On February 19, 1924, Albrecht Schnizler and Julius Closs founded Schnizler GmbH on the site of the former Nürtingen brewery to pursue a new idea. A year earlier, Albrecht Schnizler had designed the No. 18 hand drill in his parents' bakery. He calls it a Metallbohrdreher (metal drill lathe) - the abbreviation Metabo becomes the brand name.
In 1923, Schnizler meets Walter Rauch at a tool fair in Remscheid. The businessman placed Schnizler GmbH's first major order and ordered 500 metal drilling lathes at a price of 4 shillings 9 pence. In 1927 he becomes sales manager of Schnizler GmbH. In 1934, the first electric drill is produced and marketed; the company employs 150 people and changes its name to Metabowerke GmbH.
Metabo launches the first angle grinder in 1953. In the 1960s, sanders, keyless drill chucks and impact drills are introduced. The company employs 1000 people. In 1969, Metabo moves into its new premises in Gerberstraße (today's Metabo-Allee in Nürtingen, Germany).
Internationalisation picked up speed after the war and reconstruction. From the 1970s on, in particular, Metabo was highly successful in tapping into new markets on every continent. In the 1980s, the first battery operated devices were developed.
The family business era ends in 2012. Financial investor Chequers Capital takes over the majority of company shares. In 2015, Hitachi takes over Metabo's shares. The Japanese and European businesses, and the two main brands Hitachi Koki and Metabo, remain largely separate. In 2017, US financial investor KKR takes over Hitachi Koki.
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