150 Years of Palthe: From Steam Kettles to Modern Laundries

1873: Gebr. Palthe Starts With Steam and Chemistry

It begins in Almelo—not The Hague. On September 9, 1873, the Palthe family purchases an abandoned factory building from a grain mill and bakery company. It was steam-powered machinery; they convert it into a textile-dyeing operation.

They fill wooden vats with water, steam, and chemical dyes. Day in, day out: textiles in, let them steep, textiles out. This is before electricity. This is pure manual labor at industrial scale.

“The vats had to stay at temperature constantly,” a factory worker from that era might have said. “Your feet were always wet. Heat, steam, chemical fumes—but work was work.”

The Palthe family was good at this work. Business grows.

1881: The Great Expansion—From Dyeing to Cleaning

Eight years later: too small. The family moves to Sluiskade outside Almelo. More space, more machines.

But something important happens: they invent a new process. Cleaning textiles with benzene and steam. Not just dyeing, but dry cleaning.

This births “Almelosche Ververij en Chemische Wasscherij Gebr. Palthe.” They realize: textile cleaning is faster profit than dyeing. Customers want clean clothing. Much faster.

Palthe begins a network of “depots”—local pickup points. Via rail networks, dirty clothing travels to Almelo, gets cleaned, returns. This is the Amazon logistics of 1881: freight wagons, central processing, distributed service.

1898: 720 Employees, Electricity, and the Future

Twenty-five years after founding: Palthe is an institution. 720 factory workers. 80 office staff. The number feels unreal from 2024, but in 1898 this was large.

1898 is also the year electricity reaches the factory. Not just light—power. Machines become faster, more efficient.

The family builds an enormous pressing room and new cleaning facility. They understand: if you don’t invest in technology, you get overtaken.

1899: 400 Locations, Golden Letters

The family also changes legal form. “N.V. Almelosche Ververij en Chemische Wasscherij, voorheen Gebr. Palthe”—a corporation. This is serious.

They expand to 400 depots/locations. All recognizable: “Palthe” in gold letters arched on shop windows. You saw them everywhere in the Netherlands.

This is branding before phones existed.

1938: Modern Machines, Chemical Revolution

Sixty-five years after founding: still growing. New ownership, new equipment. Benzene is replaced with advanced chemicals.

Stork (a machinery builder) delivers an immense boiler. This is the industrial revolution in textiles: steam becomes pressure, handwork becomes automation.

Palthe invests again. They still understand: innovate or fade.

1972: Decentralization—Modern Palthe

After WWII—years of recovery, caution, steady growth—Palthe makes a revolutionary decision: decentralization.

Instead of centralizing everything in one location, they install cleaning machines at local sites. This means:

• Faster service (not everything to Almelo)
• Local relationships (you visit your local Palthe)
• Redundancy (if one location has issues, others cover)
• Sustainability (less transport)

The company renames to “Palthe Stomerijen.” No longer “factories”—“shops.” This signals: we’re closer to you, faster, more personal.

2024: 150 Years Later, Still Strong

Today we operate from 10+ locations with multiple depots in The Hague, Almelo, and beyond.

We’re no longer owned by the original Palthe family (generations pass), but the ethos remains:

1. Innovate or become obsolete—we invest in modern equipment
2. Scale efficiency—large = affordable + reliable
3. Local = personal—ten locations, not one factory
4. Quality is non-negotiable—150 years of doing this

What Changed, What Stayed

Aspect	1873	2024
Core business	Textile cleaning	Textile cleaning
Scale	Local (Almelo)	Regional (Netherlands)
Technology	Steam, benzene	Modern chemistry, automation
Locations	1 factory	10+ dedicated sites
Transport	Rail wagons	Vans, logistics
Ethos	Family-driven	Quality-driven

What never changed: we clean textiles. We do it professionally. We invest in doing it right.

Why This Matters Now

In a world of fast fashion, disposability, and short-term thinking: Palthe is an anomaly. 150 years. Family-rooted (even if not literally family). Always thinking: long-term.

That means:

• No shortcuts—we know poor cleaning destroys textiles
• Specialized knowledge—150 years = countless experiments, failures, lessons
• Sustainability—we want to still exist in 2174

When you bring your workwear to Palthe, or your wedding dress, or your hotel’s linens: you’re not just trusting today’s machines.

You’re trusting 150 years of learning.

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Palthe. Since 1873. Still keeping things clean.

Call 070-3450379 or visit palthedenhaag.nl