Hunter Douglas - History

History

In 1919 Henry Sonnenberg founded a machine tool distribution and subsequently manufacturing company in Düsseldorf, Germany. In 1933 he moved to the Netherlands and established a machine tool operation. In 1940 he moved to the United States where he founded the Douglas Machinery Company.

In 1946 Henry Sonnenberg established a joint venture with Joe Hunter which developed new technology and equipment for the continuous casting and fabrication of aluminium. This led to the production of lightweight aluminium slats for Venetian Blinds.

Hunter Douglas, as we know it today, was born.

Hunter Douglas aluminium blinds quickly gained leadership in the American market. As innovative as the product was the business model for its distribution. Hunter Douglas developed a vast network of more than 1'000 independent fabricators in the United States and Canada. They sold blinds during the day and custom assembled them in their workrooms at night.

In 1956, policy differences led to the sale of the U.S. business. Henry Sonnenberg moved Hunter Douglas' headquarters to Montreal, Canada and, using the European machinery business as a base, concentrated on building the window covering business outside the United States. Hunter Douglas expanded its operations in Europe and into Australia and Latin America.

In 1969 the Hunter Douglas Group went public, and its shares were listed on the Montreal and Amsterdam Stock Exchanges. In 1971, Hunter Douglas' Group headquarters were moved to Rotterdam, The Netherlands, and Hunter Douglas N.V., became the worldwide Group parent Company. In 1976, Hunter Douglas reacquired its former U.S. business.

Hunter Douglas continued its global growth and expanded into Asia. The innovative spirit of the company let to the development of revolutionary new products to meet the increasing demand for fashion and functionality.