On Thursday 30 November 2023, Frants Frantsen's 50th anniversary will be celebrated at SOBY; the family business that first produced wooden silos and has since developed into a leading player in the field of transport and aeration of crops. In connection with the anniversary, Frants reflects on the development of the times, family spirit and the ability to adapt. He sees the anniversary as a milestone that not only celebrates the past, but also paints an exciting picture of the future.
The ability to adapt made the company grow
Frants Frantsen had not given much thought to the future when, as a young boy, he agreed to build silos in his father's carpentry business. He was a trained mechanic and had just finished his military service. But he wanted to work with his father and wasn't afraid to try something new. The ability to adapt proved to be a strength that Frants built the company on. The market developed quickly and Frants was good at seeing the opportunities. He expanded the portfolio with iron silos and aeration systems, so that the application became more flexible. The company moved to larger facilities close to the original business and started exporting to Europe. Frants says that it was the ability to adapt that made the company grow bigger.
The urge to create was in the family's DNA
Today, SOBY is managed by two of Frant's three children, Mette and Morten. He says that it was important for him to never put pressure on them - but that the urge to create was probably laid in their DNA, just as it was for himself. "We are passionate and history has been important in our family. After my father's death, I took over together with my sister and brother-in-law. The children got spare time jobs and came to the factory every day. It ended up being what they were passionate about, and that makes me incredibly grateful. This means that I can still be part of SOBY, even though I have partially retired. But it was also important to bring in a new generation, so that they could go one step further to follow the development, just as I did myself", he says.
Now we must celebrate the future - the 50 years are history
Frants Frantsen regards the anniversary as a milestone, but does not have many words about the time that has passed. He would rather pay tribute to the future. "It has been a huge development from almost nothing to what SOBY is today. We started by building wooden silos for the local area, and now we export more than half of the production. But the 50 years have passed, and we don't get much out of dwelling on them. I think the young forces are leading SØBY towards something much more exciting, where digitization and technology take up more space than ever before," he concludes. SOBY marks the 50th anniversary internally, as a grateful recognition of 50 years of activity and a milestone in the journey towards new opportunities.