For the Past 75 Years, It’s Always Christmas for Kurt S. Adler, Inc.

By Susan Mease

Christmas and Santa Claus are timeless, and Kurt S. Adler, Inc. has been helping to keep them that way for 75 years. A Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany, Adler served in the procurement department of the U.S. Army. After the war, he used the skills he had developed and began exporting goods to countries needing product after the war. As European economies improved and, recognizing the commercial possibilities of Christmas, Kurt changed directions and began importing glass ornaments from Czechoslovakia, hand-carved angels from his native Bavaria, and miniature lights from Italy. His artificial trees from Nuremberg looked so real a fire marshal demanded that they be removed from the Broadway showroom. Kurt had both good taste and foresight and realized that when customers ordered Christmas items, he would know the inventory required at a particular time instead of being subject to a customer’s whims: “I need 100 pineapples by next week.”

Kurt was early to recognize the possibilities of licensing and the company now holds over 80 licenses, from the obvious such as Disney to the less obvious such as the Rockettes. They also have a relationship with the famous Steinbach Nutcrackers, and Kurt S.

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