On February 27, 1920, the brothers Joachim and Hans Kuërs establish the company Imperial-Oel-Import in Hamburg. Their business is focussed on import and distribution of mineral oil based chemicals. Customers served in the company’s early years mainly belong to the chemical industry. In the course of time the product portfolio is expanded to a wide range of vegetable and animal derived waxes, oils, resins and fatty acids, sourced from European producers and increasingly also from overseas suppliers.

Wolfgang Kromer, who joined the company in 1967, takes over the business from its founders in 1975. In addition to the traditional import business, Imperial-Oel-Import becomes more and more successful in the field of exports, supplying customers in the chemical industry, cosmetics and pharmaceutical business, in the metal industry, in food and feed production.