With 20 years' experience in this line of business, Adolf Würth establishes a wholesale firm in Künzelsau, in the Hohenlohe region of southern Germany, supplying screws, nuts and bolts.
1954
Death of Adolf Würth, founder of the firm, at the age of 45. His 19-year-old son Reinhold takes over the running of the business. Annual sales at the time are around EUR 80,000.
1962
Reinhold Würth ventures outside Germany and sets up the company's first foreign subsidiary, Würth Nederland B.V.
1965
Adolf Würth OHG is converted into a limited commercial partnership ("KG"). The general partner is Würth-Verwaltungs-GmbH. The limited liability partnership capital is contributed solely by the family.
1969
The firm's premises at the railway station in Künzelsau reach the limit of their capacity. The offices are moved to new building in the Gaisbach district of Künzelsau. The Wurth Screw and Fastener Corporation is set up in the USA - Würth's first company on the American continent.
1970
Würth celebrates 25 years in the business. Sales rise 50 percent to EUR 32.9 million, and the first Würth company is established in South Africa.
1978
A new distribution center goes into operation in Künzelsau-Gaisbach.
1981
Würth establishes its company in Australia.
1985
Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG celebrates 40 years in business, and Reinhold Würth celebrates his 50th birthday.
1987
Würth enters the Asian market by acquiring a company in Japan and establishing its own subsidiary in Malaysia. Würth now has a presence on all five continents.
1989
Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG is awarded the German Marketing Prize.
1990
The company opens its first branch office in former East Germany, in Dresden.
1992
On May 15, 1992, the new headquarters building in Künzelsau-Gaisbach is officially opened. The modern office complex includes a museum of art that is open to the public.
1994
On January 1, 1994, Reinhold Würth retires from operational management and takes the chair of the Advisory board of the Würth Group. Dr. Walter Jaeger is appointed Chairman of the Board of Management. Rolf Bauer becomes Deputy Chairman of the Board of Management.
1995
On April 20, 1995, Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG celebrates its 50th anniversary. In the 1995 jubilee year, the Würth Group achieves record sales of EUR 2.2 billion.
1998
Two Würth Group companies steeped in tradition, toolmakers Hahn & Kolb Werkzeuge GmbH & Co. KG in Stuttgart and the Arnold Umformtechnik GmbH & Co. KG screw factory in Ernsbach, celebrate their 100th year in business.
1999
Reinhold Würth is appointed Professor of Entrepreneurship at the University of Karlsruhe in recognition of his outstanding entrepreneurial achievement.
2000
The Würth Group rounds off an outstanding fiscal year by setting new records, with the company's sales exceeding EUR 5 billion. This represents the fulfillment of the target set by Professor Reinhold Würth for the year 2000. His "Vision 2000," first formulated back in 1987 when Group sales were just EUR 700 million, becomes reality.
2001
Despite the general economic slowdown in
the trades, the Würth Group boosts sales to
a new record of EUR 5.28 billion.
On January 1, 2001, the Würth Group is
given a new management structure. The
members of the new Board of Directors are
Dr. Walter Jaeger (Chairman), Rolf Bauer
(Deputy Chairman), and Bettina Würth.
Two years later, the Board is expanded to
four persons with the appointment of Dr.
Harald Unkelbach.
2002
The Würth Group hires an additional 2,729
sales representatives worldwide and posts
new record sales of EUR 5.36 million despite
the weak economy. The operating result
increases by 4.1 percent to EUR 281 million.
2003
Despite a challenging economic environment and a focus on consolidation, the company continues to invest heavily in expanding its worldwide sales force. This policy is rewarded by record sales of EUR 5.45 billion, with the operating result outstripping sales growth to reach a new record of EUR 330 million.
