Inge-Glas® of Germany - Thriving with 50 Years in the U.S. Marketplace

July 29, 2005
CANNON FALLS, Minnesota

The Müller-Blech family of glassblowers has followed a tradition of family glassmaking in Germany since 1596. In the year 2006, that will add up to 410 years and 14 generations of fine craftsmanship.

Fourteen-year old Heinz Müller-Blech receives glassblowing lessons from his uncle. The Müller-Blech family workshop in Neustadt, Germany is named after Heinz's wife, Inge, (Inge-Glas®). Inge worked side-by-side with Heinz as a designer and painted until her death in 1998. Heinz, age 72, continues glassblowing in the workshop. Their son Klaus and his wife Birgit, (Inge-Glas® designer), now oversee the family glassblowing business in Neustadt.

For centuries the Müller-Blech workshop has maintained a large market in Europe for selling their product line. In comparison it has been a mere 50 years since they began offering the art of mouth-blown, hand painted ornaments to customers and collectors in the United States, through German wholesale exporters.

Glass ornament trade began with the U.S. in the1920s with Woolworth, Kresge, and Montgomery Ward being the first American import customers of the Bavarian glassblowing community of the Thuringian Mountains area near Neustadt, Germany. The Müller-Blech glassblowers created ornaments for export during this time period (beginning in 1950s), but it wasn't until the 1970s that they exported to their first direct U.S. customer, Olga Whitehurst.

There have been many transitions for the Müller-Blech, Inge-Glas® workshop since their blown glass was first imported into the U.S. market in 1950s.

In 1983 Inge-Glas® found exclusive market representation through Old World Christmas. When Old World decided to import glass ornaments from China, the Old World Christmas and Inge-Glas® partnership was dissolved. Klaus Müller-Blech of Inge-Glas® felt it was important to keep the family tradition of mouth-blown, hand painted, German glass separate as a true glassblowing art form.

The road ahead would prove to be a bit bumpy. In 2000, a distributorship was set up in Ashland, Virginia, under the name of Inge-Glas® USA-LLC. After four years, problems arose within the U.S. management of this operation and in 2004 the Inge-Glas® parent company in Neustadt, Germany, severed all ties with the Ashland operations. Legal issues resulted from this dissolved business alliance, proving to be a difficult time in the German company's U.S. history. However, with determination and faith in the glassblowing tradition of their family, the company remained resilient and moved ahead to establish even deeper roots within the U.S. marketplace.

Today, the Müller-Blech German workshop operates through North American representation as Inge-Glas® of Germany, now based in Cannon Falls, MN. In July of 2004, Dorry Wallof, a dedicated top sales representative for Inge-Glas® for several years, with more than 25 years in the Christmas/giftware industry, met with Heinz, Klaus and Birgit Müller-Blech and accepted the offer to take charge of their U.S. operations. "I truly believe in the family and in this company," Wallof stated. "With a 410 year history, and artisan dedication to the purity of their art, they are truly unique in this industry." Wallof was named Executive Vice President of North American operations in 2005.

Wallof and her staff have had their work cut out for them - reassuring customers that Inge-Glas® is alive and well in the U.S. and repairing damage incurred by the former Ashland distributor, who is no longer in business. "After working hard to solve these residual problems, we were faced with yet another from this former distributor," Wallof stated. "Their bank and liquidation firm sent postcards to our customers and placed ads for an Inge-Glas® inventory auction. This was damaging to our market as some customers contacted us asking if we were going out of business. We genuinely care about our customers and felt it was important to reassure them that Inge-Glas® was thriving under new American management, with the Müller-Blech family workshop in Neustadt, Germany, shipping direct to customers."

Wallof continued, "We stressed to our customers that the current U.S. operations - Inge-Glas® of Germany � as well as our parent company in Neustadt, Germany, were not associated or affiliated in any way with the creditor liquidation sale. Germany had not shipped to Ashland since October of 2003, meaning Ashland's inventory was older product."

Wallof explained that there have been many twists and turns throughout the past year and many of their dedicated customers have been on the roller coaster ride with them. "We truly appreciate our customer's dedication to the Müller-Blech Inge-Glas® glassblowing tradition. We also are grateful for our customer's faith in the new North American operations for Inge-Glas® of Germany. We want to reassure them that we continue to be dedicated to them. It is unfortunate that the German glassblowing workshop has had to deal with these types of circumstances to offer their art form in the United States."

Today, Inge-Glas® of Germany - the Cannon Falls to Neustadt connection - looks forward to a bright future and celebrates the German workshop's 50 years in the U.S. marketplace. With showrooms in Atlanta, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Kansas City and Billerica, MA, as well as participation in temp shows, they are pleased to see the popularity of Inge-Glas® continue to be reinforced with growing sales.

Wallof stated, "We have many new plans and exciting products for 2006 and continue to move ahead to celebrate the Müller-Blech 410th glassblowing anniversary in 2006! I don't know of any other company in the giftware business having that kind of longevity record for a family owned business. They are the 'original' glassblowing family of Germany. That in itself is history!"

You can contact Inge-Glas® by email at northamericansales@inge-glas.com or by calling 800-967-2066.