Nordmende

Origins of Nordmende

Nordmende, a manufacturer of audio equipment including turntables, originated in 1923 when Otto Hermann Mende founded Radio H. Mende & Co. in Dresden, Germany. After the destruction of the plant during World War II bombing raids in 1945, Martin Mende, Otto’s son, established a new company in Bremen in 1947. The new company was initially named Norddeutsche Mende-Rundfunk GmbH and later renamed to Nordmende.

Nordmende became well-known for manufacturing radios, televisions, tape recorders, and record players in the 1950s and 1960s. The company’s prominence in the audio equipment market led to its reputation for high-quality televisions and domestic appliances. However, the company’s ownership changed over the years. In 1977, a majority shareholding was sold to the French Thomson Brandt company, and the family sold their remaining shares to Thomson the following year.

In the 1980s, the factories in Bremen were closed, and Nordmende became a Thomson trademark. In 2008, the KAL Group relaunched the Nordmende brand name in Ireland for white goods and a range of flat-screen TVs and stereos. Currently, Technicolor SA, which was formerly known as Thomson, is the global owner of the Nordmende brand, except in Ireland, where it is owned by the KAL Group.