About Ryds

Ryds today

Our history shows our proud heritage of making products that bring joy.  Products which have enriched the leisure hours of many people. Leisure we all needed and now need more than ever to give strength, health and relaxation. Our products are the key to the natural world, with the excitement of the sea, unique coastal environments and mirror calm lakes. Products that stimulate family life and socialising. They encourage adventure, discoveries and play. And take you away from the stress and worries of everyday life. Ryds spices up your leisure time with pure joy.

Ryds yesterday

Behind every strong brand there is serious human effort and hard work.

In Ryds’ case, two individuals in particular were largely responsible for the emergence of the company.  The founder, Gunnar Pettersson, and Bo Köllerfors, who started at the company in the 1960s, and gradually developed Ryds into a modern boat manufacturer. These two were in the picture when the company was sold to Volvo and when it became independent again. By the mid-1980s, the company had over 50 employees, and produced over 3,500 boats per year.  These were mostly smaller boats, but this was soon to change. At the end of the 1980s, the company was bought by the US OMC group, who had new visions and an ambition to expand into Europe.

But environmental aspects emerged as a major challenge, and environmental standards came very close to ending the company's operation. The high level of ambition required new permits, and this stirred up a hornets nest. OMC tired of the obstacles, and wanted to sell the company, which required new production methods to satisfy environmental standards. Eventually, the vacuum injection moulding technique made all the difference, and when Ryds was sold to the Nimbus Group in the 1990s, it was one of a handful of boat manufacturers who had invested massively in vacuum injection moulding.  A technique that reduces emissions to 1/8th.  Ryds then experienced several  very successful years, and established itself as one of the leading brands in the market.  There were now close to 100 employees, but all of them were hit unjustly hard by the bankruptcy of the Nimbus Group in 2012, when operations were forced to close down.

But never say die. Several of the driving spirits behind the ”old” Ryds stepped up to the mark and got operations going again in 2012. The whole company was now adapted to the new realities, with totally new production methods and a clear focus on environmental issues.  The present CEO, Tom Kühne, is delighted to be managing one of the boating world's most modern companies.

Ryds’ heritage is of Swedish patience, genuine craftsmanship and productive entrepreneurship. Factors which are intangible but easy to take on board, and which may, in fact, be the best foundation a company can have.