Bang & Olufsen

Why it is renowned

By 1960 Bang & Olufsen had begun selling on world markets, and Jacob Jensen designed its products from 1965 to 1985.¹ In 1978 the Museum of Modern Art in New York showed its work in the exhibition Bang & Olufsen: Design for Sound by Jakob Jensen.² Audi, BMW, Aston Martin and Mercedes-AMG have offered sound systems under its name, and the company operated in 70 countries in 2023.¹

Recognition

• Museum of Modern Art, New York²1978the exhibition Bang & Olufsen: Design for Sound by Jakob Jensen
• Museum of Modern Art, New York⁶1973the Beogram 4000 record player in its collection, a gift of the manufacturer

The story

Peter Bang and Svend Olufsen, two young engineers, founded the company on 17 November 1925 in the attic of Quistrup, the Olufsen family's manor in Struer.³ Their first product, the Eliminator, let a radio run from the mains instead of a battery.³ Near the end of the Second World War its factory was burnt down by saboteurs, and the founders rebuilt it.¹ The families owned the company until it was listed on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange in 1977.³ Its products still take shape in Struer, where aluminium is worked in its own factory.⁴

What to know it by

• Eliminator³1925discontinuedPeter Bang and Svend OlufsenMains adaptor for the radio
• BeoLab 5¹discontinuedFloor speaker with acoustic lenses and room correction
• BeoCom 6000¹discontinuedHenrik Sørig ThomsenCordless telephone with a scroll wheel
• Beolab 90³Loudspeaker, also made in Atelier Editions
• Beogram 4000⁵1972Jacob JensenRecord player in aluminium and wood