Ritz Stick | Foot Measuring > Shoe Size – Men, Women, & Children

For nearly 100 years . . .

The Ritz Stick is the best known & most popular foot measuring device in the United States and abroad. It was invented in 1913 and patented in 1916 by Oliver C. Ritz-Woller, the founder of American Automatic Devices Company and King Bee Manufacturing Company. He developed the Ritz Stick under a government grant in order to standardize foot sizing for the U.S. Army. The measurements were compiled by experienced shoe fitters from a thousand actual fittings. Designed to simply, quickly and accurately measure foot length and width, the Ritz Stick was the first nationally recognized foot measuring device and set the standard commonly used today.

Mr Ritz-Woller passed away in the late 1950's. In the early 60's the rights and equipment to produce the Ritz Stick were purchased by Charles A. Ball, Jr., owner of Woodrow Engineering Company. Woodrow Engineering, a manufacturer of professional scale rulers, was founded in 1946 and had been contract printing the Ritz Stick for many years. The stick continually remained unchanged except for modifications to the toe slide plate and fastening methods.

In 1971 Charles moved Woodrow Engineering from the Chicago area into an old apple & cherry packing plant in Door County, Wisconsin - which is where it still resides.

In 1986, Charles' son Michael E. Ball purchased the business. In 1988 Michael modified the stick to include a women's sizing scale and more aggresively marketed the Ritz Stick as an advertising tool. Offering to imprint custom logos and size scales in small quantities proved to provide an edge over more expensive devices.

For nearly 100 years the Ritz Stick has been the standard in the footwear industry - simple, accurate & economical.