NEW RESEARCH | Fur industry in Tranås a heroic tale of small business – but many voices are missing

When the Tranås Fur Museum tells the story of the town’s former pride – the fur industry – it is a heroic tale of enterprising entrepreneurs that is highlighted. But far from all voices are heard.

– It’s basically the same stories that come up again and again – from the 1930s until today. The perspective of the entrepreneurs has been dominant throughout the period, says Sofie Lindeberg.

She recently defended her doctoral thesis at Linköping University, where she studied how the cultural heritage of the fur industry in Tranås was created and shaped. The doctoral thesis has grown out of a donation from the Tranås säteri foundation, which aimed to promote local history research.

During the 1950s and 60s, Tranås was a Swedish center for fur processing and sewing, with over 150 companies linked to the fur industry. Raw skins were imported from all over the world and processed locally, then sold on both within Sweden and internationally.

– It was a very global industry, creating many jobs and drawing tourists to the city. But the stories that have been preserved are very selective.

The stories are repeated

In her study, Sofie Lindeberg has followed how actors such as entrepreneurs, the Tranås fur club and later also the municipality, created and recreated the description of the industry’s heyday. It is often a story about entrepreneurs who with their own hands built up a thriving industry – something that has been useful in the marketing of Tranås as a town.

– It is classic self-made men who are highlighted. While the voices of the women who sewed, the immigrants who worked and the animal rights activists who protested are missing. They have no place in the official cultural heritage.

A clear example is the Tranås Fur Museum, which was started in 2003 by a group of elderly furriers in the Tranås Fur Club. When the municipality took over the business in 2020, the museum was rebuilt – but the content did not change significantly.

– The stories were largely the same again. Partly because the same people were hired as experts, and partly because the pandemic prevented a broader reference group from participating in the process, says Sofie Lindeberg.

Working in the shadows

Particularly invisible in the stories are the many women who worked as home seamstresses without formal employment.

– They made up a large part of the workforce, but are barely mentioned. Nor is there any mention of the physical stresses and working conditions they were subjected to.

Her research also shows that immigrant labor has been central to meeting the needs of the industry, but this group is also missing from the stories. Criticism of the fur industry – which became more visible from the 1970s onwards – is also absent.

– The fur industry is portrayed as unproblematic. The criticism that has always existed regarding both animal husbandry and environmental impact has been omitted from the cultural heritage that is conveyed, says Sofie Lindeberg.

Relevance far beyond Tranås

The thesis is also relevant for other municipalities and localities working with local industrial heritage. It shows the importance of asking: Whose stories are being preserved – and why?

– You don’t have to include all perspectives, but you should be aware of who you exclude, and why. It says something about who is considered to have a legitimate story to tell.

She also highlights the importance of cooperation in smaller communities, where cultural heritage can become a shared resource – but where there is also a risk of silencing some voices in the process.

– There was a strong sense of community between the companies in Tranås. They were competitors, but they helped each other. This is both a strength and a challenge when trying to portray a more nuanced past, says Sofie Lindeberg.

Contact sofie.lindeberg@liu.se

More about the thesis
Sofie Lindeberg defends her thesis at Linköping University May 23 The fur industry as local cultural heritage – Cultural heritage creation processes in Tranås 1983-2025.