The company was founded in September 1863 as Häckel und Schneider in Paunsdorf, near Leipzig,[1] with 20 employees who made lamps by hand.[1][5] Hugo Schneider was a 27-year-old Silesian salesman; his partner, Ernst Häckel, was a plumber, who had started the business making lamps, tinware and painted wares in 1854.[5] Over the next few years, the company began making gas lamps, the production of which soon increased with the growing use of gas lighting.[5] Schneider took over his partner's share of the business in 1871 and by 1880, the firm had grown from a simple factory to an industrial plant, with 200 employees.[5] It soon grew to over 300 employees and began exporting not just to other European countries, but also to South America, Asia and Australia.[5] Schneider died on June 1, 1888 and his son, Johnannes Schneider-Dörfel took over the business.[5]