Karl Megerle (Kaufmann)

Karl Megerle

Karl Megerle (* 31 October 1901 in Ilshofen, Schwäbisch Hall district^[1]; † 18 August 1991) was a German merchant.^[2]

Life

After his secondary school leaving certificate in Ilshofen, Swabia, Karl Megerle began a commercial apprenticeship. In 1922 he joined a cigarette factory in Leipzig as a clerk, where he deepened his knowledge of English, French and Spanish.^[3] Having joined the Wella company as early as 1923, Karl Megerle married Helene Ströher in 1925 and rose from authorized signatory to director and member of the board of Wella AG. Karl Megerle passed away on August 18, 1991.

Wella AG

The Wella company was founded in 1880 by 26-year-old hairdresser Franz Ströher.^[4] At that time, Wella specialized in permanent wave appliances, hair drying appliances and chemical products for hairdressers.
Karl Megerle joined the company, then still based in Rothenkirchen, on January 1, 1923,^[5] and was initially responsible for the development in East Germany. After the end of the war, his field of activity expanded to include West Germany.
Karl Megerle contributed greatly to the resurgence of Wella’s international contacts.^[1] Together with his brothers-in-law Karl Ströher and Georg Ströher, he brought the company to world renown.^[6]
In 1931 he became an authorized signatory of the company and held the position of director before becoming the sole director of Wella AG in 1950.
It is thanks to Karl Megerle that the Wella company moved from Rothenkirchen to Darmstadt.
In 1963 Karl Megerle retired at the age of 62.

Steigerwald pharmaceutical works

Although he had already retired, Karl Megerle took over the position of general representative of Steigerwald Arzneimittelwerke in 1964.
He had acquired the company together with his daughter Gertraud Megerle in 1951 from a bankruptcy estate and moved it to Darmstadt in 1956.

Honorary posts

• Activity as commercial judge at the Darmstadt district court
• Member of the Board of Management of the Hessian Chamber of Fire Insurance

Honors

• 1971: Bronze Badge of Merit of the City of Darmstadt, presented by Lord Mayor Hein Winfried Sabais^[7]
• 1976: Cross of Merit on ribbon of the Federal Republic of Germany, presented by the Hessian Minister for Economy and Technology Heinz-Herbert Karry
• December 2013: Establishment of the Karl Megerle Foundation in honour of Karl Megerle

Web links

• Wella AG. In: Stadtlexikon Darmstadt.

Documents

1. ↑ ^{a b} Darmstädter Tagblatt. 31. October 1961
2. ↑ Darmstädter Tagblatt. 11. March 1977
3. ↑ Darmstädter Echo. 1. November 1971
4. ↑ The story of Wella.Wella, retrieved 9 March 2016.
5. ↑ Darmstädter Echo. 31. October 1961
6. ↑ Perfumery and Cosmetics Journal . 42. Volume, No. 12/61
7. ↑ Darmstädter Tagblatt. 3. November 1971