The company was founded in 1924 by Robert Becker initially as a timber company. However by 1945 Robert Becker's son Hubert started to branch out in to modelling. This market was little-known at the time, and the company can be seen as the pioneer of an emerging industry. In 1981 the company was taken over by the Schwarzhaupt group of Cologne, who marketed Robbe products Europe-wide. Despite claims that the quality of some Robbe products is less than satisfactory given their relatively high price, it remains a popular brand today.
Robbe remains little-known outside of the modelling world. However its influence on the history of this industry has been to increase the popularity of modelling beyond what many thought could only be a niche market.