Abu Garcia

History

In 1921, by the river of Mörrum in Svängsta, Sweden, Carl August Borgström founded AB Urfabriken. The company manufactured pocket watches, telephone timers and taxi meters. Borgström was a brilliant craftsman with a talent for light precision engineering; skills he had acquired during his years in the Halda watchmaking factory.

Unfortunately, World War II caused a sharp decline in the demand for taxi meters. Undaunted, ABU redirected its skills toward the development of precision fishing reels used by anglers the world over. That’s why Abu Garcia later received the honor of being chosen “Purveyor To The Royal Swedish Court,” a distinction bestowed upon a select group of manufacturers for consistently exceeding its highest standards of quality and craftsmanship.

Abu Garcia’s influence on the sportfishing community is unmatched. The company remains firmly committed to maintaining its industry leadership position by providing anglers everywhere with the highest quality, most innovative products.

• 1921 – AB Urfabriken is founded as a watch factory in Svängsta, Sweden
• 1941 – The first Abu Garcia fishing reel, the ABU Record® is introduced
• 1952 – The world famous Ambassadeur® reel is introduced
• 1954 – Abu Garcia® unveils the Ambassadeur® 5000 at the New York World's Fair
• 1955 – The ABU 444, the company’s first spinning reel is produced
• 1956 – The ABUMatic® is introduced
• 1965 – The Cardinal® spinning reel makes its debut
• 1977 – The ABU museum is opened in Svangsta, Sweden
• 1984 – The company name is changed from ABU to Abu Garcia when a company distributor in the US called Garcia was combined with ABU
• 2006 – The Revo low profile baitcast reel takes the angling community by storm
• 2009 – Abu Garcia releases the V-Series of rods with the Vendetta and Vengeance
• 2010 – The first Revo spinning reel is introduced