50 years of LIVOS – the world's oldest company in the niche market of so-called “natural colors”
In 1970, four people met in Hanover (Northern Germany) to find alternatives to the educational and chemical habits that were generally accepted.
In 1972, a laboratory was set up in which research was carried out using old recipes but with the latest chemical findings.
In 1974, five people who had sufficient financial resources from previous lives founded the company LIVOS.
Knowledge of the research results was reserved for the men in the working and living community, which had now grown to 30 people. The girls and women were allowed to dye wool with plants, run the household and do the bookkeeping, depending on their previous knowledge. One woman found a job in an adult education center to provide food for the group. By then, the group also included some children.
Talks with health food stores, Waldorf schools and kindergartens showed that the LIVOS products were in great demand and made a lot of sense from an educational point of view. The basis was exclusively plant-based, meaning made of so-called “renewable raw materials”.
In 1975, the company had to move to a former juice factory as the existing premises were too small for the production of natural products. The GmbH (= company with limited liability) was converted into a GmbH & Co. KG (= company with limited liability & limited partnership) with 16 limited partners.
In 1976, four of the company founders left, as it was not possible to earn money with the new company as quickly as originally envisaged. The remaining partners divided the work among themselves and, on the side, dealt with educational issues that were anthroposophically illuminated. One of the aims was to establish a free school based on the original impulses published by Rudolf Steiner.
Along the way, Holdenstedt Castle (set in a village close to Hanover) was transformed from a ruin into a building worth seeing and was used for lectures and events.
In 1979, the anthroposophical teacher, who had lived in Dornach for a long time and had held management positions in large companies for 33 years, died. Some of the remaining partners left LIVOS to devote themselves exclusively to educational tasks and took with them the young people with criminal and problematic pasts who were gradually accepted into the group. The remaining partners assumed responsibility for everything that had been developed at LIVOS up to that point.
In 1981, one of the early partners founded his own company using the LIVOS recipes and product names. As a result, LIVOS now gave its products Celtic names such as MELDOS and KALDET to differentiate itself from the newly founded company. The name LIVOS had also been developed from the Celtic language.
In 1984, another partner and managing director founded his own company with an identical product range to that offered by LIVOS up to that point. Some existing customers now placed their trust in this new company, but a large number of completely new customers ensured the continued existence of LIVOS.
Holdenstedt Castle was sold to the town of Uelzen.
In 1986, a former LIVOS dealer founded another company with an identical but narrower product range, also using LIVOS bases.
In 1988, the first products were created specifically for allergy sufferers, a group that continued to grow. Until then, only a purely natural solvent had been used. However, as this had an allergenic effect, it was now replaced with a synthetic solvent that evaporates completely during the drying phase.
“Health before naturalness” was the overriding principle in the selection of raw materials.
In 1989, the company moved to a former furniture factory in Wieren/Emern, where all LIVOS products are still manufactured today.
LIVOS continued to research and develop the existing products in close cooperation with new customers, as it had done since the company was founded, and constantly expanded its range.
From 1990 to 1993, further shareholders left the GmbH & Co KG.
The years 1995 to 2004 in particular were characterized by attempts at a “hostile takeover”. But even in the years that followed, there were many efforts from outside to eliminate LIVOS, take it over and prevent it from progressing. Fortunately, without success. Because: here we are!
50 years of independence with inestimable values and experience, that is the basis of our work. And we will continue to work closely with our customers to improve individual products, because: What is perfect? Even people are not perfect.
Our thanks go to all our customers who have come to know and appreciate the quality of our original LIVOS products over the last five decades.
