Braun, the German household appliance brand, celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. Notably known for its razors, this company, which is today a subsidiary of Gillette, itself owned by the giant Procter & Gamble, was created by Max Braun in 1921, in Frankfurt.
“Max Braun is then what one might have called a young entrepreneur, explains Christine Cabon, Braun’s communications director. As a mechanic, he opened a workshop where he offered products of his invention, initially for a professional public, with transmission belts. And very quickly, he invented new products, such as a battery-powered suitcase radio, his first success.” Right from the start, Max Braun had the intuition that beautiful objects should be made and focused on design. Germany knows the great years of the Bauhaus and Braun makes it its trademark…
Since 1950, half of the turnover is achieved internationally
In the 1950s and 1960s, 50% of the company’s turnover was generated internationally. “At that time, the Braun brothers saw the benefit of having access to other markets and approached Gillette, continues Christine Cabon. What was very interesting is that this American company had the intelligence to keep all the German teams and to maintain a very strong brand identity.
“If the clean shave has lost a little of its luster, she continues, however, men have more and more products in their bathroom to take care of themselves and their hair. That is to say products that allow both to shave, but also to mow his beard, to maintain it…”