The history of the Revell company is the story of a great passion that began in America at the end of the 1940s. In 1947, the founder of Revell Inc., Lewis H. Glaser, came up with the idea of assembling a true-to-scale car from several plastic parts. This was the birth of plastic model making. As early as 1956, the enthusiasm for the new hobby was to cross the "big pond" and revolutionize the leisure activities of countless hobbyists and collectors.

Then as now: Revell – the synonym for plastic model making

In that year, the German subsidiary, Revell Plastics GmbH, was founded in Bielefeld. Just one year later, the company's headquarters were moved to the neighbouring town of Bünde. From a traditional former cigar factory, only imported original kits from the USA and Great Britain were initially sold in Germany and neighbouring countries.

The first in-house development – a BMW R75/5 in 1:8 scale – was created in 1971. In the mid-1980s, however, an in-house development department with associated production was established in Bünde. This competence in the development and construction of true-to-the-original plastic model kits has been pursued and cultivated persistently and with great continuity over the many years of the company's history. By the mid-1970s, the distribution network included all Western European countries. Since 1976, an extensive range of accessories has been added to the range of kits. Based on these successes, the sales network was expanded to Eastern Europe in 1978. Further logical steps were later the inclusion of airbrush products and prefabricated metal models (Die Cast) in the range.

The worldwide success of the Revell brand can be illustrated by impressive figures from the plastic model making sector: In 1995, the mark of over 5,000,000 model kits sold was exceeded for the first time. Several 100,000 kits of the Fokker Dr. 1 alone were sold. The most successful plastic model kit in the world is the Titanic: more than two million copies of the legendary steamer have been sold to date. These figures are all the more impressive when you consider that in the early days there were only a few thousand models a year that made their way from Bünde to the whole world.

Build Your Dream - Model making the core business

A look back at representative product highlights of the past decades reflects the fascinating diversity of the Revell model making world.

One of the first products is still relevant today: The Bismarck, one of the largest and most famous German battleships, in the range since the early 60s, will be replaced by a new spectacular edition in 2012. During his research, Revell was able to draw on old plans and new underwater photographs. In addition, a small sailing ship, which left the "Revell shipyard" in 1960 as a Peter Pan pirate ship, has written model making history. In 1969, the year of the moon landing, the complete Apollo-Saturn program caused a sensation. With NASA's Challenger and Atlantis programs, the space series was successfully continued.

At the beginning of the 1980s, Revell was the first manufacturer to present 1:25 scale plastic truck model kits. In 2005, one of the highlights from the world of cinema found its way into the model making range – Star Wars, probably the world's best-known cult series to this day. The now extensive fleet of Star Wars spaceships is representative of Revell's successful licensing business and the easykit product line for the youngest model builders. But even with modern, popular themes such as the cruise ships from AIDA or the car models from BMW, your own dreams can be fulfilled at any time with the help of the true-to-the-original model kits from Revell.

With additional, attractive concepts and ideas, Revell has also repeatedly caused a stir on the toy market. These included, for example, the Grand Champions horse line or the MagCliks jewellery series for girls. Right in the heart of the target group boys hit the Kick-O-Mania brand. Just in time for the 2006 Football World Cup in their own country, international football stars thrilled all young and old football fans as 30 cm tall game figures.

With the market launch of the ORBIS children's airbrush system in 2011, Revell is once again showing how innovative and creative products for children can be. With this system, you can easily create your own ideas on paper, fabric, wood and glass as well as tattoos.

In 2009, the company successfully entered the RC toy market and thus expanded its business areas in the direction of remote-controlled products. With the Revell Control brand, a logical complement to plastic model making has been created, whereby this segment benefits greatly from the awareness and image of the traditional Revell brand. The Revell Control range is positioned as a fun and entry-level brand and includes attractive RC models for air, water and land. This offer is supplemented by the in-house developed RC cars from Revellutions, which convince with their extraordinary design and their combination of unique features. Thus, the cars on a scale of 1:14 and 1:18 guarantee pure driving pleasure. With these RC products, Revell has also become one of the top manufacturers in the RC toy market.