THE BIRKENSTOCK JOURNEY
THROUGH TIME
It all started with shoemaker Johann Adam Birkenstock’s commitment to his craft. The year was 1774. This commitment to craftsmanship was passed down from generation to generation, including Johann Adam’s great-great-grandson Konrad Birkenstock. In 1896, Konrad had a visionary idea: make and sell flexible footbed inserts. From there, it wasn’t long before he invented the footbed.
THE BIRTH OF A LEGEND
1774
Johann Adam Birkenstock is listed in the church archives of Langen-Bergheim, a city in the German state of Hesse, as a "subject and cobbler".
THE FOOTBED TAKES ITS FIRST STEPS
1896
120 years later, master shoemaker Konrad Birkenstock opens two shoe shops in Frankfurt and starts making and selling flexible footbed insoles.
INCREASING DEMAND
1925
Thanks to the increasing success of his insoles, Konrad Birkenstock buys a larger production facility in 1925. The factory is based in Friedberg, Hesse, with extensive grounds. The insoles were produced day and night to meet increasing demands. The blue footbed is among the products manufactured.
THEORY AND PRACTICE
1932
Carl Birkenstock launches the BIRKENSTOCK training courses - which would later become famous - in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. In the decades that follow, over 5,000 professionals take part in his week- long podiatry and specialist footwear courses. Leading physicians endorse the seminars and the “Carl Birkenstock system.”
THE CARL BIRKENSTOCK SYSTEM
1947
A textbook entitled Podiatry - The Carl Birkenstock System is published with a print run of 14,000 copies and is the best selling podiatry textbook of the day. Over 112 pages and with 55 illustrations, Carl Birkenstock expounds his theories about the “natural gait” - The footprint system - and healthy footwear.
AN ICON IS BORN
1963
This is the year that gives rise to a revolutionary idea. Taking the flexible Birkenstock footbed with a cork and latex core, Carl Birkenstock develops his own sandal and launches the Madrid - the first ever flexible sandal with a deep and flexible footbed - in 1963. Originally launched as a “gymnastics sandal” and more or less unchanged to this day, this classic model lays the foundation for today’s comfort footwear market.
ENVIROMENTALLY FRIENDLY ADHESIVES
1988
A textbook entitled Podiatry - The Carl Birkenstock System is published with a print run of 14,000 copies and is the best selling podiatry textbook of the day. Over 112 pages and with 55 illustrations, Carl Birkenstock expounds his theories about the “natural gait” - The footprint system - and healthy footwear.
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY POLICY
1990
Footbed production is expanded and modernized with due regard for environmental considerations: energy consumption is reduced by over 90 percent.
NEW ADDITIONS TO THE FAMILY
1991
A variety of licensed trademarks are established over the following years, so that the company can offer complementary and additional product groups.
COMBINED STRENGTH
2007
The owners of BIRKENSTOCK Orthopädie GmbH & Co. KG take over their long-standing distribution partner BIRKENSTOCK Distribution USA, Inc. (BDUSA).
GÖRLITZ GROWS
2009
A new, larger footbed production facility is put into operation in spring 2009 in Görlitz.
THE FORMATION OF THE BIRKENSTOCK GROUP
2012
This is the year that heralds one of the most significant turning points in the company’s history. Birkenstock becomes a corporation. The traditional company successfully makes the transitions from a loose network of 38 separate companies to a group with three business units (production, distribution, services). The group is led by an executive team, which for the first time is not composed of family members - an unprecedented event in the company’s almost 240-year history. Markus Bensburg and Oliver Reichert are in charge of the activities of the BIRKENSTOCK Group.
"BRAND OF THE YEAR"
2020
Birkenstock is recognised as the "Brand of the Year" by renowned magazines and media outlets world wide. US shoe magazine "Footwear News" names it "Brand of the Year", while British Vogue awards the title "Sandal of the Year". Lyst index recognises Arizona sandals as "the world's hottest women's shoe".
