Freudenberg SE
Company typeFamily-owned
Societas Europaea
IndustryConglomerate
Founded1849
FounderCarl Johann Freudenberg
HeadquartersWeinheim, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Dr. Mohsen Sohi (CEO)
ProductsHousehold and other products
RevenueIncrease €11.753 billion (2022)[1]
Number of employees
51,462 (2022)[1]
Websitewww.freudenberg.com

The Freudenberg Group is a German family-owned diversified group of companies whose products include housewares and cleaning products, automobile parts, textiles, building materials, and telecommunications. Its headquarters are in Weinheim, Baden-Württemberg, and it has production facilities in Europe, Asia, Australia, South and North America. The parent company was founded in 1849 as a producer of leather goods. Currently the company is owned by stock holders who are all descendants of the original founder, most of which are now affluent families that live in primarily Europe or North America.

History

The company was founded in 1849 by Carl Johann Freudenberg, the son of a wine merchant,[2] and his partner, Heinrich Christoph Heintze; the two took over a tannery at Weinheim. For the next 80 years, the company produced leather products exclusively.[3][4] Hurt by the worldwide economic depression that began in 1929, and by shortages during World War II, it diversified into seals for motors made first of leather and later of artificial rubber (the Simmerring, named for an engineer called Walther Simmer),[5] which led to fabrics and to cleaning fabrics and tools when it was noted that the company's cleaning ladies were using discarded scraps of the experimental fabrics.[3][4] Vileda (from German: wie Leder, "like leather") window-cleaning cloths were first marketed in 1948.[6]

In the mid-1990s the company reorganized with a "highly decentralized organizational structure": it has 16 divisions or areas of business incorporating 430 independent units.[4][7][8] Three-quarters of its business is as a supplier to other companies.[9] In 2004 Freudenberg had employees in 43 countries.[3][10][11] Recently it has focused attention on markets in China and Japan; for example, it provided the floor coverings for the Shanghai Metro stations.[3]

In 2002 the company closed its last leather tannery, marking the effective end of the leather industry in Germany.[4] However, today Vileda is a market leader in Europe.[12] All German cars contain parts made by another Freudenberg subsidiary, and German-made outdoor clothing contains fibers made by yet another.[4] Almost all major airports have flooring made by another Freudenberg subsidiary.[9] In 2004, Freudenberg Group made an initial entry into the global medical market with the creation of Freudenberg Medical EN.

Ownership and philosophy

Freudenberg remains a family-owned private company, structured as a Kommanditgesellschaft (limited partnership) jointly held by descendants of the founder (some 300 in 2011).[4][3] Stock cannot be sold to non-family members and must be surrendered by in-laws upon divorce.[8] No stockholder holds more than 2% ownership.[9] An annual three-day General Meeting[4] elects the Board of Partners, which consists of 7 to 13 members of whom the majority must be Freudenberg family members.[13] The divisions are managed by a Management Board, who need not be family members.[13] Stockholders receive a semi-annual family newsletter and have access to an owners' intranet. A select few are on the Wine Commission, which oversees the private Freudenberg vineyards.[3] These vineyards are the largest in the Bergstraße region, producing 60,000 bottles of wine annually.[9]

Wolfram Freudenberg, a fifth-generation family member who formerly headed the Stuttgart Stock Exchange, was Chairman of the Board of Partners from 2005 to 2014, succeeding Reinhart Freudenberg, who stepped down for reasons of age.[5][14] In 2014 he was succeeded by Martin Wentzler, also a fifth-generation family member.[15] Since July 2012, Mohsen Sohi has been spokesperson for the Management Board;[16] his predecessor, Peter Bettermann, formerly head of German BP, in 1997 became the first non-family member to run the company.[4][5][3][9]

In the late 1930s, the company developed operating principles that include broad diversification in both products and markets, spreading of risk, long-term thinking and the maintenance of an equity ratio of at least 40%, and avoidance of large acquisitions while favoring small ones.[4][6][17] The company would rather acquire "a handful of interesting smaller enterprises" every year than a large company that might endanger the company philosophy.[18] In each area of activity, the company operates only where it can be first or second in the market; for example, it sells motor seals worldwide but Vileda mops mostly in Europe.[18]

Brands

Vileda Freudenberg Group office

Brands listed on the company's website[13] are:

Freudenberg Household Products Division also sells products under the O-Cedar brand name in the US.[19]

Philanthropy

The Freudenberg Group owns the Schau- und Sichtungsgarten Hermannshof, a public botanical garden in Weinheim, which opened in 1983 and is jointly operated with the town.[9][20][21][22]

The Freudenberg Stiftung was founded in 1984 and is endowed with stock in the parent company. It has a broad mandate "to promote science, the humanities and education as well as strengthening peaceful coexistence in society and culture" and focuses particularly on assistance to and democratic education of young people, primarily in Germany.[23]

References

  1. ^ a b "Annual Report 2022" (PDF). Freudenberg Group. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  2. ^ Hucke, Johannes (2009). Bergstraße-Weinlesebuch. Regio Guide (in German). Vol. 6. Karlsruhe: Info Verlag. ISBN 978-3-88190-504-6. Archived from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Scheele, Martin (22 January 2004). "Familie Freudenberg: Die Wischmopp-Millionäre". Manager Magazin (in German). Archived from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Lamparter, Dietmar H. (24 February 2011). "Unternehmen Freudenberg: Von der Kunst des Häutens". Die Zeit. Archived from the original on 29 August 2011.
  5. ^ a b c Sywottek, Christian (October 2008). "Das Matroschka-Prinzip". Brand Eins (interview with Wolfram Freudenberg) (in German). Archived from the original on 10 February 2013.
  6. ^ a b Grant, Tina (2001). International Directory of Company Histories. St. James Press. ISBN 978-1-55862-446-7.
  7. ^ As of April 2013, under Business Groups Archived 18 February 2013 at the Wayback Machine the company lists the following four Business Areas, each of which incorporates several Business Groups: Seals and vibration control technology; nonwovens and filtration; household products; specialties and others. See also Company Structure Archived 27 March 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Freudenberg Group.
  8. ^ a b Block, Jörn Hendrich (2009). Long-term Orientation of Family Firms: An Investigation of R&D Investments, Downsizing Practices, and Executive Pay (thesis, Technische Universität München). Wiesbaden: Betriebswirtschaftlicher Verlag Gabler. p. 3. ISBN 978-3-8349-1959-5. Archived from the original on 9 January 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  9. ^ a b c d e f Behrens, Bolke (24 January 2005). "Freudenberg-Gruppe bewahrt beharrlich den Familiencharakter: Ein ganz unauffälliges Weltunternehmen". Handelsblatt (in German). Archived from the original on 11 June 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  10. ^ 53 in 2008, according to Sywottek.
  11. ^ As of April 2013, 58 countries: Freudenberg Group Archived 27 March 2013 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 13 April 2013.
  12. ^ Dworschak, Manfred (1 October 2000). "'Materie am falschen Ort'". Der Spiegel (in German). ISSN 2195-1349. Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  13. ^ a b c "Freudenberg Group: Organization & Portfolio". www.freudenberg.com. Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  14. ^ "Freudenberg: Neue Führung im Gesellschafterausschuss". Manager Magazin (in German). 27 June 2005. Archived from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  15. ^ "Change in Board of Partners' Chair" (press release). Freudenberg Group. 1 July 2014. Archived from the original on 11 August 2014.
  16. ^ "Management Changes at Freudenberg" (press release). Freudenberg Group. 29 June 2012. Archived from the original on 11 August 2014.
  17. ^ "Corporate Values: Guiding Principles". Freudenberg Group. Archived from the original on 22 September 2013.
  18. ^ a b Neukirchen, Heide; Palass, Brigitta (22 March 2002). "Familienunternehmen: Freudenberg-Gruppe". Manager Magazin (in German). Archived from the original on 13 December 2004. Retrieved 23 December 2011.
  19. ^ "About O-Cedar". O-Cedar.com. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  20. ^ Dohna, Countess Ursula (1986). Private Gardens of Germany. Harmony Books. p. 122. ISBN 978-0-517-56512-4. Archived from the original on 9 January 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  21. ^ Gardens Illustrated. 2002. p. 36. Archived from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  22. ^ Garten und Landschaft (in German). 2002. p. 44. Archived from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  23. ^ "Freudenberg foundation". Freudenberg group. Archived from the original on 7 April 2012.

Further reading

External links

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