From bicycle factory to famous battery

That’s why the Utrecht factory started producing batteries in 1921 as a side venture, to bring in some extra revenue.

But sales grew so fast that a new factory was opened soon, devoted solely to the production of batteries.

Batteries enjoyed great popularity in those days, and Herberhold wasn’t the only player in the Dutch market.

There were some fifteen battery factories in the Netherlands alone!

Herberhold’s Utrecht factory produced various types of batteries, most of which were sold regionally at first.

But thanks to Herberhold’s national network of bicycle shops, they soon became available throughout the country.

The batteries were sold under the brand names White Cat and Windmill (Dutch: Molen).

Thanks to its high quality, the battery enjoyed a good reputation among Dutch consumers.

This was partly due to the factory’s German engineers, who brought in a wealth of knowledge about battery development.

In the factory's laboratory, the engineers worked on innovations like the layered battery, in which several flat batteries were stacked on top of each other.

This production method remained in use well into the 1960s.

Its chief advantage lay in the fact that it was a simple way to make larger, more powerful batteries, from 9 volts all the way up to 90.

Although the White Cat brand has since disappeared, batteries themselves have become an integral part of our everyday lives.

The average Dutch household has about 100 of them in use at any given time!

Think about it: they’re in TV remotes, smoke detectors, flashlights, speakers, bike lights...

Thanks to batteries, you always have access to electricity – even when there’s not a socket in sight!