Dissatisfaction gave rise to an idea and a belief in the future. 15 years later, HydX is one of the most competitive and innovative hydraulics companies in the Nordics, and its services are sought after by contractors and machine manufacturers around the world. 
“We set a goal to be the best in the field by building the company on values that reflect us as people. We must always be able to stand behind what we do,” says Henrik Pålsson, 
one of the founders of the company. Today, he is a sales manager, and in this four-part interview series he is the first to tell us his story about how HydX grew from an idea to success. 
 
HydX’s founders Patrik Broman, Mikael Andersson, Håkan Erlandsson, Henrik Pålsson and Stefan Holmberg had been working together for a couple of years, but none of them were thrilled with the strategy their then employer was using. When Stefan was called to a meeting with the group management and was let go there and then, his colleagues did not hesitate. One after the other, they left behind the strategy they did not believe in and within a couple of weeks the five partners had resigned to start a new. 
Together. 
“It was a very exciting time, autumn 2009,” Henrik Pålsson recollects. 
“I didn’t feel at home with certain parts of the strategy, but what bothered me most were the values. They did not align with mine, and I realised that I couldn’t continue working with something I did not fundamentally believe in. It isn’t possible to live with a lie, it’s neither right nor sustainable. Despite that, I had unbelievable qualms about it. I was sales manager for one of Sweden’s biggest hydraulics companies, a very nice and challenging job, and I felt at home in that role and especially with the people I worked with.”  
How was the idea born? 
“I guess it was born out of dissatisfaction, and someone blurted out that we could do this so much better ourselves. Things were really set in motion when the CEO change became a reality. That’s when we realised it was our only alternative.” 
From dissatisfaction to starting a new company in a competitive field. How did you manage to work around it? 
 “Firstly, Stefan had both started and sold companies before while being a CEO for many years. That expertise and experience laid the foundation for us and was certainly a prerequisite of our success. I remember the aggressive business plan where we set ambitious goals. We would reach a turnover of 100 million SEK in seven or eight years. I remember thinking: ‘How will we manage that?’”  
“At the same time, I had learnt that one needs to aim really high to be able to think freely. If you aim too low, your thoughts will stick to that same way of thinking. To evolve you must think outside the box.” 
You speak of your values. How did they influence the founding of HydX? 
“We decided on our values from the start, agreed that they should reflect us as people and that we should observe them in everything we do. It still stands today. We decided that we would be the best, we set a clear goal and strategy where everyone was involved. We recruited the right employees: Mike Budd, who had worked with us before and whom we trusted, and Per-Arne Nyberg, who was an experienced salesperson. We then hired Per-Olof Persson as mechanic, Carina Johansson as administrator and Liselot Feikes de Groot as buyer. Already in 2010 we took the next step and hired three salespersons in Gothenburg – Peter Eklund, who had been CEO, sales manager Stefan Carlbom and Tomas Järvelä.  
How did you succeed in recruiting so much competence in such a short time? 
“That’s a good question, but we simply contacted competent people we knew could make a difference. Besides, I think they simply believed in us and, just like us, had some hesitations about the strategy of their employer at the time. From there we kept building further by always making sure that we were a good employer.” 
You were starting a new company, that much was clear, but how did you finance it? 
“We could have started it all by ourselves, and we would have, if that had been what we wanted. However, we wanted to be able to kickstart the company, which required capital. It was not easy to go to the bank and ask for a loan as a start-up company in 2009 in the middle of the deepest recession.  
A mutual acquaintance of ours gave us a lead about contacting Karl-Axel Granlund at Volito in Malmö who was interested in investing in an industrial company. We made an outstanding presentation on our business plan, and Volito was impressed. They partnered up with us, which meant that they could guarantee our financial security while we could start negotiations with the banks. This kickstarted our business just like we had wanted. Our previous employer was in a panic and we got some easy business deals, and just like that we were in business.” 
What was that time like? 
“It was an unbelievably groundbreaking time, I went from turning off my computer with thousands of emails and leaving all the negativity behind me to turning on a brand new, blank computer and building a company from the ground up. We had nothing, not even suppliers; we started in literally empty premises in Ystad. There was nothing there, not even toilet paper. We got to choose some office furniture, which Volito had discarded from their offices, just to get started. Everything happened so quickly and was very intensive, but there was no turning back. In March 2010 we made our first business deals that involved construction.” 
Did you ever have any doubts? 
“Yes, of course I did. But, at the same time, I was following my values and I knew that the five of us who started this had great knowledge and now it was all up to me. In the beginning, I was in charge of sales, but when Patrik and Per-Arne became available and we hired the three salespersons in Gothenburg, I felt that we weren’t as vulnerable anymore. We were finally a team that we could build on. And what a team we were! 
Have you asked why Karl-Axel Granlund chose to invest in you of all companies? 
“Yes, I did ask him once and he answered that he saw our competence and that there was experience, expertise and that we knew what we were talking about. HydX is still a company based on competence, experience and simplicity in everything we do and in how we operate towards suppliers, municipalities, customers and partners. Those values are deeply rooted in us.  
How does it show in your work towards your suppliers and customers? 
“Everyone is free to express their opinions, and we build long-standing relationships where we and our partners can evolve. The feedback we have received also tells us that our partners are happy with this kind of collaboration.” 
You keep mentioning your values, but at the same time you have grown very fast. What are your thoughts on recruitment? 
“The whole time, we have been very careful in our recruitment, and during the first years we could recruit from within our own network. This has become more difficult over the past five years, and we now need help when we are hiring competent people. However, our values have not changed. We will never compromise on our values, they are the reason we have come this far and they will also take us into the future.”