10.08.2023

75 years close to people

Enthusiasm for everyday products coupled with the mixture of perseverance, responsibility and courage typical of a family business – these are the success factors of the pelzGROUP. On August 10, 2023, we will look back on 75 years of company history.

Our founder Willy Pelz began in 1948 with the production of cotton wool, with six employees in a rented production hall. In 75 years, this has developed into a leading European manufacturer with over 800 employees and a turnover of around EUR 185 million. In the first 25 years, Willy Pelz carried out pioneering entrepreneurial work and laid the foundations in production and sales for the company’s development into an efficient and quality-conscious supplier of hygiene products. The consistent management and control of product quality from a single source with a continuous increase in productivity pays off in healthy growth. The employees also benefit from this. Willy Pelz expressed his social responsibility as early as the 1950s by founding a pension fund and building company apartments. At the same time, he was a strong driver for the economic development of the Wahlstedt location.

At the beginning of the 1960s, sons Manfred and Udo Pelz join the family business and continue the success story together with their father. The company expands its value chain with the production of plastic films and technical nonwovens and expands its national and international sales activities with new products such as garbage can liners, panty liners and cotton buds. Pelz is also successful as a supplier for other manufacturers: For many years, the nonwoven fabric for the European Pampers baby nappy is manufactured in Wahlstedt.

While many competitors in the industry reacted to the constant price pressure in the 1990s by relocating production to Asia or Eastern Europe, Pelz stood firmly by its location in Wahlstedt and also resisted the lure of lavish subsidies after reunification. Instead, the owners consistently invest in the latest production facilities and automated processes and continue to expand their market position in retail with innovative product ideas. Demand for the company’s own brands such as pely, Q-tips and Cosmea is increasing, as is contract manufacturing for private labels.

In 2001, Dr. Nikolas Bastian, son-in-law of Udo Pelz, joins the company as the third generation. He pushes growth in the private label sector, forms alliances with other manufacturers and ventures into the light incontinence market in 2013. Within a very short time, Pelz and its products became one of the largest manufacturers in Europe. And doubles its workforce and turnover within ten years. Continuous growth has led to further investments, such as a fully automated, 40-metre-high high-bay warehouse with 14,000 pallet spaces and, most recently, a 100-metre-long production line for adult diapers.

In view of climate change, sustainable products and processes are even more important than before. With especially thin or biodegradable films for bin liners, vegan panty liners or cotton buds with paper shafts, we have already been making important contributions to reducing the environmental impact of disposable products for years. Further innovations to reduce the use of plastics are currently being developed.

Around 250 tons of finished products leave the factory every day. To achieve this, the production facilities in Wahlstedt run almost around the clock. 800 employees currently work shifts around the clock in the three production plants and logistics, more than half of whom have been with pelzGROUP for over 10 years. Many have had impressive careers since joining Pelz. Trust in the abilities of employees and the delegation of responsibility goes back to Willy Pelz, who was already an advocate of teamwork in the 1970s.