Östanå

"When 1955 was over, Tetra Pak’s balance sheet total – the sum of debts and equity – amounted to 6,038,382 kronor, of which 6,027,611 kronor were debts. The turnover was at 6,336,633. In the heavily manicured annual report, an operating profit of 48,579 kronor was recorded. In reality, it was about a loss of one million kronor. But the loss was dribbled away by allocating certain expenses to Åkerlund & Rausing’s annual report. The costs for machine development were borne by Östanå, a paper mill that Ruben and Holger had bought during the Second World War. It was only in the closed rooms of Tetra Pak and Åkerlund & Rausing that the real figures could be discussed. This way, they avoided having anxious creditors running in the corridors. And anxious they would have become if they realized the company’s escalating costs."

"To maintain real control over a company, simply owning it is not enough. One must also have executive power in their hands – without it, the influence is limited to what is decided in the boardroom and at shareholders’ meetings. If the Rausing family did not have someone in the CEO position, they would no longer have total control over the operations. Especially since Holger had a controlling stake in the company and could thus block decision-making. But Ruben had no choice: if Holger did not take over the actual management of Tetra Pak, it was not only the dynasty building that would crumble, but the entire life’s work: Åkerlund & Rausing, Östanå, and Tetra Pak."