1974 to 2020: Various Acquisitions and Internationalization
After opening branches in various European countries including France, Switzerland and Italy, Deutsche Bank, which had by then become its owner, took the company public in 1984. Since then, the company has been listed on the Deutsche Börse.[4]
In 1988, with the acquisition of Swiss company Spirella AG, Leifheit entered the bathroom sector, which was expanded in 1989 through the acquisition of the bath textiles factory BTF in Bremen (brand "Kleine Wolke")[9] and in 1993 through companies acquired from Gold-Zack Werke AG, including Semer in Düren[10] as well as the bathroom business of Nitex GmbH in Wedemark.[11]
In 1995, another plant was established in Blatná (Czech Republic).[12] This was followed by acquisitions of FRZ-Metallwarenfabrik Ruschitzka GmbH & Co. KG (Zuzenhausen near Heidelberg)[13] and Meusch group.[14] At the beginning of 2001, Leifheit AG increased its stake in Birambeau, a French company based in Paris with production in Chablis, to a majority holding.[15] Also since 2001, the brand Soehnle (scales and wellbeing products), originally based in Murrhardt, has been part of the Leifheit Group.[16] In 2008, the leading French manufacturer of laundry dryers, Herby, was acquired.[17]
In 2010, the bathroom division (Kleine Wolke, Meusch, and Spirella) was sold to the company Possehl.[18][19] In 2015, the Schuler-Voith family sold its shares in the company, after which the company's free float increased significantly.[4] The 2010s saw growth in Eastern European markets.[20]
