GARO appoints Tobias Byfeldt as new President and CEO

GARO has appointed Tobias Byfeldt as its new President and CEO, to assume the role as soon as possible but no later than within six months; he joins from PIAB Group’s Lifting Automation Division and holds an MSc from Chalmers. Byfeldt previously served as CEO of Kollmorgen Automation AB and as a vice president at Regal Rexnord’s Autonomous Mobile Solutions division, and the board expects him to drive profitable growth and a winning culture while advancing GARO’s international expansion. The appointment underscores GARO’s continued strategic emphasis on electrification and e‑mobility within its electrical distribution and project business offering; the change was disclosed under the EU Market Abuse Regulation on Dec. 16, 2025.

Analysis

GARO has appointed Tobias Byfeldt as its new President and CEO, to assume the role as soon as possible but no later than within six months; the company published the appointment under the EU Market Abuse Regulation on December 16, 2025. Byfeldt joins from PIAB Group’s Lifting Automation Division (part of Patricia Industries) and previously served as CEO of Kollmorgen Automation AB and Vice President at Regal Rexnord’s Autonomous Mobile Solutions, bringing engineering credentials (MSc from Chalmers) and international leadership experience.

Byfeldt’s background in automation, autonomous mobile solutions and stated focus on building a winning culture aligns with GARO’s product mix—electrical distribution, E‑mobility, project business and temporary power—and the company’s positioning in the electrification transition. The board explicitly expects him to drive profitable growth and international expansion, signaling a strategic emphasis on scaling E‑mobility and export markets rather than short‑term restructuring.

Market signals register a mildly positive sentiment (score 0.25) and limited immediate market impact, suggesting investors view the hire as constructive but not transformational absent quantitative targets. Key execution risks include the up-to-six-month transition, the absence of near‑term financial guidance in the release, and the need to demonstrate measurable uplifts in international sales, E‑mobility revenue and margins before the market re-rates GARO.

Key Decisions for Investors

• Monitor the CEO transition and demand a clear strategic roadmap and KPIs on E‑mobility revenue, international growth and margin targets before materially increasing exposure
• Remain neutral-to-cautiously positive in the near term: consider small, staged purchases on weakness if management provides concrete targets for profitable growth, otherwise maintain or trim positions to limit exposure to execution risk
• Watch for near-term catalysts (formal strategy presentation, CEO start date, next quarterly report) and re-evaluate positioning only after evidence of execution against the board’s stated objectives