ic! berlin brillen GmbH is a German eyewear company based in Berlin. The company was founded in 1996 by Ralph Anderl. ic! berlin produces eyewear from 0.5mm thick stainless spring steelsheet metal, using a patented hinge design which avoids the use of any screws, welds, or glue in the construction of their frames.
Foundation of company
In 1996 Anderl joined Philipp Haffmans and Harald Gottschling to help market their idea for screwless sheet metal eyewear in Berlin. Unable to sell the idea, the trio founded HGA Gesellschaft to produce and market eyewear under the brand ic! brille. Having no business education or experience allowed them to develop the ic! brand organically, as the three could approach everything with a completely raw perspective. The first frame to be produced was ‘Jack’, weighing 20 grams, with an initial run of 50 pieces. Already understanding the power of celebrity, Anderl enlisted the support of two prominent German actors, Peter Lohmeyer and Corinna Harfouch, to promote the new brand by wearing the glasses to public appearances and in photo shoots.
ic! berlin
ic! brille became ic! berlin in late 1997. Starting in a small apartment with a shop front in Max-Beer-Straße in Berlin-Mitte, ic! berlin quickly expanded into the neighbouring apartments before moving to the nearby Backfabrik in 2005. The shop in Max-Beer-Straße remains to this day. While Haffmans and Gottschling focused on design and production, Anderl would take control of finance, organisation and distribution. Riding his bike all over Berlin, Anderl would visit potential clients and show product samples which he kept in extra pockets he had sewn into his coat. This strategy was repeated at ic! berlin’s first appearances at the Optika optical fair Cologne in 1997 and the following year at Mido in Milan: unable to secure a stand, Anderl would walk around the exhibition centre with a trench coat full of ic! berlin samples, much like those used by counterfeit watch sellers. After creating a great deal of buzz in Milan, ic! berlin was gifted a small stand and showed officially for the first time at Silmo Paris, where it won the prestigious Silmo D’Or. This was the first of three wins at Silmo. Since then ic! berlin has been a regular fixture at, and won top honours from, the world’s top optical trade and design fairs. In 2003 the trio split, with Anderl remaining at ic! berlin as the sole Managing Director. Under Anderl, ic! berlin has expanded into fashion, launching a line of jeans and collaborating with other designers and fashion labels such as , , and . Anderl continues to forge a strong relationship with the art world, frequently collaborating with photographers such as and . In 2013 renowned German artist and entertainer took up residency at ic! berlin an . Today ic! berlin has over 180 employees worldwide with subsidiaries in Berlin, New York and Tokyo. The head office has recently moved from their Backfabrik location near Alexanderplatz, to a bigger location in the Marzahn-Hellersdorf district of Berlin. Design, production, dispatch, sales, marketing and service all continue to happen under the one roof. ic! berlin glasses are sold in more than 60 countries worldwide.
Awards
The company has received various awards for their product designs and technological achievements, including: 1998 Einfach Genial TV Award/MDR, Germany
ic! berlin has produced designs in collaboration with Danish fashion label Bo Van Melskens, BAPE, German/French design collective KIX, Jeremy Tarian, Freitag, and London fashion label Superfine.
