25 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

2000 - the first major mission

C2 Vertical Safety was founded at that time by brothers Mattias Åkesson and Mikael Johansson, their friend and colleague Tore Nerland, and entrepreneur Bengt Kjell and his son Johan. From the start, the company distributed the Petzl, La Sportiva and Beal brands. C2's CEO, Mattias Åkesson, explains:

- Mikael and I had represented the three brands in the Swedish market since 1994. Initially, we did so through the Crux company, which grew very dramatically and which we eventually split into two companies - after which Mikael and I chose to proceed with the newly established C2 Vertical Safety together with our partners. We established an optimistic business plan, with the aim of developing the distribution of headlamps and expanding the training business.

"It was a time characterised by a strong entrepreneurial spirit," Mattias explains. Two particularly notable events occurred in the year C2 was founded: firstly, the technology for headlamps was revolutionised. Secondly, training services took off in connection with the major breakthrough in telecoms and the development of the related infrastructure. "C2 Vertical Safety was also very early to join the new online store trend, and collaborated with the e-commerce company Addnature," says Mattias.

- In the spring of 2000 we had no premises, so we set up a temporary office in my flat. Shortly thereafter, we received an unofficial invitation from Ericsson to Saudi Arabia. It was one of our first assignments, a big job that involved five weeks of fall protection training on site in Saudi Arabia for the 3G construction. The circumstances were very special, but after that everything moved at high speed. By the end of the autumn, we had moved into a new office in the old bicycle factory on St. Olofsgatan in Uppsala.

After two decades of strong growth and development, we celebrated our 20th anniversary in 2020, when we realised that C2 Vertical Safety had grown from a small entrepreneurial start-up to become an established player in both distribution and training - with an obvious role in the safety industry.

Much has happened since then. The last five years have been characterised by continued expansion, both in range and expertise. We have further developed our training services and broadened our activities into new sectors, while deepening our partnerships with world-leading brands. Our role as specialists and advisors on safety at height issues has become even clearer, and we have been entrusted with contributing to projects of vital importance to society, including through our LEAF.

As we celebrate 25 years, we look back on a journey that has taken us from a makeshift office in an apartment to one of Europe's premier high-altitude training centres. In the years to come, we will continue to build on the same foundations that have always carried us: commitment, partnership and a tireless drive to make working at height safer for all.

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