Trade marks write cycling history

Trade marks were registered not just for bicycles, but often also for bicycle frames, as well as other components, such as tyres and bells. This is interesting historically, as the bike frames sold in Switzerland today come almost exclusively from other countries. In the early 20th century, bicycle trade marks were also frequently registered for machines, such as sewing machines. Towards the mid-20th century, bicycle trade marks were increasingly filed for motorbikes or other vehicles at the same time. Not until the 1990s do we find trade marks for e-bikes.

Based on trade mark registrations, there must have been bicycle manufacturers all across Switzerland – from Western Switzerland to Eastern Switzerland, in cities such as Geneva, Zurich, Lausanne, Biel and Lugano, and in smaller towns or villages, such as Balsthal (Solothurn), Hergiswil (Nidwalden) and Courfaivre (Jura). Trade mark applicants included well-known companies, such as ALPA-Werke, Condor and Allegro, but there were also many private owners. We also found something that’s probably unique to Switzerland: trade marks that consist entirely or in part of names of Swiss places, based on where the bicycles or other bicycle components were produced.

As well as allusions to Swiss cities and other locations, mountains are also unmistakable elements in Swiss bicycle trade marks from the 20th century. For example, the Eiger, Pilatus and Chasseral. The trade mark owners didn’t just sell bikes, but also produced them themselves, as can be clearly seen in register entries such as ‘manufacturer’s trade mark’, ‘manufacture and trade’ and ‘bicycles of Swiss origin’. 

From around 1920, bicycles found themselves in competition with cars, which were well developed by then. As the first mass means of transport, however, the bicycle remained the Swiss people’s favourite for a long time. It had the upper hand over cars thanks to its closeness to nature and environmental friendliness. This is reflected in the various elements from the natural world that appeared as motifs in Swiss bicycle trade marks in the 20th century. These include above all animals, such as wild cats (tigers, lions, leopards, etc.), ibex and birds, and other natural elements, such as planets, stars, winds and rocks.

One hundred years ago, Swiss bicycle manufacturers were already using speed as an advertising claim. And not just to fend off competition from cars. Many trade marks, especially in the bicycle’s heyday in the 1920s and the 1930s, contained word components that particularly praised the performance of their non-motorised vehicles. The aim was to offer the fastest and best bicycle in the market. So it was no coincidence that bike trade marks such as ‘Rapid’, ‘Victoria’ and ‘Triumphator’ could be seen on the roads, even back then. Numerous trade marks also featured wings as a figurative element.