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TRADITION
SINCE 1774

[Translate to English:] Display Fußbett gold-grau

HISTORY OF A GLOBAL SUPER BRAND

It is under precarious conditions in the German countryside outside of Frankfurt in the 18th century where we find the beginnings of what has now become a true global purpose brand: BIRKENSTOCK. It is not the beginning of a company or a brand, but that of the Birkenstock shoemaker dynasty. That family's legacy is the basis of today's company. The inventive spirit and the creative force of its members created the products in the 20th century that continue to this day.

Beyond the last 125 years – some more than half of its history – the guiding idea has been to create shoes that are good for your feet. In this endeavor, the inventors, who were mostly ahead of their time and always met with great resistance, never lost hope. Perseverance, resilience, even stubbornness were needed before the importance of a healthy foot for the overall well-being of mankind became anchored in society. To this day, the company and its employees are driven by the underlying purpose of this idea to produce healthy footwear products. Below you will follow a historical journey through the key epochs of this traditional history that tells the story of the crucial moments.

1774 – 1895: The rise of a shoemaking dynasty

For over 100 years, the Birkenstock family is rooted in the shoemaker's trade in the countryside. They live in a village in the middle of Germany, not just the brothers of the first shoemaker generation in the second half of the 18^th century, but also their children, grandchildren and cousins. The women in the Birkenstock family marry into other shoemaker families, giving rise to a dynasty of shoemakers that can be traced back to a documented mention of Johannes Birkenstock in the year 1774.

1896 – 1945: From a shoemaker's workshop to a manufacturing company

Konrad Birkenstock leaves the countryside and opens a shoemaker's shop in Frankfurt am Main, where he also steps out from the shadow of his family's past and invents his "healthy footwear" with passion, precision and enthusiasm. It is a combination of the fully three-dimensional last he invents in 1897 and the flexible insole developed in 1902.

In order to produce the flexible insoles, Konrad Birkenstock relocates his workshop to Friedberg, where he sets up a manufacturing operation in a small factory in 1925. It is the year he officially registers the "footbed" trademark for the flexible insoles.

Carl Birkenstock, Konrad's oldest son, takes up his father's ideas about healthy feet and tries to patent an "ideal shoe" he develops in 1936. During the time of National Socialism, the main Birkenstock family companies – Konrad Birkenstock GmbH, Friedberg, and Gebr. Birkenstock GmbH, Steinhude, remain small enterprises. They are not involved in the crimes of the National Socialists, nor do they produce military goods or employ forced or slave laborers. Despite the lack of raw materials, the production of the insoles is continued until 1943.

1963 to today: Rise to a global brand

The success of the original BIRKENSTOCK footbed sandals comes slowly but surely. The rise of the sandals is also dependent on the business partners who take BIRKENSTOCK abroad – including people who are simply convinced of the product and retailers who used to sell BIRKENSTOCK insoles and now also sell the sandals.

Initially, the sandals are frequently worn in an orthopedic/medical context, and then discovered by subcultures around the world. In this way, they also penetrate the mainstream more and more.

As early as 1983, the fashion world discovers BIRKENSTOCK, with fashion designers looking for authenticity and finding it in the traditional brand's sandals.

The year 2013 marks the birth of the BIRKENSTOCK Group. Under the leadership of Oliver Reichert, the traditional undertaking successfully manages the transition from a loose association of 38 individual enterprises to a group of companies with three divisions. In May 2021, L Catterton, a leading international investment company with a focus on consumer goods, takes over a majority stake in BIRKENSTOCK together with the family holding Financière Agache of Bernard Arnault, CEO of LVMH.

In 2024, the BIRKENSTOCK Group will celebrate 250 years of shoemaking tradition.

A 250-year tradition as a shoemaker – a research project

The future needs a past. 250 years of tradition is a significant milestone. The different historical contexts associated with this, coupled with a variety of exciting perspectives and questions, prompted the BIRKENSTOCK Group to commission the Society for Business History (Gesellschaft für Unternehmensgeschichte, GUG) to develop and implement a research concept in 2018. For five years, 15 historians have been researching the company's history and uncovering new facts, exciting connections and new insights.

In addition to the classic company history, they have been taking a special look at the brand's cultural interactions in its core markets. In addition, they are investigating special issues around gender identities, the publication "Foot Orthopedics" by Carl Birkenstock and "Birkenstock in Film." The Birkenstock family is connected by an enlightening idea across many generations, and this is also taken into account in the concept.

Corporate Heritage at BIRKENSTOCK – the company archive

Before the start of the research project in 2018, BIRKENSTOCK began professionally building up its in-house company archive in 2016. The small but valuable holdings are being processed in a professional manner, cataloged and mostly digitized. The files are supplemented by a collection of historical shoes. The archive preserves the company's historical treasures as well as the legacy of the Birkenstock family.

Die Birkenstock-Story - Zeitzeugen

Die Geschichte von BIRKENSTOCK ist reich an entscheidenden Ereignissen, unvorhersehbaren Wendungen – und außergewöhnlichen Protagonisten. Sechs Zeitzeugen erzählen einen ganz persönlichen Ausschnitt aus Birkenstock Geschichte.