Born from a village carpentry shop, grew up with shopfitting: Knoblauch has always stood for sophisticated design, architecture and interior concepts. For the desire of new things, the love of craftsmanship and the deep-rooted ambition to get the best out of every project for every customer. The result is concepts and spaces that not only reflect the spirit of the times. But above all, get into the hearts of people.
We are convinced that good design makes our surroundings more valuable. That’s what we’re competing for. Every day. With every project. Since 1909. Today. And in the future.
What would Fidel Knoblauch have said if he had seen this: In an unobserved moment, his grandson Konni was carving a piece of veneer out of a piece of furniture with his pocket knife. Swietenia mahogany. In a Ralph Lauren store, in the middle of New York. This little piece of wood is the cornerstone of our story, our success in retail design. What Fidel would have said? Probably: Well done, Konni.
Konni had previously taken over the carpentry business from his father Hubert in 1976, as the third generation. Back then, the main focus was on front doors, windows, stairs and cupboards. That wasn’t enough for Konni. Together with a local architect, he developed his first shopfitting system in the 1980s. In the early 1990s he secured a major order and set up their first shop for Ralph Lauren in Mannheim.
In 2000, Konni made two right decisions: he brought Jürgen Zahn into management and bought two plane tickets to New York. From there the tender for the Ralph Lauren store construction came. On December 11, 2000, Konni and Jürgen stood in front of the sample furniture, puzzled over the type of wood used and brought the piece of veneer in question as a souvenir. The daring idea was rewarded: We were awarded the contract and Ralph Lauren is still one of our largest and loyal customers to this day.
Since Konni’s death in December 2005, Jürgen has been the man at our helm. Konni not only left him the American veneer, but also foresight, courage and a good dose of passion. Within a few years, Jürgen has developed the former carpentry shop into an internationally active company with around 220 employees. He never lost his eye for detail and his demand for design and craftsmanship. And Konni, Hubert and Fidel would certainly be really proud of that to this day.