VARTA
Encyclopedia
VARTA AG was a company based in Germany
manufacturing batteries for global automotive, industrial and consumer markets. A sales slogan was "you're smarter to fit Varta!" in the mid 1990s. However the brand is now owned by other companies.
(AFA) and was based in Berlin
and Hagen
in Westphalia
. AFA was acquired by Günther Quandt
after the First World War and the VARTA business was expanded greatly. The company was the manufacturer of batteries and accumulators for the Wehrmacht
, submarines and the Luftwaffe
during World War II
.
During this period slave labourers worked in AFA's factories under appalling conditions.
After the war most of the shares of Varta passed from Günther Quandt to Herbert Quandt
. The subsidiary in East-Berlin got occupied by the Soviet zone and was named Berliner Akkumulatoren- und Elementefabrik
. In 1977 VARTA AG's businesses were split up by Herbert Quandt. Battery and plastics operations were retained in VARTA AG, but the pharmaceuticals and specialty chemical businesses was transferred to a new public company called Altana
, and the electrical business was spun off into a company called CEAG. His shares in VARTA AG were left to his three children by his second marriage; while the two children of his third marriage received shares in Altana and CEAG (and a substantial stake in BMW).
However by 2006 Varta AG had sold all its operating divisions and the Quandts had sold their shares. VARTA AG is currently liquidating its remaining assets, contracts, liabilities and shareholdings (in particular the manufacture and sale of VARTA batteries). The VARTA businesses continues elsewhere in other hands.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
manufacturing batteries for global automotive, industrial and consumer markets. A sales slogan was "you're smarter to fit Varta!" in the mid 1990s. However the brand is now owned by other companies.
History
VARTA was created in 1904 as a subsidiary of Accumulatorenfabrik AktiengesellschaftAccumulatoren-Fabrik AFA
The Accumulatoren-Fabrik Hagen was a large industrial company located first in Austria and then Nazi Germany. Established in 1888 and led by Adolph Müller, with time it became the leading supplier of batteries in Austria and Germany...
(AFA) and was based in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and Hagen
Hagen
Hagen is the 39th-largest city in Germany, located in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located on the eastern edge of the Ruhr area, 15 km south of Dortmund, where the rivers Lenne, Volme and Ennepe meet the river Ruhr...
in Westphalia
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
. AFA was acquired by Günther Quandt
Günther Quandt
Günther Quandt was a German industrialist and Nazi who founded an industrial empire that today includes BMW and Altana .Eight of the hundred currently richest Germans are among his descendants.- Early life :...
after the First World War and the VARTA business was expanded greatly. The company was the manufacturer of batteries and accumulators for the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
, submarines and the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
During this period slave labourers worked in AFA's factories under appalling conditions.
After the war most of the shares of Varta passed from Günther Quandt to Herbert Quandt
Herbert Quandt
Herbert Werner Quandt , was a German industrialist who is regarded as having saved BMW when it was at the point of bankruptcy and made huge profit in doing so.- Early life :...
. The subsidiary in East-Berlin got occupied by the Soviet zone and was named Berliner Akkumulatoren- und Elementefabrik
BAE Batterien
BAE Batterien is a producer of lead acid batteries for automotive and industrial applications and is headquartered in Germany since 1899.The company is selling its batteries worldwide for the use in photovoltaic , telecommunication systems, electric utilities, railroads, uninterruptible power...
. In 1977 VARTA AG's businesses were split up by Herbert Quandt. Battery and plastics operations were retained in VARTA AG, but the pharmaceuticals and specialty chemical businesses was transferred to a new public company called Altana
Altana
The Altana AG is a German chemical company based in Wesel. Altana develops and produces products in the specialty chemicals business. The ALTANA Group, with headquarters in Wesel/Germany, sells 85% of its products overseas...
, and the electrical business was spun off into a company called CEAG. His shares in VARTA AG were left to his three children by his second marriage; while the two children of his third marriage received shares in Altana and CEAG (and a substantial stake in BMW).
However by 2006 Varta AG had sold all its operating divisions and the Quandts had sold their shares. VARTA AG is currently liquidating its remaining assets, contracts, liabilities and shareholdings (in particular the manufacture and sale of VARTA batteries). The VARTA businesses continues elsewhere in other hands.
- The consumer battery activities were sold to RayovacRayovacRayovac is a brand of batteries owned by Spectrum Brands of Madison, Wisconsin, United States.- History :...
(now called Spectrum BrandsSpectrum BrandsSpectrum Brands is a diversified company established in 2005 as the successor company to Rayovac Corporation. Rayovac had been located in Wisconsin since its conception as The French Battery Company in 1906, but then in 2004, as Spectrum Brands, located its Corporate headquarters just north of...
) in 2002 - The automotive battery unit was sold to Johnson ControlsJohnson ControlsJohnson Controls, Inc. is a company, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. It was founded in 1885 by professor Warren S. Johnson, inventor of the first electric room thermostat....
in 2002 - V.E. Beteiligungs GmbH and Buy-Out Beteiligungs-Invest AG of Austria bought the Micro Battery business in 2006