ABSTRACT
‘Quality’ was a persistent value used to promote Made in Sweden throughout the twentieth century. This chapter traces how this ‘nationalisation of quality’ was shaped by the interplay between two components. On the one hand, it explains how the changing structure of the economy and consequent shifting of flagship export industries over the course of the twentieth century shaped domestic construction of Swedish national identity. On the other hand, it elucidates how a series of collective, export-promotion initiatives endeavoured to define and promote Made in Sweden, and imbue it with marketing value. By tracing these parallel processes, the chapter shows how different notions of ‘Swedishness’ and definitions of ‘quality’ over time led to ‘Swedish quality’ becoming integral to the value of Made in Sweden. In the concluding section, this long history of short-lived initiatives to promote Swedish quality is interpreted from a political economy perspective. These efforts are viewed as an expression of how social elites in an open, export-dependent economy communicated the national challenge of continuously adjusting to structural change. Whatever their short-term effects on export sales abroad, domestically, Made in Sweden promotions served the long-term purpose of sustaining awareness among industrialists, businesses, unions, and the broader public of the imperative to remain internationally competitive.
