Sternenbäck

What Sternenbäck does

Sternenbäck GmbH is a privately held, family-owned German bakery company founded in 1766, currently in its ninth generation of family ownership and led by Geschäftsführer Frank Winter. The company manufactures and retails fresh and frozen bakery products — including breads, rolls, fine pastries, cakes, snacks, and breakfast items — across a portfolio organized into Brot, Brötchen, Feingebäck, Kuchen, Snacks, and Frühstücke categories. Core technical capabilities include in-house natural sourdough starter cultures maintained since 1766, hand-twisted pretzel production, a heritage 1766 recipe using ancient grains (Emmer, Einkorn, Waldstaudenroggen), and IFS-certified industrial production facilities in Spremberg and Gera.

The company operates two distinct revenue streams. The first is direct-to-consumer retail through over 50 company-owned Sternenbäckereien (bakery stores) and café locations across Brandenburg, Saxony, and Saxony-Anhalt, including in-store concessions within Kaufland, REWE, Netto, and OBI grocery locations, plus train station outlets in Cottbus and Frankfurt (Oder). The second is B2B wholesale of IFS-certified frozen dough products (TK-Teiglinge) and par-baked goods supplied to hotels, bakeries, canteens, and fast-food chains. A customer loyalty program (Sternenkarte) supports retail retention through points accumulation and cashless payment functionality. The company is registered as Sternenbäck GmbH at Amtsgericht Cottbus, with its postal/administrative address in Hechingen, and pursues an active expansion strategy seeking additional retail space in its three core eastern German federal states.

Name

Sternenbäck

Legal name

Sternenbäck GmbH

Website

https://sternenbaeck.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1766

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sternenbäck is a family-owned German bakery founded in 1766, operating over 50 retail stores and B2B wholesale of frozen dough products across Brandenburg, Saxony, and Saxony-Anhalt from IFS-certified production facilities in Spremberg and Gera.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bakery Products

NAICS

Commercial Bakeries (311812), Frozen Cakes, Pies, and Other Pastries Manufacturing (311813), Retail Bakeries (311811)

SIC

Bakery Products (2050)

akta.pro primary industry

Wholesale / Commercial Bakeries (B2B Supply) (THAFAFAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Frozen & Par-Baked Bakery Production (THAFAFAK), Refrigerated & Frozen Doughs and Batters Manufacturing (AFAKACAM)

Keywords

• Artisan bakery products
• Fresh bread retail
• Frozen dough wholesale
• German bakery chain
• B2B bakery supply

Headquarters

HQ city

Hechingen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Retail Bakery Sales: Direct sales of freshly baked goods through over 50 company-owned retail stores and café locations in eastern Germany. Products include bread, pastries, cakes, snacks, and breakfast items sold to individual consumers.
2. B2B Wholesale - Frozen Dough Products: Supply of IFS-certified frozen dough products (TK-Teiglinge) and par-baked bakery items to hotels, bakeries, canteens, and fast-food chains. Production facilities in Spremberg and Gera serve business customers.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Sternenbäck is a traditional German bakery manufacturer and retailer that produces and sells fresh and frozen bakery products including breads, rolls, fine pastries, cakes, snacks, and breakfast items. The company operates over 50 retail storefronts across eastern Germany (Brandenburg, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt) and supplies IFS-certified frozen dough (TK-Teiglinge) and par-baked goods to B2B customers such as hotels, bakeries, canteens, and fast-food chains from production facilities in Spremberg and Gera.

Product overview

Sternenbäck is a traditional German bakery chain offering a comprehensive portfolio of fresh baked goods across more than 50 retail locations in Brandenburg, Saxony, and Saxony-Anhalt. The core product portfolio spans breads (Brot), rolls (Brötchen), fine pastries (Feingebäck), cakes (Kuchen), snacks, and breakfast items. For B2B customers, the company supplies IFS-certified frozen dough and par-baked products. A customer loyalty program (Sternenkarte) supports retail operations. Founded in 1766, the company operates production facilities in Spremberg and Gera with over 250 years of baking tradition across 9 generations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Brot (Breads) Artisan breads including 1766er Brot (multigrain with heritage grains like Emmer, Einkorn, Waldstaudenroggen), Dinkel-Vollkornbrot, Kartoffelbrot, Roggenmischbrot, and Rustiquebaguette, made with traditional sourdough methods. Sold to retail consumers at Sternenbäck stores and concessions.
• Brötchen (Rolls) Variety of bread rolls including Brezel (hand-twisted), Ciabattabrötchen, Dinkelherz, Goldweck, Kaiserbrötchen, Kürbiskracher, Multikorn Schleife, and Vollkornschleife. Sold daily at company retail outlets.
• Feingebäck (Fine Pastries) Fine pastries including Amerikaner, Buttercroissant, Buttercroissant mit Schokocreme, Gefüllte Streuselschnecke, Glücksmoment, Mailänder Herz, Milchhörnchen, Schweinsohren, and Streusel. Sold to retail consumers.
• Kuchen (Cakes) Cakes and pastries including Erdbeer-Fruchtschnitte, Käsekuchen, Mehrfruchtschnitte, Omas Rührkuchen Marmor, and Omas Rührkuchen Zitrone. Sold to retail consumers.
• Snacks Ready-to-eat savory snacks including Butterbrezel, Gouda-Stern, Italiano, Kraftpaket, Laugenstürmer, Salami-Stern, Schinken-Stern, Schnittlauchbrezel, and Sternenburger. Sold at retail counters for immediate consumption.
• Frühstücke (Breakfast) Breakfast menus (large and small) offered at select Sternenbäck locations in Brandenburg, Saxony, and other regions. Service-led offering combining bakery items with sit-down café consumption.
• TK-Teiglinge und Tiefkühlbackwaren (Frozen Dough & Par-Baked Products) IFS-certified frozen dough products and par-baked pastries supplied to B2B customers including hotels, bakeries, canteens, and fast-food chains. Products include half-baked rolls, pre-baked dough, hand-twisted pretzel dough, baguettes, and specialty rolls.
• B2B Partner Program B2B partnership program supplying fresh baked goods and premium-quality dough products to other bakeries and wholesale business customers.
• Sternenkarte (Customer Loyalty Card) Customer loyalty card allowing point collection (1 point per €4 spent), money loading with 5% bonus, gift functionality, and cashless payment features for retail customers.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Deine Mühle (Regional Mill)coreOthersRegional flour supplier providing locally sourced, controlled-quality flour for bakery production. Part of the Ährenwort quality program ensuring regional sourcing.
• KauflandmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor retail chain hosting in-store Sternenbäck bakery concessions at multiple locations across Brandenburg, Saxony, and Saxony-Anhalt.
• REWEmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRetail partner hosting Sternenbäck in-store bakery concessions including locations in Forst, Freiberg, and other cities.
• NettomajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDiscount retailer hosting Sternenbäck bakery concessions in Döbern, Kabelsketal, and Weinböhla locations.
• Hotel and Catering BusinessescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorB2B customers including hotels supplied with IFS-certified frozen dough products and fresh baked goods.
• Hotels, Bäckereien, Mensen, Kantinen, Fastfood-KettencoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorB2B wholesale customers for TK-Teiglinge (frozen dough products) and IFS-certified bakery products.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Bäckerei Junge: Major German retail bakery chain with production facilities, café concepts and loyalty-style customer programs in northern Germany. Directly comparable retail store footprint and product mix to Sternenbäck.
• Kamps: German retail bakery chain (formerly Kamps Backstuben) operating hundreds of bakery stores with in-store production. Comparable to Sternenbäck on retail bakery scale and B2B supply within grocery channels.
• Schäfer's: German in-store bakery brand operating bakery counters inside EDEKA, Marktkauf and other grocery banners. Directly comparable to Sternenbäck's concession model with Kaufland/REWE/Netto.
• Harry-Brot: One of Germany's largest industrial bakeries producing fresh and frozen bread/rolls for retail and B2B. Closely comparable to Sternenbäck's commercial bakery and B2B frozen-dough model, with similar customer overlap in German grocery.
• BackWerk: Self-service bakery café chain in Germany offering fresh rolls, breads and snacks. Overlaps with Sternenbäck on retail bakery product mix and café-style in-store experience.

Broad incumbents

• Brioche Pasquier: European industrial bakery producer of viennoiserie and bread products for retail and foodservice. Comparable to Sternenbäck's B2B par-baked and snack product categories.
• Aryzta: Global supplier of frozen bakery products including breads, pastries and snacks to retail and foodservice. Directly comparable on the B2B frozen/par-baked bakery side of Sternenbäck's operations.
• Vandemoortele: European producer of frozen bakery products (viennoiserie, breads) and patisserie for foodservice and retail. Comparable to Sternenbäck's B2B frozen-dough and par-baked offerings.
• Lantmännen Unibake: Large European industrial bakery group producing frozen and fresh bakery products for foodservice and retail. Comparable to Sternenbäck's B2B frozen dough (TK-Teiglinge) business, though at much greater scale and broader geographic scope.

Others

• EDEKA / regional grocery in-store bakery programs: Major German grocer that runs its own in-store bakery programs and competes directly with Sternenbäck's concession and B2B channels. Relevant as a customer/competitor boundary case for the concession model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookde-de.facebook.com/sternenbaeck
• Instagraminstagram.com/sternenbaeck

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Sternenbäck