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Our History

Quality Piercing Jewellery and Tattoo Supply

It all began 1989 with John Donoghue

In our mid-twenties, Ida and Martin Siedler, became aware of John and his company. We were captivated by the idea of making this wonderful world more colorful and individual every day with the help of piercing jewelry, so we founded Wildcat Germany in 1996. What started in our home in Essen, Germany, has developed rapidly in the following years.

With the opening of the headquarters in Gronau, the logistic chain was extended and nothing stood in the way of our development. In 2012, Wildcat England and Wildcat Germany became one – and we were ready to take off across Europe! More than 120 Wildcat employees work every day at the headquarters and in the stores with a lot of ambition and passion for the growth of the company and the industry. The dedication of the last decades has paid off, because it is only thanks to our employees and outstanding customers that we are here today – at the top of Europe within piercing jewelry.

Wildcat is a remarkable company in every sense! We don’t disguise, hide or bend – we do our thing. And that has made us damn proud for years! For us, individuality and authenticity play a big role – every person should be as unique and colorful as they want to be. We convey this feeling to our customers, partners and also our employees every day. Especially in the early days of our company, the voices of doubters and critics were loud. It was a mistake to be self-employed in this industry, we could not feed our young family in this way. Unfortunately, pierced and tattooed Wildcats do not always have it easy in society. But that’s exactly why it fills us with pride to continue to promote tolerance for body art with each and every one of our customers and partners – and there’s still a lot to do!

The Wildcat story

1986

The beginning

John Donoghue begins selling piercing jewelry – laying the foundation for an exciting journey.
1986

1989

Name finding

While watching a documentary about wildcats, John decides on a name for his business. Wildcat is born!
1989

1990

First big innovation

Wildcat invents the Flesh Tunnel – a new de facto standard for stretched ears.
1990

1992

GETTING TO KNOW EACH OTHER

Martin Siedler, later founder of Wildcat Germany, meets John for the first time.
1992

1996

First Steps

Martin and Ida Siedler found Wildcat Germany and publish its first catalog. In addition, the first Dortmund Tattoo & Piercing Convention is organized and held. A milestone for the scene in Germany.
1996

1997

Store Essen

The topic of piercing is becoming more and more socially acceptable. Wildcat opens the first piercing store in Essen.
1997

1998

Own production

Opening of a German production facility for piercing jewelry. The highlight: Wildcat is the first company to develop a technique that gives titanium the same shine as steel.
1998

2001

The community

The Wildcat Online Community is launched – the first digital contact point for piercing fans. In addition, the store in Essen is expanded by three floors.
2001

2002

The one ring

Wildcat becomes the official manufacturer of the jewelry for the movie “The Lord of the Rings” – including the “one ring”.
2002

2003-2006

CELEBS, CELEBS, CELEBS

As part of Wildcat Celebrity Marketing, catalog covers are created with various celebrities. Ice skating star Anni Friesinger, handball player Stefan Kertzschmar and musician Bela B. from the band Die Ärzte do the honors and adorn the covers of our Wildcat catalogs. Wildcat also produces jewelry for Tokio Hotel.
2003-2006

2007

Gronau Site

The Wildcat logistics location in Gronau is opened. From here all Wildcat stores as well as distributors in 56 countries are supplied.
2007

2010

First B2C catalog

The first catalog for end customers is printed and successfully distributed. Together with the guys from Miami Inc. the now biggest tattoo convention in Germany takes place – 25.000 enthusiastic visitors in 3 days!
2010

2011

World patent

Wildcat is awarded the world patent for Healium – a synthetic material into which an antimicrobial substance has been introduced, thus actively supporting the healing of piercings.
2011

2012

DONE!

With the acquisition of Wildcat England and the start-up of the central logistics in Lingen, Wildcat becomes the world’s leading manufacturer and distributor of piercing jewelry. In addition, the now fifth Wildcat store opens in the Schanzenviertel district of Hamburg.
2012

To Be Continued…

We have grown together with the piercing & tattoo craft and are happy that nowadays so many people enjoy various body jewelry and we are proud to be part of this transformation with our Wildcat jewelry. For many, we have become a wholesome all-rounder when it comes to body jewelry – we will continue to put all the effort we got into this craft, because it makes us proud! We look forward to every chapter that is added to our story and look full of optimism into a colorful future!