In 1990 the company Schnatz started producing stretcher bars for artists. Coming from techniques of process-optimizing, environment-technology and construction that step is hard to explain: It was a fast idea to help one of the brothers of the family who runs a store for artists. His former manufacturer for stretcher bars stopped production and he had no idea where to get quality stretcher bars instead. Looking at the market there was no really good quality to be found.
A exciting time began as we didn't know anything of wood work and wood's characteristics. That time the brand "blaukauz®" was founded.

But looking back we can say that just this lack of knowledge gave us the chance to do it better than others before us. What had been started as a short range production increased within one year to a huge output.
Now our clients are not the discounters for the hobby artist but the few people who deliver professional artist directly. It is always nice to turn the paintings in big galleries and look at their back (of course when nobody watches us) and notice that a lot are made with our bars.
Base for that quality is a rational industrial workflow even in a small range and best choice in resources and creativity. Experience is often helpful but interest and a clear look on the product more effective. Our discipline constructing and building special machines for special purposes on our own is also another key for our success.

Something more ...

In 1997 we had the first contact with large format digital printing:
The company "Blow Up" had been the main spirit for focussing grand format digital printing in Europe in the 90s. Looking at new business ideas the founder of Blow UP asked us for stretcher bars for printing purpose. But inspite delivering him the normal sample he asked us for we developed within three days the prototype of the blaukauz®-framework and send it over instead.

Though that solution was more expensive than the other samples he received from our competitors he decided at once to choose it and was convinced that there won't be any better solution to be found.
That had been the first "frameless" presentation for prints on textiles, -years before a major furniture discounter starts selling that "new" idea in poor quality.

In 2001 we launched the first online shop for real custom digital printing with a small team.
Unhappily we had not the financial power to communicate it enough and we depended on printing houses because we did not own enough printing capacity. Also the printing results were often not that quality we wished to get. So we stopped the shop went back to work and solved even this problem.

In the next three years we tested lots of materials and printing solutions. We organized the import of the favourite materials together with Englands greatest tradehouse for fabrics in partnership and realized best purpose conditions.
We worked on colourmanagement solutions and economic shipping services.
Though we worked a really long time on all that, there is no serious competitor to be seen. As only a few companies and people work on that complete solution and mostly we know them we didn't worry to be ahead at any time.

... and something perfect!

Now we own enough printing capacities of the quality it needs. Improvement of the printing process, material and ink gives us best results in durability and we are on ourselves satisfied with the product to go on market again.
In May of 2004 we run that idea in partnership with some of the best avantgarde programmers and creatives.
And connected best design and best quality to the project "BLAUGALLERY/BLAUSHOP®" -the connection between creatives, producer and distributor.

Another exciting time begins ...