Van Delden Group

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The van Delden Group was a textile company based in Gronau in Westphalia . The company was founded as "Gerrit van Delden & Co" in 1875 in Gronau. In the mid-1970s, the group was one of the largest textile companies in Europe with around 7,000 employees. As a result of the general crisis in the German textile industry, the company had to file for bankruptcy in 1982 and was wound up.

Former listed spinning mill of Gerrit van Delden & Co (2014)

Foundation and expansion

Gerrit van Delden (1842-1925) founded the company in 1875 at the age of 33. After studying chemistry, he worked with his older brother, Mattheus, in his textile company founded in 1854, “M. van Delden & Co ”., got to know the processes of a multi-level textile company. The brother helped him start up with an injection of capital. Both companies were based in the immediate vicinity, they developed into the most important employers in the region and shaped the development of the city of Gronau until the company closed. The main focus of the Gerrit van Delden company was the spinning mill , later the twisting mill was added. This largely avoided any overlap with the brother's activities. Two major fires in 1878 and again in 1891 destroyed large parts of the factory premises. In both cases, the reconstruction took place in a short time. In 1897 the founder's eldest son, Hendrik van Delden (1872–1950), joined the company. The second son, Mathieu van Delden, (1875 - 1930) followed a few years later. After the turn of the century they became managing directors and personally liable partners. The company continued to grow under her leadership. By the First World War it was the largest cotton mill on the European continent. For the workers who were brought to Gronau, houses were built, many of which are listed today. In 1921 the company changed its name from the legal form of a limited partnership to an open trading company with unlimited liability of the partners. In the 1930s, the next generation joined the company with Gerrit (1898 - 1981) and Nico (1905 - 1972) van Delden.

During the Second World War , the company was not spared from the war. Two bombing raids in 1944 and 1945 destroyed parts of the plant, which were quickly rebuilt after the war. With Hendrik van Delden (1925 - 2007), the next generation joined the company in 1950. In 1967 Gerrit jun. van Delden (1943) took over the management.

The company expanded in the 1950s. The product range has been expanded to include special carpet yarns. In 1959 the majority of the "Eilermark cotton mill" was acquired. In the 1960s worsted yarns were added as a further spinning product. Yarns from man-made fibers and fiber mixtures were also increasingly produced.

Peak Years and Decline

Suppliers from low-wage countries and state-trading countries began to push their way onto the European market with low prices from the 1960s onwards. The company Gerrit van Delden tried to secure its competitiveness through an expansion strategy. In a short period of time, several or a majority of the shares were acquired, but they themselves were in trouble:

M. van Delden was the neighboring company established in Gronau in 1854 by the company's founder's brother. The new group of companies was named "van Delden Group". The company group was able to redefine its origins in 1854. Subsidiaries were also set up in the USA and Brazil. Merging the acquired companies cost money and time. In 1974 the group employed 7000 people and in 1975 the highest turnover was achieved with 750 million DM. However, the markets remained difficult. Sales plummeted, inventories rose, and revenues fell. In addition, there was a tight equity base, among other things as a result of the expansion measures. By 1980 the turnover had shrunk to 330 million DM. A search for new owners for parts or the whole was unsuccessful with a few exceptions.

The lenders became restless. State guarantees were granted to provide liquidity, but they only delayed the downfall. A settlement application had to be made on September 14, 1982, but it was rejected for lack of funds. This was followed by filing for bankruptcy on October 10, 1982. There was no successor company in Gronau. The closure was a heavy burden for the structurally weak region.

The representative administration building of the former M. van Delden & Co is a listed building and is used for several purposes, such as B. City archive and exhibitions. Many buildings have now been largely removed.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Günter Vaartjes: History of the van Delden company - Ruinous competition meant the end . In: Westfälische Nachrichten . April 14, 2015. Accessed July 13, 2019.
  2. ↑ Günter Vaartjes: Delden made Gronau a textile city - the Gerrit van Delden company could have celebrated its 140th anniversary this year . In: Westfälische Nachrichten . March 10, 2015. Accessed November 20, 2019.
  3. ^ A b Wolfgang Müller-Haeseler: The insatiable gentlemen of Gronau . In: Zeit Online . June 11, 1971. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  4. ↑ a b M. van Delden: the oldest building in Gronau was built 125 years ago . In: LOKALSPUR - past and present of the city of Gronau . November 12, 2016. Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  5. ↑ All attempts at renovation failed: the van Delden textile company appears to have come to an end . In: Spiegel Online . 1980-12.22. Accessed in 2019-1123.
  6. ↑ 3 pictures - 125 years: emergence, bloom and presence of a city . In: LOKALSPUR - past and present of the city of Gronau . June 20, 2017. Retrieved November 20, 2019.