Frequently it is the seemingly simple ideas that
change the world because they make life simpler, more convenient and better. The
shower bar is such an innovation with a sustainable impact. In 2013 it became 60
years old. Today it is taken for granted in bathrooms across the globe: the
shower bar.
It was discovered by Hans
Grohe, the pioneer of Germany’s sanitation industry, in Schiltach 60 years ago.
It came on the market in 1953, under the brand name Unica: A milestone in the
history of Hansgrohe as this innovation made the company the shower specialist
at the time and has characterised its approach to innovation to this day.
In addition, however, the invention of
the shower bar was a significant watershed in the development of the bathroom.
This is because first of all, it changed users’ behaviour by enabling
“hands-free” showering – with a height-adjustable hand shower. Secondly, this
brought about the emancipation of the shower from the bathtub. This heralded the
advent of separate showering areas in the bathroom, changing its architecture in
the process. A genuine bathroom revolution!
Hans Grohe
Hansgrohe’s Unica was the world’s first shower sliding rail in 1953
