Roger Johansson has worked for HR for 18 years, but he is still a new HR dealer in Annapolis.
Roger says: ‘I was born and raised in Göteborg, Sweden, and we always had a summer house, my dad’s old family farm, on Orust. Orust is the island where Hallberg-Rassys are
built. We left Göteborg for good in 1980 and moved out to Orust. This is when I started sailing around the island and up to the fjords of Norway. I began my career in the automotive industry as an auto electrician trouble-shooter for Volvo and GM. I left for the US in 1989 and got involved with Free State Yachts and Hallberg-Rassy, helping out delivering HR 49s to various shows here on the east coast between Newport Rhode Island and Miami. The first few years I was over here I did some travelling around and worked with Free State on and off before deciding to settle in the US. Then I started to work full time for Free State Yachts, taking care
of their charter fleet and the commissioning and warranty of the new HRs. After working closely for many years with Mr. Bill Adams, the founder of Free State Yachts, and getting to know the business well, I was given the opportunity to buy the company - which I did on February 1st 2005. I am also pleased to announce that Mr. Adams will be staying on as broker. We, the staff here at Free State Yachts, are looking forward to continuing our work of marketing and selling Hallberg-Rassys in the years to come.’

Leif Gunnar Roger Johansson