September 2017
Fine Shoes for Kretschmann
Minister-President Winfried Kretschmann had his shoes resoled at the BÄR workshop. Company visit: Minister-President Winfried Kretschmann visited BÄR in Bietigheim-Bissingen together with Green Party candidate Catherine Kern.
When the nail polish color someone has used for years is discontinued, many a customer at the drugstore is prone to panic attacks. In a milder form, but just as concerned, Winfried Kretschmann approached Christof Bär on Wednesday afternoon: “But my model is staying in the range, right?” the Baden-Württemberg minister-president asked one of the two managing directors of the Bietigheim-Bissingen shoe manufacturer. Kretschmann was visiting the company on Pleidelsheimer Straße and toured the warehouse, production facilities, and sales areas in the Büttenwiesen industrial estate. According to Bär, Kretschmann has been a customer of the company for 18 years; the Green politician wears size 48. “For many years, with this shoe size, I could only find models that didn’t fit,” said Kretschmann. Compared with fashionable patent leather shoes, which the minister-president wears at state receptions, his Bär shoes are a “true relief for the feet.” The gratitude expressed in Winfried Kretschmann’s welcoming remarks was therefore entirely genuine: “I am personally indebted to you. At last, everything fits and is comfortable.” The 69-year-old then sent his regards to the parents of the Bär brothers.
In addition to manufacturing new models, Bär repairs around 11,500 pairs of shoes every year. For example, customers can have their models resoled. The minister-president makes use of this service too: “I always have my shoes repaired, then they last twice as long.” The Green politician praised this “ecological service in the middle of a throwaway society.” Bär shoes are manufactured at production facilities in India. Almost 400 people work at the headquarters in Bietigheim-Bissingen, the branches, and the production facilities combined. Around 80 employees work in Bietigheim-Bissingen, where every item arriving from India is inspected for defects. In another Bär building, Kretschmann then lent a hand himself and glued a sole onto the shoe upper.
When he examined the finished shoe, it became clear that it was the “Der Feine” model, which he happened to be wearing himself—in the correct size. “No coincidence,” said Christof Bär. “We have his size and his favorite shoe on file.” For their loyal customer, the Bär siblings are already working on a new model so that the minister-president will no longer suffer numb toes even at official state occasions.
January 2017
Returning to Bietigheim-Bissingen with 3D Technology
Company founder Christian Bär presents the production steps for a Joe Nimble shoe together with his wife Hilke and employee Rafael Mora. The shoe is also made using 3D technology.
The barefoot shoe from the Joe Nimble collection presented by senior director Christian Bär and his wife Hilke stands out with its bright blue color, high-quality workmanship, and an extremely complex textile upper. The shoe is manufactured at the Bär factory in Bietigheim-Bissingen. This is quite remarkable, because there are hardly any shoe manufacturers left producing in Germany. For decades, the domestic textile industry has lacked skilled workers, which is why most companies sought production facilities abroad long ago. Bär, the brand known for toe freedom, also manufactures almost all of its shoes in its own factory in India—for quality reasons.
However, three of the company’s 200 models have recently begun coming directly from the Bietigheim-Bissingen factory on Rötestraße, including a hiking shoe in addition to the barefoot shoe. This has been made possible by modern 3D technology, which Christian Bär learned about a year ago and used to convince his sons Christof and Sebastian Bär, now responsible for the company’s day-to-day operations, to launch a trial.
With “outstanding results,” as company founder Christian Bär states with satisfaction. The upper of the bright blue Joe Nimble is produced by state-of-the-art digital 3D knitting machines on the Swabian Alb. The design and material specifications come from the developers in Bietigheim; the digital technology delivers the finished product component.
Tradition and the Future
Final assembly then takes place in Bietigheim-Bissingen, where skilled workers attach and stitch the applications, outsole, and insole. The principle of handwork is therefore retained, which is particularly important to the family business and is an essential part of customer trust. For Bär, the use of modern digital technology and traditional shoemaking are not contradictory; rather, they represent the future—with advantages for the product as well as for the local labor market. Six employees turn the 3D upper into a finished shoe.
The Bär family business has also enabled refugees to find employment at the company. Two of them are trained shoemakers. And there could be more employees in the future. Christian Bär and his wife Hilke are delighted with the quality produced by the Alb knitting machines, especially given the standards of the exclusive company from the Enz region compared with those of many mass manufacturers. Colors, material combinations, and shapes can be implemented very quickly under these high-tech conditions, while individual adjustments in shoemaking can be made faster and realized more effectively. “We benefit from all the advantages of production close to home without compromising on quality,” emphasizes Bär, who believes he has helped usher in a new era of shoemaking. “Basically, the entire production process—from model development to manufacturing—is possible within 24 hours.”
The first models from Swabian 3D production will enter the market in February. Bär has no doubt that they will also delight the manufacturer’s traditionally very discerning customers.
