| Textile printers |
| Church suppliers |
| Weaving mill |
| Stamp Shop |
| Dürninger's Grocery Market |
| Dürningers Corner Shop |
| Chronicle |
| Contact |
Deutsche Version |
|
 |
||
|
Abraham Dürninger
Born on 22.12.1706 in Strasbourg, Alsace
 Abraham Dürninger was the second son of a Strasbourg merchant and city councillor. He was apprenticed to his father and was also sent abroad to learn in Switzerland, France and the Netherlands. During this period he saw just how ugly trade and industry can be when craving for profit is the main motive. This is why Dürninger did not want to remain a businessman. This very sensitive and devout man was searching for a place where he could satisfy his hunger for God. At this time he heard about the community of the Herrnhut Society of Brothers in Wetterau near Frankfurt am Main under Count Zinzendorf. On 5.12.1744 he joined the society, having previously become familiar with their spiritual life during several visits. Zinzendorf appointed him chief accountant of the Society of Brothers in Wetterau in 1745. In 1747 Zinzendorf summoned him to Herrnhut, where he was to take over the debt-ridden co-operative shop. |
|
Custom and propriety demanded he be married before he went to Herrnhut. The lot he
drew was a young widow who brought a nine-year-old son with her into the marriage.
On 29.9.1747 Dürninger set out for Herrnhut, visiting the Leipzig Trade Fair on the
way where he made his first purchases for his business. On 24.10.1747
Abraham Dürninger took over the co-operative shop of the Society of Brothers in
Herrnhut. This day is the founding day of the company that was later to be named
after Dürninger with the approval of Count Zinzendorf. The business grew daily, year for year, as a result of Dürninger's ceaseless enthusiasm and God's blessing. In 1751 Dürninger no longer signed as only Abraham Dürninger, but as Abraham Dürninger & Co. in order to document that he was not the owner but only the trustee administrator of the businesses entrusted to him by the Society of Brothers. As years later the manufacture was added to the business, Dürninger was the first German businessmen who bought and sold at fixed prices. He thereby enabled the weavers in Oberlausitz to have a fixed income, thus helping to alleviate their poverty. In Abraham Dürninger's lifetime and under his management a work came into being that became known beyond the borders of Germany and Europe. As a devout and enthusiastic businessman he created an economic spirit in Herrnhut whose aura still permeates the Society of Brothers business activities. Abraham Dürninger died on 13th February 1773 and was buried in the cemetery of the Society of Brothers in Herrnhut. His gravestone can be still seen there today. |
|