Chodziez 1897

Kaolin deposits were found near Chodzież in mid-western Poland in 1852. Two German businessmen, Ludwig Schnorr and Hermann Müller from Frankfurt an der Oder, established a faience factory there in the burnt-out ruins of a castle in 1852. This faience factory went bankrupt in 1879 but was taken over and modernised by Hermann Heim in 1883. Stanisław Mańczak bought the factory in 1921, but it became bankrupt again in 1934, and production was further disrupted by the second world war; the porcelain and faience factories were merged and run by the Germans as 'Porzellan und Steingutfabrik A.G. in Kolmar'. The Chodziez porcelain factory was founded in 1896 by Hermann Hein, former owner of the faience factory. In 1920 the factory was bought by Bank Handlowo-Przemysłowy (Commercial-Industrial Bank) from Poznań and in 1923 the factory was taken over by the Joint-Stock Company 'KERAMOS'. Then in 1926 the Porcelain Factory in Ćmielów became the new owner of Chodzież' factory and joined those two companies into one enterprise. After the second world war 1949 the factories were split out and began to work as two separate companies: Chodzieskie Zakłady Porcelany (Chodzież' Porcelain Factory) - Factory No.1 and Zakłady Porcelitu w Chodzieży (Semi-vitreous Porcelain Factory in Chodzież) - Factory No.2. A new porcelain factory was built at Factory No. 2 in 1965, and in 1964 Factories No.1 and No2 were amalgamated into Chodzieskie Zakłady Porcelany i Porcelitu ChZPiP (Chodzież' Porcelain and Semi-vitreous Factories). In 1973 ChZiP were incorporated with other Polish ceramic producers into newly created corporation named Zjednoczone Zakłady Ceramiki Stołowej (Associated Factories of Table Ceramics) 'CERPOL'. In 1992 Zakłady Porcelany i Porcelitu (Porcelain and Semi-vitreous Porcelain Factories) CHODZIEŻ S.A. (Porcelana 'CHODZIEŻ' S.A.) was created as property of The State Treasury and joined the National Investment Program. In 1998 the shares of the Company were bought by the VII NFI 'Kazimierz Wielki'. Then in 2000 Factory No.1 was sold to the 'STAMAR' Company from Wejherowo (production is still running there). Since 2002 the Factory No.3 (Porcelana CHODZIEŻ S.A.) has been part of the group of factories owned by Mr Marian Kwiecień.