ABOUT
A STRONG TEAM
Roughly 4,700 employees around the globe write the Hansgrohe success story every day. Business report Supervisory and Executive Board Claim.
SUPERVISORY AND EXECUTIVE BOARD
The Hansgrohe Group executive board: André Wehrhahn, Frank Semling, Hans Juergen Kalmbach (Chairman) and Christophe Gourlan (left to right) (Copyright: Hansgrohe SE).
The supervisory and executive board of the Hansgrohe Group work together for the success of the company.
The operational management is in the hands of the four members of the executive board. Standing beside them is the supervisory board, which monitors the executive board’s work and represents the interests of shareholders, Hansgrohe SE, and our employees.
THE GOVERNING BODIES OF THE HANSGROHE GROUP
Supervisory board of Hansgrohe SE
The shareholders of Hansgrohe SE are represented in the supervisory board. The majority shareholder is the Masco Corporation, headquartered in Livonia, Michigan. The corporation currently holds a 68 percent share of Hansgrohe SE.
With more than 20 subsidiary companies, Masco is one of the largest manufacturers of products for the house building and home improvement market. The company has had shares in Hansgrohe SE since 1985. The Klaus Grohe family of Schiltach has 32 percent share of Hansgrohe SE with its administrative and holding GmbH, Syngroh.
MEMBERS OF THE SUPERVISORY BOARD
- Klaus F. Jaenecke, Chairman
- Richard O’Reagan, Deputy Chairman / Group President, Masco Corporation
- Keith Allman, President and CEO, Masco Corporation
- Richard Grohe, supervisory board member
- Matthias Dittmann, elected employee representative
- Juergen Naehr, elected employee representative
HANSGROHE SE EXECUTIVE BOARD
Four executive board members conduct the business of the Hansgrohe Group. Each of them has his or her own clearly defined area of responsibility. They also represent our company externally. Members of the executive board:
- Hans Juergen Kalmbach, Chairman of the Executive Board
- Frank Semling, Chief Operating Officer / Labor Director, Deputy Chairman
- Christophe Gourlan, Chief Sales Officer
- André Wehrhahn, Chief Financial Officer
COMPANY
OUR COMPANY
120 years of innovation, design, and quality – that is what Hansgrohe stands for. Started as a family business, today we are an internationally active corporation.
Then and now, the person is the center of our focus – be it customer, business partner, or employee. We have a feel for tomorrow’s requirements and are shaping the future. Learn more about the corporate group.
INNOVATION, DESIGN, AND QUALITY
We have very high expectations: for ourselves, our products, and everyone who works with and for us.
This claim is reflected in the degree of innovation, the award-winning design, the premium quality of our faucets, showers and accessories. Our products are a joy to use for many years – from the first steps into the bathroom in the morning to the last shower in the evening.
VALUE
The highest of quality standards, revolutionary functionalities, and award-winning product design: three characteristics that make our faucets, showers, kitchen sinks, and accessories what they are valued for by a wide range of customers around the world.
For us, they're the factors that drive us to peak performance time and again – be it in product development, the design of our bathroom and kitchen products, or in the manufacturing process. These are terms that we bring to life every day, and that stand for our continuous, uncompromising pursuit of the best customer benefit.
THREE SUCCESS FACTORS – ONE PHILOSOPHY THAT RUNS THROUGH ALL AREAS
In the Hansgrohe Group, innovation goes beyond groundbreaking product inventions for the bathroom and kitchen. In production, logistics, and distribution, we rely on sustainable processes, manufacturing techniques, and technologies. The same applies to our Product Development, Quality Assurance, and Service Departments. When it comes to design, there’s no getting past the Hansgrohe Group. Together with internationally renowned design partners, the AXOR and hansgrohe brands have received numerous design awards in the Black Forest.
They are proof of a product design that gives our customers the assurance, time and time again, that they have invested in a premium, fashionable product.
The quality of our faucets, shower systems, and kitchen products forms a bracket around our innovations and our design expertise. It is both the foundation and the claim; begins with each individual in the company, extends to process, material, and production; and only deserves the title of "premium" if our customers enjoy their investment in a bathroom or kitchen for a long, long time.
HISTORY
OUR HISTORY
The History of Hansgrohe – Bathroom Innovations in the Black Forest. The Hansgrohe company history began in the year 1901: Back then, innovator Hans Grohe founded a craft business for metal-spun goods in the small Black Forest town of Schiltach.
One of his specialties: Tin shower for the home bathroom, which was coming into style. In doing so, he laid the cornerstone for a success story that continues today.
On June 15, 1901, Hans Grohe (1871-1955) founded a craft business for metal-spun goods in the Schiltach, in the Kinzig valley – venturing to make a new start. The trained cloth-maker from Luckenwalde, near Berlin, had moved to the small town in the Black Forest two years before.
He then turned his back on weaving and discovered the production of metal goods like brass pans, watch parts, and stovepipe rosettes. From the beginning, tin showers were part of the product range from Hans Grohe’s small, three-man operation.
The innovator made the right choice: The private household bathroom came into fashion at the turn of the 20th century. Back then, having one’s own bathroom was still a pure luxury for the population at large in Germany.
Hans Grohe recognized the shower as an affordable alternative to the lavish process of bathing in a bath tub, and soon began specializing entirely in metal goods for the sanitation section.
In the following decades, Hans Grohe was passionately dedicated to the further development of his showers. With his ideas, he was a crucial influence on Hansgrohe's company history and the future shower culture.
DEFINING DEVELOPMENTS IN SHOWER CULTURE
Hans Grohe quickly developed into a shower specialist and pioneer in the German sanitation industry. Starting in 1928, his hand shower evolved into a convenient alternative to the then-customary overhead shower.
His shapes and ideas remained influential for moder shower technology for several decades. Even at age 82, the company founder made a pioneering invention: the wallbar. This enabled the hand shower to be attached at the desired height for the first time.
Today, it’s a standard in bathrooms around the globe – in 1953, it was a stroke of sanitation genius. In 1955, eldest son Hans Grohe Junior (1895-1960) took over leadership of the firm. The company remained in family hands, even after its founder's death.
RESPONSIBILITY
IN HARMONY WITH THE ENVIRONMENT
In the Black Forest lies the tiny town of Schiltach and our company's Headquarter. The heart of Hansgrohe has been beating here since 1901. Over decades, our attitude has grown in this environment: a sense of responsibility for people and the environment.
RESPONSIBILITY AT HANSGROHE
We focus on three central issues: responsible business practices, social responsibility and ecological awareness. Only with such a farsighted corporate culture can we be successful – now and in the future. From the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals for a sustainable future, we have explicitly committed ourselves to five goals.
Our founder's son Klaus Grohe was an early advocate of sustainability. He made environmentally conscious thinking and action a principle at Hansgrohe: In 1987, Hansgrohe was one of the first manufacturers in the sanitary industry to release a water-saving shower.
At the same time, we launched numerous projects to ensure that production at our plants was environmentally friendly and resource-efficient. Even the green color of our premium brand's logo is deliberately chosen – a symbol of the "Green Company" from the Black Forest.
FOCUS ON PEOPLE AND THE ENVIRONMENT
In our corporate philosophy, we focus on fair, human interaction, based on mutual trust and appreciation for one another. This mission statement is reflected in the way we work together at Hansgrohe. The dignity of each individual counts – every day.
An attitude that is also reflected in our social commitment. However, living well together also requires an intact environment. We believe, protecting and preserving the environment is indispensable – especially for Hansgrohe. As a guideline for our actions, we have committed ourselves to these five UN Sustainable Development Goals:
- Good health and well-being
- Clean water and sanitation
- Decent work and economic growth
- Responsible consumption and production
- Climate action
