SABA
Corporate brand
UnclaimedSABA is a Norwegian-origin feminine-care and hygiene brand whose operating company became part of Mölnlycke, SCA, and ultimately Essity.
Last updated August 31, 2026
Overview
SABA is a Norwegian-origin hygiene brand and former manufacturing company best known for menstrual pads and other disposable personal-care products. Its industrial history began in 1940, when transport operator and general-store owner Arne Gravdahl started producing modern menstrual pads in a garage at Øvre Råel near Tønsberg. In 1945, Gravdahl and Gunnar Nissen Brager established the Saba factory in a former harpoon-factory building. The enterprise became an important employer in the Tønsberg district, particularly for women, and developed from a local producer into a substantial Norwegian hygiene-products business. The company’s early growth was driven by improvements in disposable menstrual protection. In 1954, its Tønsberg factory introduced Saba de-Luxe, a pad using defibrated cellulose and cotton. The product was positioned as a significant improvement over earlier disposable pads and helped expand sales. SABA later introduced products including pads designed to remain in place without belts or pins, thin pantyliners, and thicker night-use pads. Its marketing was notable in a period when menstruation and feminine hygiene were treated as private subjects and such products were often sold discreetly. The traveling Saba bus, which visited wholesalers in Eastern Norway, helped promote the brand and broaden awareness of disposable feminine-care products. SABA diversified beyond menstrual products. Through cooperation with Swedish manufacturer Mölnlycke, it became involved in the Norwegian distribution of the o.b. tampon brand and in diaper production. By the early 1990s, children’s diapers were the company’s largest product area, while adult incontinence products and menstrual pads remained important. The company also operated an engineering division that developed machinery for manufacturing diapers, pads, and related disposable products. Manufacturing and technical activities were divided among several business units, with the principal factory and development operations in Tønsberg and additional production of technical and chemical goods in Halden. Mölnlycke acquired SABA in 1968 after the companies had established commercial and production cooperation during the preceding decade. Mölnlycke itself was later acquired by Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget, or SCA. In 1996, SCA’s acquisition of Mölnlycke brought SABA into the SCA group. SCA subsequently reorganized its hygiene operations, and those activities were separated into Essity in 2017. The SABA name is now owned by Essity and continues to be used for feminine-care products, although the original Norwegian manufacturing company no longer operates as an independent business. Production in Tønsberg ended in 2002, and the last employees moved from Tønsberg to the Oslo head office in 2007. The former factory and office premises were later used by other businesses for office and storage purposes. SABA also had a public and sporting profile in Norway: Saba Mölnlycke sponsored the Norwegian women’s national football team during the 1979 Nordic Championship hosted in Norway, and the Norwegian women’s football league was known as the Saba Series during the 1980s. The brand’s historical significance therefore combines Norwegian industrial development, the normalization of feminine-care products, and the consolidation of the Nordic hygiene-products sector.
History
SABA’s origins lie in the development of disposable menstrual protection in Norway during the mid-twentieth century. In 1940, Arne Gravdahl, a transport-business and general-store operator from Andebu, began making modern menstrual pads. He worked with Olav Breian in a garage at Øvre Råel, close to Tønsberg. In 1945, Gravdahl and Gunnar Nissen Brager founded the Saba factory in a building that had previously been used as a harpoon factory. The business began operations in a new building in 1951, but a fire destroyed it in 1952. A larger brick facility of approximately 1,000 square metres was then built and equipped with new machinery. The company’s early products addressed a market in transition. Although mass-produced menstrual pads had existed since around 1900, disposable products did not become a widespread replacement for homemade cloths and improvised protection until the 1950s. SABA helped accelerate that transition in Norway. Its 1954 Saba de-Luxe pad combined defibrated cellulose with cotton and was promoted as a superior product. Sales expanded substantially during the decade, supporting larger facilities and a wider product portfolio. The company later offered Saba Self-Sit pads, which used a foam-rubber layer to reduce the need for belts or pins, as well as thin pantyliners and more absorbent night products. SABA’s marketing was distinctive because feminine hygiene remained socially sensitive. Products were often sold under the counter, wrapped discreetly, or kept out of public view. The company’s traveling Saba bus visited wholesalers in Eastern Norway and helped make the brand more visible to retailers. Changes in Norwegian rules and retail practice also allowed tampons to become more broadly available after restrictions based on perceived health risks were removed in the late 1950s. SABA had already entered a partnership with Mölnlycke in 1960, receiving exclusive rights to sell the o.b. tampon brand in Norway. A further cooperative agreement in 1962 covered the production and sale of diapers. During the late 1960s and 1970s, SABA grew into a diversified hygiene-products enterprise. Its Tønsberg operation included consumer marketing, administration, production, and engineering functions. A Halden operation produced technical and chemical goods, including hair and skin-care products, cleaning agents, and adhesives. Employment increased from roughly 30 people in 1954 to several hundred by the 1970s and 1980s. The company became a major local employer and was regarded as a cornerstone of the district. Mölnlycke acquired SABA in 1968, converting the family-founded Norwegian company into a subsidiary of a larger Swedish industrial group. Mölnlycke was itself acquired by SCA in 1975. Under the group structure, SABA manufactured, marketed, and sold Mölnlycke products in Norway while continuing to develop its own market presence. By the early 1990s, children’s diapers represented the company’s largest product area. Menstrual pads and adult diapers remained significant, and the engineering division produced machinery for disposable-hygiene manufacturing. In 1996, SCA acquired Mölnlycke and thereby took control of SABA. SCA decided in 1999 to separate the engineering division and sell it to Italian machinery manufacturer GDM. The Tønsberg factory eventually stopped production in 2002. In 2007, the last employees moved from Tønsberg to the Oslo head office. The former factory and office buildings were subsequently rented to other users, and the SABA building, also referred to as the BASA building, suffered fire damage in 2015. SABA also participated in Norwegian public life through sports sponsorship. Saba Mölnlycke sponsored the Norwegian women’s national football team at the 1979 Nordic Championship in Norway. During the 1980s, the Norwegian women’s football series carried the Saba name. Following the creation of Essity from SCA’s hygiene-products operations in 2017, SABA became an Essity-owned brand. The independent manufacturing company is historical, while the SABA name remains associated with feminine-care products.
- 2017
Brand transferred to Essity
[1]SCA’s hygiene-products operations were separated into Essity, which became the owner of the SABA name.
- 2002
Tønsberg production closed
[1]Manufacturing at the historic Tønsberg site ended.
- 1999
Engineering division sold
[1]SCA sold SABA’s engineering division to Italian disposable-diaper machinery maker GDM.
- 1996
Transferred to SCA
[1]SCA acquired Mölnlycke and brought SABA into its hygiene-products business.
- 1979
Women’s football sponsorship
[1]Saba Mölnlycke sponsored the Norwegian women’s national team at the Nordic Championship held in Norway.
- 1968
Acquired by Mölnlycke
[1]Mölnlycke acquired SABA, making the Norwegian business a subsidiary.
- 1962
Diaper cooperation expanded
[1]SABA and Mölnlycke signed a cooperative agreement covering diaper production and sales.
- 1960
o.b. distribution partnership
[1]SABA entered an agreement with Mölnlycke for exclusive Norwegian sales of the o.b. tampon brand.
- 1954
Saba de-Luxe introduced
[1]The Tønsberg factory developed Saba de-Luxe, a menstrual pad combining defibrated cellulose and cotton.
- 1952
Factory rebuilt after fire
[1]After a fire destroyed the company’s new building, SABA constructed a larger brick facility with new machinery.
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Products and positioning
A practical, mass-market hygiene brand rooted in Norwegian manufacturing and feminine-care innovation, later expanded into diapers and incontinence products under successive Nordic hygiene-products owners.
Menstrual pads · 1954
Saba de-Luxe
Introduced in 1954, Saba de-Luxe used defibrated cellulose and cotton. It represented an important improvement in the company’s early disposable menstrual-pad range and helped drive the expansion of SABA’s production and sales during the 1950s.
Menstrual pads
Saba Self-Sit
Saba Self-Sit pads were designed to remain in position without the belts or pins used by many earlier disposable pads. A foam-rubber layer helped the product stay in place inside fitted underwear.
Feminine hygiene
SABA feminine-care range
The broader SABA feminine-care portfolio included menstrual pads in different absorbency formats, thin pantyliners, and thicker products intended for nighttime use. The SABA name continues to be used by Essity for feminine-care products.
Baby diapers · 1962
SABA diapers
Diapers became a major SABA business area through cooperation with Mölnlycke and were the company’s largest product category by the early 1990s. SABA also participated in the engineering and manufacture of equipment used to produce disposable diapers.
Incontinence care
SABA adult incontinence products
Adult diapers and related incontinence products formed an important part of SABA’s later hygiene-products portfolio alongside children’s diapers and menstrual products.
Wet wipes
SABA wet wipes
Wet wipes were among the disposable hygiene products associated with the SABA business during its development under larger Nordic hygiene-products groups.
Marketing campaigns
- 1979Norwegian women’s football sponsorship
Norway
Saba Mölnlycke sponsored the Norwegian women’s national football team during the Nordic Championship held in Norway.
Outcome. The sponsorship strengthened SABA’s association with Norwegian women’s sport and continued into the 1980s through naming support for the national women’s football series.
- Traveling Saba bus
Eastern Norway
SABA used a traveling branded bus to visit paper, perfume, and knitwear wholesalers. The activity gave the company an unusually visible retail-marketing presence at a time when menstrual products were often sold discreetly.
Outcome. The campaign helped increase product visibility and supported the normalization of disposable feminine-care products in Norwegian retail.
Brand decisions
2017
Transfer to EssityStrategyBackground
SCA separated its hygiene-products operations from the rest of its business.
Action taken
The hygiene-products activities were placed in Essity, which became the owner of the SABA brand.
Aftermath
SABA continued as an Essity-owned feminine-care brand rather than as an independent Norwegian manufacturing company.
2002
Tønsberg production closureStrategyBackground
The historic Tønsberg site had been SABA’s principal Norwegian manufacturing location since the company’s foundation.
Action taken
Production at Tønsberg was discontinued.
Aftermath
The site ceased to function as a SABA manufacturing plant, and the remaining employees later moved to Oslo.
1999
Engineering division divestmentStrategyBackground
SABA’s engineering division developed machinery for producing diapers, pads, and other disposable products.
Action taken
SCA sold the engineering division to GDM, an Italian manufacturer of disposable-diaper machinery.
Aftermath
The transaction separated machinery manufacturing from SABA’s core hygiene-products activities.
1996
SCA acquisition of Mölnlycke and SABAM&ABackground
Mölnlycke had become part of SCA, which later acquired the remaining Mölnlycke business and its subsidiaries.
Action taken
SCA took control of SABA through its acquisition of Mölnlycke.
Aftermath
SABA became part of SCA’s hygiene-products structure before those operations were later separated into Essity.
1968
Mölnlycke acquisitionM&ABackground
SABA had built a relationship with Mölnlycke through tampon distribution and diaper cooperation before becoming the Swedish company’s subsidiary.
Action taken
Mölnlycke acquired SABA and integrated the Norwegian business into its wider hygiene-products operations.
Aftermath
SABA continued operating as a Norwegian manufacturing and marketing business within a larger Nordic industrial group.
Recent events
- 2017
SCA hygiene operations become part of Essity[1]
M&A
SCA separated its hygiene-products activities into Essity, which retained ownership of the SABA name and brand.
- 2007
SABA employees move from Tønsberg to Oslo[1]
Other
The remaining employees transferred from the former Tønsberg operation to the company’s Oslo head office.
- 2002
SABA production ends in Tønsberg[1]
Other
Manufacturing at the historic SABA site in Tønsberg ceased.
- 1996
SCA acquires Mölnlycke and SABA[1]
M&A
SCA’s acquisition of Mölnlycke transferred ownership of SABA into the SCA hygiene-products group.
- 1968
SABA becomes part of Mölnlycke[1]
M&A
Swedish industrial company Mölnlycke acquired the Norwegian SABA business after earlier cooperation involving tampon distribution and diaper production.
Sources1 sources
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