Born Feinkost

What Born Feinkost does

Born Feinkost, legally BORN Senf & Feinkost GmbH, is a German food manufacturer founded in 1820 by brothers Wilhelm and Louis Born in Thuringia and headquartered at Wenigemarkt 11, 99084 Erfurt, with a production facility in Amt Wachsenburg. The company produces a traditional Thuringian condiment portfolio centered on mustard (flagship), with adjacent lines in ketchup, BBQ/grill sauces, mayonnaise, vinegar, and horseradish, plus a Feinschmecker (gourmet) Edition of premium mustards. Input differentiation rests on 100% Thuringian-sourced yellow mustard seed (Gelbsenfsaat), an 84% tomato-paste ketchup formulation with 30% less sugar, and a hand-filled 'freshly tapped mustard' (frisch gezapfter Senf) line sold exclusively through its own channels. BORN also resells third-party brands online, including Austrian Mautner Markhof (syrups, vinegars, mustards, FlavorSticks), ESINA mustard, and Gera Gewürze ketchup.

The business is run as a private GmbH under sole Managing Director Thomas Heinz with 51–100 employees, no disclosed external investment, no parent company, and no subsidiaries. Its go-to-market is direct-to-consumer: a proprietary online shop (born-feinkost.de) shipping within Germany via DHL at a flat €5.90 rate (3–5 business days), supplemented by a single company-owned physical retail store, the Senfladen, in Erfurt's old town for tastings and direct sales. Pricing is per-unit (e.g., ketchup 450ml glass at €1.99, mustard 1000ml squeezer at €2.99, premium Honig-Dill-Senf 125ml at €3.80) with a 90-day minimum shelf-life guarantee; foodservice/gastronomy is referenced as a secondary segment but no enterprise contracts are disclosed. The revenue model is therefore overwhelmingly direct consumer goods with a margin-uplift niche in premium Feinschmecker SKUs, integrated with JTL ERP for fulfillment and PayPal/Ratepay for payments.

Recent strategic activity centers on independent third-party validation and consumer engagement rather than structural expansion: BORN Tomaten-Ketchup won Stiftung Warentest Testsieger status in test 4/2026 (overall GUT 1.8, Sensorik 1.0), supported by a 2026 Football World Cup sweepstakes and recurring bottle-cap (Deckelsammel) loyalty sweepstakes. The company is GDPR-compliant (DSGVO) and participates in the 'Weltoffenes Thüringen' initiative alongside 7,000+ Thuringian organizations, signaling local-community positioning rather than international scaling. Geographic expansion is currently constrained: international shipping is not offered, limiting the addressable market to domestic German consumers.

Name

Born Feinkost

Legal name

BORN Senf & Feinkost GmbH

Website

https://born-feinkost.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1820

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Born Feinkost (BORN Senf & Feinkost GmbH) is a Thuringian condiment manufacturer founded in 1820, producing mustards, ketchups, grill sauces, mayonnaises, and vinegars for German consumers via a DTC online shop and a single retail store, the Senfladen, in Erfurt.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Condiment Manufacturing

NAICS

Mayonnaise, Dressing, and Other Prepared Sauce Manufacturing (311941)

SIC

Miscellaneous Food Preparations & Kindred Products (2090)

akta.pro primary industry

Condiments, Sauces & Dressings (CRADAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

BBQ Sauce & Marinades Manufacturing (AFAKADAH)

Keywords

• Mustard production
• Condiment manufacturing
• BBQ sauces
• Ketchup production
• Table condiments

Headquarters

HQ city

Erfurt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Consumer Food Products: Direct-to-consumer sales of proprietary condiments including mustard, ketchup, barbecue sauces, mayonnaises, vinegars, and specialty foods through e-commerce and physical retail.
2. Third-Party Brand Sales: Sale of third-party products including Mautner Markhof syrups, vinegars, and mustards, as well as Esina brand products through the BORN online shop.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Born Feinkost is a traditional Thuringian food manufacturer that produces and sells branded condiments, including mustard, ketchup, BBQ sauces, vinegars, mayonnaises, and other table sauces. The company's business centers on manufacturing these specialty food products under its own heritage label, with roots dating back to 1820 in Germany.

Product overview

Born Feinkost is a traditional Thuringian delicatessen company founded in 1820, producing a diverse portfolio centered on mustard, ketchup, BBQ sauces, vinegars, mayonnaises, and horseradish products. The core product lines include BORN Senf (mustard) in various varieties such as mittelscharf, scharf, specialty flavors like Honig-Dill, Walnuss, and Cassis from the Feinschmecker Edition, plus fresh tapped mustard; BORN Tomaten-Ketchup; and BORN Grillsaucen (BBQ sauces). The company operates sub-brands including ESINA mustard, Gera Gewürze (ketchup), and distributes the Austrian Mautner Markhof brand encompassing syrups (including functional Plus variants and 0% sugar options), vinegars, mustards, and FlavorSticks. Additional products include delicatessen mustards, cream horseradish, vegan mayonnaise, and specialty fruit mustards. The company maintains an online shop and a physical Senfladen retail store in Erfurt.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mustard Traditional mustard products manufactured under the Born Feinkost brand, drawing on the company's Thuringian heritage dating back to 1820. Sold to consumers and food-service buyers for table and cooking use.
• Ketchup Tomato ketchup produced under the Born Feinkost brand, part of the company's broader table-condiment range. Sold to consumers and food-service customers.
• BBQ Sauces Barbecue sauces manufactured under the Born Feinkost brand, intended for grilling and table use by consumers and food-service operators.
• Vinegars Traditional vinegar products manufactured under the Born Feinkost brand for culinary and household use.
• Mayonnaises Mayonnaise products manufactured under the Born Feinkost brand, used as table condiments and cooking ingredients by consumers and food-service operators.
• Table Condiments (general range) Additional table condiment products offered under the Born Feinkost brand, complementing the core mustard, ketchup, BBQ sauce, vinegar, and mayonnaise lines for everyday cooking and serving.

Quantifiable outcome

• Stiftung Warentest: Grade 1.8 (GUT), Sensorik-Note 1.0 (best in test)
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• DHLcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDHL serves as the exclusive package delivery service for BORN online shop orders within Germany. Orders are shipped with a flat €5.90 shipping rate and delivered within 3-5 business days.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Byodo Naturkost: German organic condiment specialist. Comparable to BORN on clean-label, vegan, and organic positioning but competes in a different niche (premium organic) within the broader German condiment market.

Broad incumbents

• Amora (Unilever): French mustard and sauce brand owned by Unilever. Comparable to BORN on mustard but operates at significantly larger scale within Unilever's broader portfolio of condiments and dressings.
• Thomy (Nestlé): Swiss-origin mustard and condiment brand owned by Nestlé. Competes with BORN on mainstream mustard and sauce SKUs but as part of Nestlé's broader food portfolio.
• French's (McCormick & Company): Iconic American mustard brand owned by McCormick. Compares to BORN on yellow mustard heritage but competes globally within McCormick's flavor portfolio at vastly greater scale.
• Maille (Unilever): Premium French mustard brand owned by Unilever, distributed widely in German retail. Competes with BORN in the gourmet/Feinschmecker mustard segment but as part of a much broader global condiment portfolio.

Direct peers

• Carl Kühne KG (Kühne): One of Germany's largest condiment brands covering mustards, ketchups, vinegars, and sauces. Direct overlap with BORN's core range but at significantly greater national scale.
• Hengstenberg GmbH & Co. KG: Traditional German producer of vinegars, mustards, and pickled specialties. Comparable in heritage-driven positioning and product mix overlapping BORN's vinegar, mustard, and Feinkost lines.
• Develey Senf & Feinkost GmbH: German mustard and condiment manufacturer with comparable product portfolio (mustard, ketchup, sauces). Operates a similar dual DTC and retail-grocery model and is the most direct head-to-head competitor in the German mustard market.
• Löwensenf: Heritage German mustard brand with deep tradition (founded 1903). Closely comparable to BORN's mustard-focused heritage positioning in the specialty mustard segment.

Regional players

• Mautner Markhof: Austrian condiment company producing syrups, vinegars, and mustards. Directly comparable product portfolio; Mautner Markhof's products are distributed by BORN via the BORN online shop, making them a regional partner-competitor in adjacent categories.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/born_feinkost

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Born Feinkost