List of Germans - Company Founders

Company Founders

  • John Jacob Bausch (1830–1926), co-founder of Bausch & Lomb, makers of contact lenses and Ray-Ban sunglasses
  • Friedrich Bayer (1825–1880), founder of what would become Bayer, chemical and pharmaceutical company
  • Paul Carl Beiersdorf (1836–1896), founded Beiersdorf AG manufacturers of Nivea, Eucerin, etc.
  • Amalie Auguste Melitta Bentz (1873–1950), invented the coffee filter and started Melitta, manufacturers of coffee, paper coffee filters, and coffee makers.
  • Karl Benz (1844–1929), inventor of the gasoline-powered automobile, co-founder of the automobile manufacturer Mercedes-Benz
  • Maximilian Delphinius Berlitz (1852–1921), founded Berlitz Language Schools
  • Carl Bertelsmann (1791–1850), founder of Bertelsmann AG, subsidiaries include Random House and BMG.
  • Johann Adam Birkenstock, in 1774 founded Birkenstock shoe company
  • Robert Bosch (1861–1942), industrialist, engineer and inventor, founder of Robert Bosch GmbH
  • Hugo Boss (1885–1948), fashion designer, founder of Hugo Boss AG
  • Max Braun (1883–1967), founded Braun GmbH, makers of electric shavers and trimmers, Oral-B products, thermometers, blood pressure monitors, coffee makers and other home appliances.
  • Adolphus Busch (1839–1913), co-founder of Anheuser-Busch brewing company.
  • Adolph Coors (1847–1929), started the Adolph Coors Company brewery, now part of MillerCoors.
  • Gottlieb Daimler (1834–1900), inventor and engineer, founder of Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft, now Daimler-Benz AG
  • Adolf Dassler (1900–1978), founder of sportswear company Adidas
  • Rudolf Dassler (1898–1974), founder of PUMA sportwear company
  • Friedrich Engelhorn (1821–1902), founder of BASF, the largest chemical company in the world
  • Kaspar Faber (1730–1784), founded Faber-Castell, one of the world's largest manufacturers of pens, pencils, other office supplies, art supplies, high-end writing instruments and luxury leather goods.
  • Friedrich Krupp (1787–1826), steel manufacturer and founder of the ThyssenKrupp AG, one of the world's largest steel producers.
  • Henry Lomb (1828–1908), co-founder of Bausch & Lomb
  • Oscar Ferdinand Mayer (1859–1955), founded the processed-meat firm Oscar Mayer.
  • Georg(e) Merck (1867–1926), founder of Merck & Co.
  • Heinrich Meyerfreund, founder of Garoto, a chocolate company in Brazil
  • Carl Miele (1869–1938), founder of Miele, a manufacturer of high-end domestic appliances (praised by Steve Jobs for their design), commercial equipment and fitted kitchens.
  • Frederick Miller (1824–1888), born as Friedrich Eduard Johannes Müller, he founded the Miller Brewing Company in 1855
  • Richard Hellmann (1876–1971), founded Hellmann's Mayonnaise
  • Johann Peter Henckels, founder of (Zwilling) J.A. Henckels, one of the largest and oldest manufacturers of kitchen knives, scissors, cookware and flatware
  • August Horch (1868–1951), founded Audi automobile company in 1909
  • Karl Kellner, founded Ernst Leitz GmbH, which later became Leica Camera AG, Leica Geosystems AG, and Leica Microsystems AG, producing cameras, geosurvey equipment, and microscopes.
  • Adam Opel (1837–1895), founder of the automobile company Adam Opel AG
  • Werner Otto (1909–2011), founder of Otto GmbH, now Otto Group, the world's largest mail order company.
  • Ferdinand Porsche (1875–1951), designer and founder of Porsche
  • Karl Friedrich Rapp (1882–1962), co-founder of Rapp Motorenwerke GmbH, which later became BMW AG.
  • Paul Reuter (1816–1988), pioneer of telegraphy and news reporting, founder of Reuters news agency
  • Hans Riegel Sr.(1893–1945), founder of Haribo, the biggest manufacturer of gummi and jelly sweets in the world.
  • Ernst Christian Friedrich Schering (1824–1889), founded Schering AG a research-centered pharmaceutical company.
  • Fritz Sennheiser (1912–2010), founded Sennheiser Electronic GmbH & Co. KG, specializing in high fidelity products.
  • Werner von Siemens (1816–1892), inventor, founder of Siemens, largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company.
  • J.S. Staedtler, in 1835 founded Staedtler Mars GmbH & Co. KG, one of the world's leading suppliers of writing, artist, and engineering drawing instruments.
  • Henry E. Steinway (1797–1871), founder of the piano company Steinway & Sons.
  • Franz Ströher (born c. 1854), in 1880 founded Wella AG, one of the world’s leading cosmetics suppliers.
  • August Storck-Oberwelland, in 1903 founded Werther's Sugar Confectionery Factory, now August Storck AG, manufacturers of Werther's Original, Riesen, merci,
  • Carl von Thieme,(1844–1924), founder of Allianz AG, a global financial services company
  • Ferdinand von Zeppelin (1838–1917), inventor of the Zeppelin, founded the Zeppelin Airship company
  • Carl Zeiss (1816–1888), maker of optical instruments, founded Carl Zeiss AG

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Famous quotes containing the words company and/or founders:

    ““In your company a man could die,” I said, “a man could die and you wouldn’t even notice, there’s no trace of friendship, a man could die in your company.””
    —Max Frisch (1911–1991)

    “It was no wonder that her sons stood tall and straight. She was a rich mine of life, like the founders of early races.”
    —Willa Cather (1873–1947)