Udo Meinelt & Söhne

Udo Meinelt & Söhne is a German furrier (Kürschnerei) and fur-dressing (Fellgerberei) business based in Rötha, a small town south of Leipzig. Its main operating divisions are fur dressing (Rauchwarenzurichtung), furrier craft (Kürschnerei), fur cleaning (Pelzreinigung) and taxidermy preparation (Präparation). The firm traces its craft lineage to a furrier workshop founded in Leipzig-Lindenau in 1931 by Helmut Höfgen, the stepfather of Udo Meinelt (born 1940). Udo Meinelt completed his furrier master examination in Leipzig in 1967, and after the death of his stepfather in 1972 he was initially barred by the GDR's trade policy from continuing the family workshop; he worked for the firm Rudolf Nagel until 1977, when he opened his own fur shop and workshop with his wife Beate on Georg-Schwarz-Straße in Leipzig. The business later established its main operation in Rötha, where it remains today. The company was one of the very few private fur-dressing businesses in the German Democratic Republic, and it is described as the only one still existing in the area around the former world fur-trading centre of the Leipziger Brühl. In 2007 it was reported to be the only furrier business in Germany that handled the entire product chain, from raw pelt to finished fur jacket. Today the third generation of furrier masters and fur dressers serves private individuals, hunters, taxidermists, sheep farms, zoological gardens and museums. On its official website the firm presents itself as a European specialist for fur, dressing and care, offering dressing of raw pelts, custom manufacture of fur articles such as caps, cushions, blankets, bags, muffs, collars and scarves, as well as gentle cleaning of furs according to a proven family recipe described as 100% biological. It states that it is an authorised company of the Weprefur label and that it does not dress farm animals, working only with fur from ethical hunting with corresponding proof of origin. The company is owned by Bertram Meinelt and operates from Heinestraße 30 in Rötha.

The history of Udo Meinelt & Söhne is closely tied to the fur industry of Leipzig and its historic Brühl district, which before the Second World War was known as the 'world street of furs' and was the most important street in the city. Around Leipzig, producing trades of the fur industry had settled, especially fur-dressing businesses (Rauchwarenzurichtereien) that tanned pelts. In the early 20th century there were almost 50 fur-dressing businesses in the Leipzig area. In 1883 Carl Friedrich Lindner founded the fur-dyeing business C. F. Th. Lindner in Rötha, and in Rötha alone there were later around 35 furriers and dressing and finishing businesses. The rise of the Nazi regime in 1933 cost the Brühl part of its global standing. Unlike the fur-dressing businesses, the fur wholesale companies were predominantly owned by Jewish proprietors, who were now forced to give up their businesses or relocate abroad and commit to a trade boycott against Germany. With them, most international business connections were lost, and the Second World War (1939–1945) brought a further downturn apart from Wehrmacht orders. After the war most company owners left the Soviet-occupied part of Germany, seeing no future for themselves in the socialist GDR with its expropriations. In Frankfurt am Main, the Niddastraße fur-trading centre developed into a new fur-trade hub for some decades, comparable in world significance to the Brühl. Fur-dressing and fur-dyeing businesses were, because of their operating structure, actually not relocatable. Some large companies were newly founded in West Germany, but no centre even approximately comparable to Leipzig developed for fur dressing. Insofar as the original fur-trade businesses in the GDR were not abandoned, they were transferred, along with most other fur-finishing operations, into state or semi-state forms of enterprise. Goods allocations for the fur-processing businesses of the GDR were essentially made through the cooperative of the furrier trade (Genossenschaft des Kürschner-Handwerks e.G.m.b.H.) based in Leipzig. In August 1977 Udo Meinelt was registered there as a member with a share of 100 marks, and in 1980 seven further shares of the same amount were added. The family craft lineage begins with Helmut Höfgen (born 14 June 1912, died 1972), Udo Meinelt's stepfather, who founded a furrier workshop in Leipzig-Lindenau, Rietschelstraße 6, in 1931. He passed his master examination before the Leipzig chamber of crafts on 6 June 1940. Udo Meinelt was born in Dresden in 1940; the family moved to Berbersdorf near Döbeln in 1945 and to Leipzig in 1949. After his furrier apprenticeship, Udo Meinelt gained further experience in his stepfather's business and in the Leipzig furrier businesses of Walter Wylezich and the fur house G. Nauck. In 1967 he passed his furrier master examination in Leipzig. Despite passing the master examination, the GDR's trade policy did not allow him to continue his parents' business after his father's death in 1972. Until 1977 he therefore worked as a furrier at the firm Rudolf Nagel. In October 1977 he opened his own fur shop with a workshop together with his wife Beate on Georg-Schwarz-Straße 176, at the corner of Pfingstweide; around 2000 this shop was still being run by Mrs. Meinelt alongside the Rötha operation. Transitionally he had traded under his private address at Oststraße 2. On 7 October 1989, together with the 'Honorary Medal for the 40th Anniversary of the German Democratic Republic', Udo Meinelt received the order-linked award 'Activist of Socialist Labour'. After the end of the GDR, the Leipzig furriers' guild was re-founded on 23 March 1990, and Udo Meinelt was appointed Obermeister (head master), one of the first four freely elected Obermeister of the GDR — a post he gave up again the same year. The company was one of the few private fur-dressing businesses in the GDR and is the only one still existing in the area around the former world fur-trading centre of the Leipziger Brühl. The furrier masters and fur dressers in the third generation today work for private individuals, hunters, taxidermists, sheep farms, zoological gardens and museums. In 2007 it was said that Udo Meinelt's furrier business was the only one in Germany that processed the entire product, from raw pelt to fur jacket. Today the business is owned by Bertram Meinelt and operates from Heinestraße 30 in Rötha, presenting itself online as a European specialist for fur, dressing and care.

• 2007

  It is reported that Udo Meinelt's furrier business is the only one in Germany processing the entire product, from raw pelt to fur jacket.

• 1990

  On 23 March the Leipzig furriers' guild is re-founded; Udo Meinelt is appointed Obermeister, one of the first four freely elected in the GDR, but resigns the post the same year.

• 1989

  On 7 October Udo Meinelt receives the 'Activist of Socialist Labour' award together with the GDR's 40th-anniversary honorary medal.

• 1980

  Seven further cooperative shares of 100 marks each are added for the Meinelt firm.

• 1977

  In August Udo Meinelt is registered as a member of the Leipzig furrier cooperative with a share of 100 marks; in October he opens his own fur shop with workshop on Georg-Schwarz-Straße in Leipzig.

• 1972

  Helmut Höfgen dies; GDR trade policy prevents Udo Meinelt from continuing the family business.

• 1967

  Udo Meinelt passes his furrier master examination in Leipzig.

• 1940

  Helmut Höfgen passes his furrier master examination before the Leipzig chamber of crafts on 6 June.

• 1940

  Udo Meinelt is born in Dresden.

• 1931

  Helmut Höfgen, Udo Meinelt's stepfather, founds a furrier workshop in Leipzig-Lindenau, Rietschelstraße 6.

• 1883

  Carl Friedrich Lindner founds the fur-dyeing business C. F. Th. Lindner in Rötha, part of the local fur-industry tradition.

Traditional family craft business positioning itself as a European specialist for fur, dressing and care, combining over 90 years of experience with ethical sourcing and sustainability.

• Fur hats (Mützen)

• Fur blankets (Decken)

• Fur cushions (Kissen)

• Fur vests (Westen)

• Fur bags (Taschen)

• Fur muffs (Muff)

• Fur collars and scarves (Kragen/Schal)

• Fur dressing (Gerberei)

• Fur cleaning (Reinigung)

• Taxidermy preparation (Präparation)

1. 1Udo Meinelt &. Söhne - meinelts Webseite!pelz-meinelt.com
2. 2Impressum - meinelts Webseite!pelz-meinelt.com
3. 3Udo Meinelt & Söhnewikidata.org
4. 4Udo Meinelt & Söhnede.wikipedia.org