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Short History of Rixe and Co.
Winter, 1920. Locksmiths August Rixe and Robert Meyer establish the Rixe & Meyer machine and bicycle factory.
January 24, 1921. Rixe and Meyer officially registered as a limited company in Bielefeld to make and sell machinery, bicycles and bicycle parts. August Rixe provided the building and equipment.
Bielefeld was a major manufacturing center for two wheelers second only to Nuremberg.
Bastert, Duerkopp, Goebel, Goricke, Miele, Rabeneick and Rixe were some of the big manufacturers in Bielefeld. In 1954 the manufacturers from Bielefeld produced almost half the bikes in Germany and 86% of the mopeds.
In the beginning. Rixe produced parts for other manufacturers in Beilefeld such as Duerkopp and Goricke.
1923. They began making their own bicycles under the name Rico.
1924. They changed the name to Rixe & Co. and expanded the workshop. With the expanded facilities the company focused on building their own bicycles but still continued to build frames and components for other manufacturers.
1926. August Rixe dies and his wife Anna Rixe becomes the managing director. She gives 50% of the shares in Rixe & Co to Henry Oberschelp.
1929. The worldwide economic crises took it's toll on many manufacturers in Germany and across the world. Rixe survived but had to cut their workforce.
1935. Rixe started making motorized two wheelers in addition to bicycles.
December 1939. Rixe is required to make war machinery. They are permitted to continue producing a small amount of civilian products.
1941. Rixe was assigned Eastern European forced laborers - some of which were POWs.
1943. They built barracks to accommodate the Eastern European laborers. It is unknown if the forced laborers were paid. By the end of the war they had 137 of these laborers.
September 30, 1944. Bombing raids largely missed the Rixe production facilities but the air raid on Novemeber 23, 1944 hit the tool shop in Plant II and reduced production significantly.
April 1, 1945. The Americans took Beilefeld.
September 1945. Bicycle production resumes.
November 1945. Rixe is forbidden to produce bicycles and motor vehicles due to lack of energy/coal. They continue to produce parts.
1946. Bicycle production resumes.
1948. Motorcycle production resumes in limited numbers.
Mid-50s to early 60s. Victoria Distributors, Lancaster, PA, imported Rixe bicycles into the US. The president of Victoria Distributors, Earnest Ryersbach, was of German extract.
According to an ad in American Bicyclist Magazine Rixe bicycles were still imported as late as January 1964.
West Coast Cycle Supply Co of Los Angeles sold some racing and tandem models imported from Victoria Distributors.
1950's. Ted Earnst, of Bicycle Super Mart-Manhattan Beach, CA, raced on Rixe bikes in Chicago.
1984. Rixe was sold and production was moved to China.
1990. Derby Cycles bought the Rixe name. Production of Rixe bicycles continues to this day.
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