Morten Engebretsen (LLC) was established in 1901, as a sole proprietorship, when Morten Engebretsen was 30 years old.

Morten Engebretsen had trained to be a goldsmith, and worked as one for a couple of years in Chicago. However, after some years in emigration, he returned to Norway and founded his company in 1901.

Morten Engebretsen started importing copper pipes from England, Germany and the U.S. Later, he also imported tools that were sold to craftsmen and the manufacturing industry.

From 1945, Morten Engebretsen had 4 employees. After World War II, there was a tremendous shortage of raw materials in Norway, so his company imported steel from the U.S., which was used to rebuild Norway. It was a ”blooming” business in the post-war period.

Morten Engebretsen died in 1948, and his son, Herbert, who had been with the company since 1920, took over. The main customer groups at the time were pipe merchants and the manufacturing industry, and Herbert continued to build the company’s portfolio on those two customer groups.

Arne Cato Hannisdahl, who owns the company today together with his two daughters, Karin and Eva, was hired in 1961, and took over the business in 1977 after his uncle. The firm was a sole proprietorship until 1972, when it was made into a Limited Liabilities Corporation. At the beginning of 2003, Eva Hannisdahl Bjørn-Hansen, as fourth generation, has taken over the responsibilities of Morten Engebretsen LLC.

Today, Morten Engebretsen (LLC) has 7 employees. Everyone has their defined role and tasks, however, there is also a great deal of overlapping and thus no formalized communication established.