Kahlbom & Co: From employee to co-owner – through quality, craft and care

A good business partnership is vital for a business to flourish. Thomas Kahlbom had started his own flooring business and hired floor sanding specialist, Morten Bergstrøm. It soon became clear that Bergstrøm had the potential for a bigger role in the company.

“It was a bit of a change for me when I became co-owner,” says Bergstrøm. “Previously, I was just an employee receiving weekly assignments, but I was the one conducting most inspections, sending offers, and communicating with customers, so that part was still the same.”

Kahlbom & Co was established by Thomas Kahlbom in February 2011, providing sanding and surface treatment as well as the installation of wooden floors. Reviving an old floor requires skills and knowledge acquired through years of experience, and Bergstrøm was just the man for the job.

“It was actually his former boss who came to us and said we had to bring him onto the team,” Kahlbom says. “Morten is one of the toughest people I have met, both mentally and physically. He is genuinely passionate about his profession, products and techniques, and most importantly, getting the best possible results, and it shows.”

By 2013, Bergstrøm had become an invaluable member of the team. Since the mid-1990s he had built up knowledge about machine handling, process methodologies, different types of wood and the chemistry of surface treatment products and was a master within his trade.

“In terms of knowledge and practicality, he is unique,” says Kahlbom. “He knows everything about machines, machine use, surface treatment products and how to proceed with a project from A to Z.” Hence, making Bergstrøm co-owner was a no-brainer.

With this level of expertise, it didn’t matter that Bergstrøm spent his late teens and early 20s working and honing his skills, instead of getting a business degree. “What was new to me was how to run a company and all the behind-the-scenes mechanics,” Bergstrøm says. “From board meetings to accounting, VAT tasks, employer contributions, etc. Fortunately, Thomas takes care of most of that allowing me to focus on sanding and refinishing floors.”

Mid-process. Newly sanded floor on the left

Expanding the business

In 2013, the company restructured and expanded to selling flooring. “The floor is the largest piece of furniture in any space and it carries the direction of the interior design,” says Kahlbom. “We would say it’s the most important element. The floor should not just be something you walk on, but an extension of your personality, style and interior design.”

There is a lot of pine and spruce in Norway, so naturally, this was commonly used for flooring, until the arrival of oak around 1920. Between 1920-1940 oak soared in popularity. The upper middle class installed solid oak floors in combination with solid oak herringbone or square-patterned flooring with or without frame. For the working class and the middle class, oak was too expensive, so they continued using pine or spruce.

The first engineered floor construction was introduced around 1940. These new production methods and innovations made it cheaper and easier to lay wooden floors. Flooring became a simpler, do-it-yourself product, available to the masses.

Kahlbom & Co. can offer floors for every taste and budget. From those who have bought their first home and want to do it themselves, to established homeowners who want to realise their dream floor. The selection of flooring includes DIY floors from Danish Moland and high-end floors from Italian Fiemme Tremila and Austrian Mafi.

A new lease of life

While a new floor is sure to update the look and style of a home, an old wooden floor can also be revitalised and given a fresh new look. With the use of pigmenting oils, the wood can become lighter or darker. There are also other chemical solutions that create exciting effects, which can be combined with pigmenting oils. “This gives a completely different effect, depth and variation on the floorboards compared to pigmenting oils, but in return requires a little more work and expertise” Bergstrøm explains.

Refinishing old floors, instead of buying new, has many benefits. “It is much more affordable to have a floor sander sand existing floors than it is to lay the same floor new,” Bergstrøm says. “Then there is something about the refinishing versus the use-and-throw-away mentality that I like. Since I have been around for as long as I have, I have actually sanded the same apartments and floors several times.” In a private home, the re-sanding frequency on floors is 15-25 years. How many times a floor can be sanded depends on the thickness of the floor and the wear layer. Thinner floors can be sanded two or three times, with thicker ones up to eight times.

This is something to think about when buying a new floor. A thicker but more expensive floor will have a longer life.

Morten Bergstrøm.

Web: www.kahlbomco.no
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