CEWE COLOR - a success story!

A man who has left a mark on the company like nobody else is central in the history of CEWE COLOR: company founder Senator h.c. Heinz Neumüller. Under his management the photo service company progressed from a small lab and commercial operation in Oldenburg to become a first class company operating throughout Europe - one which is hard to beat when it comes to capacity and performance.

The history of CEWE COLOR as a film:

CEWE COLOR history

The 60s
1961	Senator h.c. Heinz Neumüller founds CEWE COLOR Betriebe in the headquarters of Carl Wöltje in Oldenburg. Heinz Neumüller includes the initials "CW" in the company name in honour of his father-in-law.
1964	The transition from black & white to colour photography: CEWE COLOR constructs a lab with a production area covering 4,000 square metres.
The 70s
1971	CEWE COLOR starts doing business abroad, penetrating the Dutch market.
1972	Heinz Neumüller decides to double the production area in the Oldenburg lab.
1973	Merger with Vereinigte Color in Hamburg and Bremen: from now on the company is called Vereinigte CEWE COLOR Betriebe.
1975	CEWE COLOR takes over the lab operations of Koliphot in Nuremberg and Nordcolor in Lübeck. This means that the CEWE COLOR Group has progressed to become the leading industrial colour lab in Germany. Sales organisations are set up in Belgium and France.
1979	Company founder Heinz Neumüller is awarded the "Bundesverdienstkreuz am Bande", a national decoration for services to the community.
The 80s
1983	Takeover of the Fotocolor Wermbter industrial lab in Freiburg.
1986	Takeover of a colour lab in Paris and expansion of the Koliphot lab. Production is launched on a production area of approx. 4,500 square metres in the newly erected CEWE COLOR industrial lab in Mönchengladbach.
1987	CEWE COLOR Paris moves into new premises. CEWE COLOR commences supplying to Austria and Denmark.
1988	New labs are erected in Berlin and Munich.
1989	The 11th industrial lab of the CEWE COLOR Group is erected in Worms. Fotocolor Wermbter also commences with supplying to Switzerland.
The 90s
1991	In Dresden the go-ahead is given for the construction of the 12th CEWE COLOR Group lab. From now on Nordcolor also supplies the Polish market.
1992	The corporate group is restructured under the parent company CEWE COLOR Holding AG. A sales office is opened in the Czech Republic. At the same time the Pro Sud lab is acquired in the south of France. The CEWE COLOR Group is hence now active on all the neighbouring foreign markets.
1993	Hubert Rothärmel successfully heads CEWE COLOR Holding AG as it goes public. New labs in Denmark and France commence with production.
1995	A year of new acquisitions: CEWE COLOR takes over a lab in southern Poland, the largest lab in the Czech Republic, Fotolab a.s. in Prague, and another lab in Bratislava, Slovakia. Two operations in Marseilles and Valence in southern France are also acquired.
1996	A new record is set: CEWE COLOR develops more than 2.1 billion colour prints. Takeover of a lab in Lourdes and the construction of production plants in Bordeaux and Lille. A new industrial lab is opened in Eisenach.
1997	The success of the World Wide Web and the trend in the photographic sector towards more digital products results in the founding of CeWe Digital GmbH.
1998	A sales organisation is founded in Budapest. In the same year construction work commences on a new, modern industrial lab in Freiburg, thus creating an optimal basis for operating even more effectively in the region where Germany, France and Switzerland meet. CEWE COLOR founder, Senator h.c. Heinz Neumüller, passes away on 22 November.
1999	CEWE COLOR assumes a majority shareholding of 63% in the Norwegian photo retail chain Japan Photo - a milestone for business in northern Europe. At the same time efforts are stepped up in Catalonia, Spain, with the setting up of a company subsidiary.
The 21st century
2000	During the course of the year CEWE COLOR opens new lab operations in Graudenz, Poland and Budapest, Hungary. Capacities in Prague are increased by the construction of a new, highly-modern industrial lab. On 1 October bankrupt Fotolabor Frenzel in Neu-Ulm becomes a member of the CEWE COLOR Group.
2001	Decisive breakthrough in France: on 1 February CEWE COLOR takes over Konica Photo Service France (KPSF), extending its market share from 15% to more than 20%. The DigiFilm concept is developed and launched on the market.
2002	An agreement is concluded with Agfa for marketing the DigiFilm concept internationally. DigiFilm progresses to become a standard in the sector and is awarded the FOTOwirtschaft marketing and innovation prize.
2003	CEWE COLOR becomes the leading photo and imaging service provider (photofinisher) for retailers as well as for Internet and telecommunication enterprises. Launch of the photo order software "HomePhotoService" and online inquiries about photo orders.
2005	Dr. Rolf Hollander succeeds Hubert Rothärmel as Chairman of the Board of Management of the Neumüller CEWE COLOR Foundation. Capacities in Bratislava (Slovakia) are expanded and a joint venture is set up with Fotolux in the Ukraine. CEWE COLOR commences business on the markets in the Central Eastern European states of Lithuania, Slovenia, Croatia and Romania and in England. The CEWE PHOTO BOOK is also launched in November.
2006	CEWE COLOR actively adapts to changes on the market resulting from the transition from analogue to digital photography. The Group extends its leading position with enhanced customer orientation and reinforced marketing activities. CEWE COLOR is represented for the first time ever at the photokina, "the world's trade show for imaging" in Cologne.
2008	With sales topping 2.6 million books, the CEWE PHOTO BOOK wins through as one of the most popular photo books in Europe, taking first place in a series of comparative tests conducted. Web-to-print company diron in Münster is taken over. The first orders for commercial prints are processed.
2009	The restructuring phase is successfully completed: CEWE COLOR has adapted itself perfectly to the digital photo market and now operates 13 highly technological production plants. CEWE COLOR is the leading provider of services in the area of four-colour digital printing, with just over 50 digital printing machines.
Outlook:
Restructuring measures have helped CEWE COLOR to successfully accomplish the transition from analogue to digital photography. Regularly expanding the product range and consistent development on the software program will see the CEWE PHOTO BOOK maintaining its position as one of the main growth drivers in the product portfolio of the Group in coming years. CEWE COLOR will thus be able to continue to reinforce its Number One position among European photo book producers. And another line of business will also be strengthening the future of the Oldenburg company: as Europe's leading service company for digital prints, CEWE COLOR will be advancing digital printing for commercial purposes, thus opening up new markets for the Group.