August Kühne

August Kühne (1855–1932) was a German businessman and freight forwarder. In 1890, he co-founded Kühne + Nagel together with Friedrich Nagel (1864–1907) in Bremen.

Life
August was the son of a woodcutter. His intention was to study law, but was unable to do so due to financial reasons. As a result, he became an apprentice at the Bremens import/export company L.G. Dyes & Co. He perfected his education but was dismissed during the economic crisis of 1875. After a while he took a job at freight handler Fr. Nauman in Bremen. He worked his way up to partner and became engaged to Naumann's daughter. However, she died before marriage. Kühne left the company in 1890 after a disagreement with Naumann and started his own company.