# Erbe ## Facts | | | |---|---| | Founded | 1930 | | Origin | Germany | | Headquarters | Solingen | | Status | Active | | Manufacturing | Solingen, Germany | | Distribution | Multi-channel | | Website | https://www.erbe-solingen.com/ | Erbe (styled ERBE) is a German brand of steel instruments for manicure, pedicure, cosmetic grooming and shaving, made in Solingen, the western German city long known for blade-making. It was founded in 1930 by Erich Becker, whose name also supplied the brand's own: the first two letters of his first name and surname, "Er" and "Be" [7]. The brand belongs to Becker Manicure GmbH & Co. KG, a family company trading as BECKER Solingen and run by the founder's grandson, the third generation of the family to lead it [6]. Erbe's range runs from nail scissors, nippers and files to callus planes, tweezers, shaving accessories and leather-cased manicure sets. The product the company most closely ties to its own history is the sapphire-coated nail file, developed in its own electroplating workshop in the 1950s. The brand remains active, with production in Solingen and a regular presence at trade fairs and local cutlery events. ## Origin & founders Erich Becker (1901–1968) set up his business in Solingen in 1930. According to the company's own history, he "recognised the signs of the times" that year and chose to specialise in manicure products [6]. Solingen, nicknamed the City of Blades, already had a deep tradition in steel goods, and Becker built his company on that local craft rather than on general cutlery. The brand name is a contraction of the founder's own. ERBE takes the "Er" from Erich and the "Be" from Becker, and the company's tagline, "ERBE Solingen seit 1930", ties the name to both the town and the founding year. ## History & milestones The company's history centres on a small number of turning points, most of them tied to the Becker family. In the 1950s, Erich Becker's son Siegfried was closely involved in developing a special sapphire coating for nail files. The company says the work went on "around the clock" in its in-house electroplating shop, and the resulting sapphire nail files became, in its words, a later highly successful invention that is still sought after worldwide [6]. Siegfried Becker took over the company in 1968, the year his father died, and remained managing director until 2006 [6]. During the 1980s the range grew beyond nail care, adding further shaving accessories and shaving-care products. That expansion moved Erbe from a manicure specialist towards the broader personal-grooming catalogue it carries today. In 2006 the founder's grandson, Michael Becker, became managing director, making him the third generation in charge. His brother-in-law, Armin Dietrich, joined him as operations manager. The company says both men want to continue a long-standing company philosophy: combining Solingen quality with concrete measures on water, energy and materials. A more recent milestone came in 2016, when two combined heat-and-power units began producing electricity at the main site on Friedrich-Wilhelm-Straße in Solingen. The company puts their output at about 170,000 kWh a year [9]. ## Ownership Erbe is not a standalone company but a brand of Becker Manicure GmbH & Co. KG, which presents itself publicly as BECKER Solingen. The business has stayed in the hands of the Becker family since its founding, passing from Erich Becker to his son Siegfried and then to his grandson Michael [6]. No acquisitions or changes of ownership are known. Erbe sits alongside other lines in the same house. Becker Solingen also markets products under the names YES Solingen and PEDI Solingen, and it distributes the English line Taylor of Old Bond Street and the Italian line Mondial Antica Barberia. The company describes this as extending its Solingen range with selected cosmetics and beauty accessories, mainly from England and Italy. Beyond its own brands, it also works as a private-label (OEM) manufacturer for other companies [5]. The company describes itself as both manufacturer and wholesaler, and says it supplies "numerous countries" around the world with its personal-care products [5]. It runs websites in German, English and Italian and keeps a separate dealer shop for trade customers. Consumer sales are handled through an online shop at erbe-solingen.com, which the Becker Solingen site links to as the external ERBE customer shop [8]. That shop is operated by a separate company, MARKEMENT GmbH, and also sells the Mondial and Taylor of Old Bond Street ranges [4]. ## Philosophy & positioning Becker Solingen calls Erbe its "premium" brand for daily care in manicure, pedicure, cosmetics and shaving. The company frames the instruments around three ideas: precision, quality and long-term use. It describes the products as "small masterpieces in form and function" and says that, cared for properly, they will last for years. Much of the brand's positioning rests on where the products are made. The company stresses that Erbe items are "guaranteed made in Solingen, Germany", noting that this is no longer something to take for granted. It links that origin to traditional Solingen grinding techniques handed down over decades, combined with modern automation and experienced local manufacturing staff. The name "Made in Solingen" is itself a protected designation: since 1938, steel goods made in the city have been legally shielded against imitation under that mark [6]. The company also says its quality follows the rules of the Solingen regulation that governs the designation. Becker Solingen sums up its values in four words: passion, quality, sustainability and innovation. On innovation, the company says it designs products to reflect current trends while pairing a modern look with a pleasant feel in the hand. It goes further on reputation, saying that its ERBE instruments now count among the most highly regarded precision personal-care products in the world [6]. No independent assessment of that claim is available. ## Products & innovation Erbe's catalogue is built around hand instruments rather than creams or formulas. The manicure line includes nail scissors, cuticle scissors, combination scissors, cuticle nippers, nail nippers, nail files, nail clippers, cuticle pushers and cleaners, and nail knives. The pedicure range adds toenail scissors and nippers, callus rasps, callus planes and files, corner nippers and hooks, and pedicure stones. A separate cosmetic range covers items such as tweezers, beard scissors and hair scissors. The sapphire nail file remains the brand's signature product and its clearest link to the company's own technical history. Developed in-house in the 1950s, the sapphire coating is the one technology the company identifies as its own invention. Manicure sets are the other mainstay. Erbe offers a wide selection of sets in leather cases, in classic or more fashion-led styles and in many sizes, shapes and colours, so the instruments can be stored at home or carried while travelling. The cases come from the company's own leather-goods workshop in Solingen, one of several crafts the business keeps under its own roof. Shaving is the third pillar. Since the expansion of the 1980s, the range has included shaving accessories such as safety razors, straight razors, shaving brushes and shaving sets, alongside shaving- and body-care cosmetics. The wider Becker Solingen catalogue also includes cosmetic mirrors and toiletry bags. The electroplating workshop that produced the sapphire coating still operates. Becker Solingen also finishes steel surfaces for customers in other industries and can supply fully nickel-free finishes on request. ## Sustainability The company presents environmental measures as part of its long-standing philosophy rather than as a recent addition. Becker Manicure holds DIN EN ISO 14001 certification for environmental management, as well as ISO 9001 for quality management [5]. At its Solingen site the company lists specific measures on water, energy and materials. These include on-site water treatment, photovoltaic panels and the two combined heat-and-power units installed in 2016. On packaging, it says marked plastic packaging parts are made from 100% post-consumer recycled plastic. The materials used in the instruments themselves are, according to the company, mainly steel and plastic with a high share of recycled content, much of which can be recycled again depending on the material. No third-party ethical certifications, such as cruelty-free listings, are documented for the brand. ## Current status Erbe is active. Its owner continues to manufacture in Solingen and keeps a busy calendar of trade and public events. Its event pages review the 18th Solinger Schneidwaren-Samstag, a local cutlery day held on 5 September 2026, and list the MesserGabelScheren market at the LVR Industrial Museum's Hendrichs drop forge in Solingen, on 4 and 5 December 2026, as an upcoming event. Becker Manicure is also a listed exhibitor at the Ambiente 2027 trade fair in Frankfurt (29 January to 2 February 2027), in Hall 8.0, where its profile names scissors and leather goods among its product areas [10]. The company also runs workshops and a factory outlet at its Solingen site. ## Timeline {#belagg-timeline} | Year | Event | Source | |---|---|---| | 1930 | Erich Becker founds the company in Solingen and the ERBE brand, specialising in manicure products. | https://www.becker-solingen.de/unternehmen/ | | 1968 | Erich Becker's son Siegfried Becker takes over the company (managing director 1968–2006). | https://www.becker-solingen.de/unternehmen/ | | 2006 | Michael Becker, the founder's grandson, takes over as managing director (third generation), with his brother-in-law Armin Dietrich as operations manager. | https://www.becker-solingen.de/unternehmen/ | | 2016 | Two combined heat-and-power units start producing electricity at the main site on Friedrich-Wilhelm-Straße (170,000 kWh a year). | https://www.becker-solingen.de/nachhaltigkeit/ | | — | 1950s: Siegfried Becker is heavily involved in developing the special sapphire coating for the company's sapphire nail files, worked on in the in-house electroplating shop. | https://www.becker-solingen.de/unternehmen/ | | — | 1980s: the product range is expanded with further shaving accessories and shaving-care products. | https://www.becker-solingen.de/unternehmen/ | ## Signature products {#belagg-products} - **Saphir-Nagelfeilen (sapphire-coated nail files)** — In den 50er Jahren war er in hohem Maße an der Entwicklung der speziellen Saphirbeschichtung der heute weltweit sehr begehrten Saphir-Nagelfeilen beteiligt. — https://www.becker-solingen.de/unternehmen/ - **ERBE Maniküre-Sets (manicure sets in leather cases)** — Damit die Solinger Instrumente gut geschützt zu Hause oder auch unterwegs aufbewahrt werden können, gibt es bei ERBE zahlreiche exklusive Maniküre-Sets in trendigen oder klassischen Lederetuis in vielen Größen, Formen und Farben. — https://www.becker-solingen.de/unsere-marken/ ## Proprietary technologies & patents {#belagg-tech} - Saphirbeschichtung (sapphire coating for nail files, developed in the company's own electroplating shop in the 1950s) — https://www.becker-solingen.de/unternehmen/ ## Sources 4. (T2) https://www.erbe-solingen.com/Footer-Navigation/Becker-Online-Shop/Impressum/ 5. (T2) https://www.becker-solingen.de/ 6. (T2) https://www.becker-solingen.de/unternehmen/ 7. (T2) https://www.becker-solingen.de/unsere-marken/ 8. (T2) https://www.becker-solingen.de/kunden-shop/ 9. (T2) https://www.becker-solingen.de/nachhaltigkeit/ 10. (T4) https://ambiente.messefrankfurt.com/frankfurt/de/ausstellersuche.detail.html/becker-manicure-gmbh--co-kg.html --- Glowpedia · · Published 2026-10-13 Please cite with a link to the article URL.