Hermann Bahlsen
Hermann Bahlsen ( born November 14, 1859 in Hannover, † November 6, 1919 ibid ) was the inventor of the Leibniz butter biscuits and the founder of the eponymous biscuit factory.
Biography
Background and education
Hermann Bahlsen comes from a long-established in Hanover cloth merchant and goldsmith family. After graduating as a young man in Geneva a business education, he worked in his hometown and then in London. After his return to Germany he started the English " Cakes ", which he had met in England to market on the continent.
Company Formation
In 1888 he became a partner in a factory business English Cakes and biscuits in Hanover, a year later, he founded his own company in the frieze road " Hanoverian Cakesfabrik H. Bahlsen ". The number of employees increased within a few years from ten to more than 100 and up to the beginning of the First World War to about 1700th 1893 Bahlsen had the idea for his Buttercakes, which he sold, but not bulk packed in bags, in contrast to its competitors, advertise with Leibniz quote, what increased sales within a very short time.
Recipe for success
The success of the Bahlsen products also contributed to the 1903 patented packaging, guaranteed durability. In this preference also played the designed around the turn of the century company logo on, which is modeled on an Egyptian hieroglyph: The Egyptian word " Djed " ( Bahlsen to " TET " Simplified) means "Durability ", " forever" or " everlasting ". The idea with the hieroglyph of the well-traveled museum director Friedrich Tewes had brought him. Previously Bahlsen had used a different logo for its biscuits, which showed a jumping horse. At the World Exhibition World Columbian Exposition in Chicago the Tet cookies won a gold medal in 1893. Another feature of biscuits beside the hieroglyph are still the 52 teeth. Stamped 15 points on the front and the typical Leibniz writing Bahlsen asked repeatedly renowned artists with Art Nouveau designs, Emanuel Josef Margold as of the Wiener Werkstätte. Kurt Schwitters and Lotte Pritzel worked on the image of the Leibniz biscuit.
Innovative were also Bahlsen production methods; be the first manufacturer in Europe, he continued from 1905 to the assembly line work. 1911 or 1912 was the Germanization of the English word " cakes", " biscuit " to the Bahlsen had fought long way into the dictionary.
Social Commitment
The entrepreneur Bahlsen showed towards his employees high social commitment. In 1912 he set up a company health insurance and put doctor, health and welfare Personale available. He also donated loyalty bonuses. In the years 1916 and 1917 was Bahlsen plans for the planned city of TET - city develop in Hanover, were not realized. You should also be living and working place for the employees of Bahlsen works; the proposed name TET city referred to the derived from the Ancient Egyptian trademarks with the Bahlsen products are provided today.
Around the same time planned Bahlsen around 1918 with the architect Carl Arend the major project Familienbad White Mountain in Marden; " Perhaps one reason for lack of implementation of the death of Bahlsen 1919 ". The site was acquired in 1921 by the Hanoverian Bank (1922 German Bank).
After the death of the company founder Hermann Bahlsen Bahlsen his sons Werner, Klaus Bahlsen Bahlsen and Hans took over management of the company. He was buried in a family grave in the new St. Nicholas Cemetery in Hanover city district in the north.