HISTORY 1836 - 1872
Service makes the difference. Since 1836.
A flourishing textile, iron and metal industry created the framework for economic development in the Prussian Rhine province in the early 19th century. Steam shipping revolutionised the Rhine trade and navigation on the Rhine gained in importance.
In this environment of economic prosperity, 25-year-old Leopold Wilhelm Cretschmar founded the company L.W. as a "forwarding and commission business” in Düsseldorf.
The young entrepreneur moved into his business premises near the old Rhine crane. In the first years he devoted himself mainly to the transport of goods from and to the Upper Rhine by ship.
The following 3 decades were characterised by ongoing development. The railway and the nearby Bergisch industrial area opened up new opportunities for business expansion.
The young company was also involved in the rapidly increasing Rhine-Sea shipping industry, which handled the transport of goods to the seaports in Germany and abroad.
As early as 1846, Leopold Wilhelm Cretschmar worked as a co-founder on the development of the Lower Rhine steam tugboat shipping company in Düsseldorf.