1868 – 1904: The Early Years

In the age of the construction of the Suez Canal, the invention of the telephone and the building of the Eiffel tower, the companies Agfa and L. Gevaert & Cie too first see the light of day, the former in Germany, near Berlin, the latter in the city of Antwerp in Belgium.

On the 28th of May 1868, Lieven Gevaert is born. He will build the Gevaert Company from scratch to a company of world fame. In 1873 Agfa, the Aktien-Gesellschaft für Anilin-Fabrikation, is founded in Germany.

In 1890, Lieven Gevaert establishes a workshop, specialised in the production of calcium paper. Four years later, he and Armand Seghers establish L. Gevaert & Cie with a starting capital of 20,000 BEF. After only one year, the company opens its first subsidiary abroad, in Paris, after the takeover of the company Blue Star Papers.

In 1897, Agfa is registered as a trading name. The company produces photographic chemicals. In 1901, L. Gevaert & Cie starts producing the famous glossy photographic paper, and another two years later, L. Gevaert & Cie fabricates the first motion picture film.

In 1904, the factory moves from Antwerp to Mortsel. The employees get a share of the company's profits, establishing Gevaert as one of the pioneers of employee participation. The year after, the first Belgian Health Service is founded in the company of Gevaert.