company’s principal identity nevertheless remained tied to metal, wire, and fencing products. In 1983 it entered into cooperation with Trondhjems Jernindustri in the fencing business. During the latter part of the 1980s, C. Geijer & Co experienced worsening financial circumstances. In 1989, Trondhjems Jernindustri sold the company to Gunnebo, a Swedish industrial group. The supplied historical material does not clarify whether C. Geijer & Co continued as an independent legal entity, was absorbed into Gunnebo, or retained its name for particular products. Its documented historical importance rests on its contribution to Norwegian fencing and wire manufacture and on its unusual, limited venture into automobile and bus-body production.
- 1989
Company sold to Gunnebo
[1]Trondhjems Jernindustri sold C. Geijer & Co to the Swedish company Gunnebo.
- 1983
Fencing-products cooperation established
[1]C. Geijer & Co began cooperating with Trondhjems Jernindustri in fencing products.
- 1952
Tor and Iver Aasgaard take leadership roles
[1]Management passed to Tor and Iver Aasgaard.
- 1930
Geijer automobile production ends
[1]The company’s limited automobile production period concluded after approximately 25 cars had been made.
- 1927
Torleif Aasgaard assumes leadership
[1]Leadership of the company passed to Torleif Aasgaard.
- 1926
Lycoming engines adopted for Geijer cars
[1]Lycoming Engines became the engine supplier for Geijer automobiles.
- 1923
Geijer automobile production begins
[1]A subdivision began producing automobiles under the Geijer name.
- 1899
Death of founder
[1]Carl Axel Geijer died, after which the company eventually passed to C. J. Aasgaard.
- 1869
Company established in Kristiania
[1]Carl Axel Geijer founded C. Geijer & Co as a wholesaler of iron and other metal products.
Products and positioning
A Norwegian industrial manufacturer and metal-products supplier with a core position in wire and fencing products, supplemented by vehicle-body production during the interwar period.
Industrial metal products
Wire and fencing products
Wire and fencing products became the company’s principal manufacturing activities after it expanded from metal wholesaling. C. Geijer & Co was described as one of Norway’s leading companies in this field. The business later cooperated with Trondhjems Jernindustri in fencing products from 1983.
Automobiles · 1923
Geijer automobiles
Produced by a subdivision between 1923 and 1930, Geijer automobiles used imported engines and gearboxes while several other components and the coachwork were made at the Kristiania works. Approximately 25 cars were produced, and none is known to exist today.
Commercial-vehicle bodies
Geijer bus coachworks
The company produced approximately 300 bus coachworks. This body-building activity formed a considerably larger documented vehicle output than the company’s complete automobile production and complemented its broader metalworking capabilities.
Brand decisions
1989
Sale to GunneboM&ABackground
C. Geijer & Co experienced deteriorating financial circumstances in the late 1980s.
Action taken
Trondhjems Jernindustri sold the company to Swedish industrial company Gunnebo.
Aftermath
The available sources do not specify the subsequent legal or brand status of C. Geijer & Co.
1983
Cooperate with Trondhjems Jernindustri in fencing productsStrategyBackground
C. Geijer & Co remained focused on fencing products but entered a period of industrial cooperation.
Action taken
The company cooperated with Trondhjems Jernindustri in the fencing-products business.
Aftermath
The company’s financial situation worsened toward the end of the 1980s, and it was sold to Gunnebo in 1989.
1923
Enter automobile manufacturingProduct launchBackground
After establishing itself in metal and fencing products, the company created a subdivision for automobile production.
Action taken
It began producing Geijer-branded cars, combining imported engines and gearboxes with locally made components and coachwork.
Aftermath
The program produced approximately 25 cars before ending in 1930, while the company also built about 300 bus coachworks.
Sources1 sources
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