Johann Gottfried Spiesshofer (February 9, 1854 – March 31, 1917) was a German industrialist and pioneer of the undergarment industry. The son of a weaver, he was known for his outstanding expertise in weaving techniques. Together with merchant
Michael Braun he established the corsetry manufacturer "Spiesshofer & Braun" in
Heubach
Heubach is a town in the Ostalbkreis district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located 10 km east of Schwäbisch Gmünd, and 13 km southwest of Aalen. The town finds itself at the edge of the Rems River Valley and at the base o ...
(
Württemberg
Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart.
Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...
) in 1886. From 1902 onwards the company traded under the name "
Triumph
The Roman triumph (Latin triumphus) was a celebration for a victorious military commander in ancient Rome. For later imitations, in life or in art, see Trionfo. Numerous later uses of the term, up to the present, are derived directly or indirectl ...
" as this was considered a more memorable brand name. Having started off with six sewing machines and six employees in a barn, the company had annual sales of 1.7 billion Euros in 2009, and 37,515 employees. Still family owned, by now the multinational manufacturing and marketing organization operates in 120 countries around the globe. It is one of the leading underwear companies in the world and sells its product primarily under the core brands Triumph® and sloggi®.
Johann Gottfried Spiesshofer was married to Anna Helene Barth. They had five children.
Notes
References
:''From corsetry to lingerie – a cultural history of corsetry in Germany''
External links
History of Triumph International
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spiesshofer, Johann Gottfried
1854 births
1917 deaths
Businesspeople from Baden-Württemberg
Corsetry
People from Ostalbkreis