Anchor

What Anchor does

Ankerbrot is Austria's largest bakery chain operator, founded in 1891 by the Mendl brothers in Vienna. It operates over 100 retail stores across Vienna, Lower Austria, and Salzburg, producing 120 tonnes daily of bread, pastries, and sweet baked goods. The company runs a hybrid production model that combines long-maintained artisanal traditions — including a 130+ year-old natural sourdough starter ('Natursauerteig') moved to the new site, hand-shaped products, and barista-trained retail staff — with industrial-scale manufacturing at a newly opened 38,000-tonne annual capacity facility in Lichtenwörth (April 2024, €65M capex, 30%+ more energy-efficient than its predecessor).

The business operates across three GTM streams: (1) direct-to-consumer retail through owned and franchise stores with dense Vienna coverage, plus Foodora marketplace delivery and a minimum-€100 click-and-collect Weckerlboxen pre-order system; (2) B2B food-retail (Lebensmittelhandel) supply of packaged bakery products under the ANKER brand and dietary specialty lines such as LifeBalance; and (3) B2B hospitality (Gastronomie/Hotellerie) supply of frozen baked goods — bread, pastries, pizza, Flammkuchen — accompanied by loaned freezers and ovens that enable on-demand baking for restaurants and hotels. A franchise model extends the brand into Bratislava, Slovakia via three stores operated by partner Vojtech Bertok.

Ankerbrot is privately held, controlled by Austro Holding (61.25% majority), and operates as part of a group that includes the wholly-owned Linauer & Wagner artisanal bakery (acquired 2017–2018) and Anker Snack & Coffee GmbH. Headcount is 1,000+ employees including approximately 600 in retail, with 50+ nationalities represented and ~30 apprentices trained annually under a recognised 'Top-Lehrbetrieb' programme. The leadership team transitioned in early 2025, with new management of Johannes Ruisz, Gerold Hellmich, and Tina Schrettner following Birgit Aichinger's departure. Specialty sub-brands (Meisterstück premium line, Superbrot functional, LifeBalance dietary, 50+ vegan SKUs with a dedicated vegan store at Stephansplatz) and a partnership ecosystem (iglo, NEOH, Gragger, Ottakringer, Vollpension, Too Good To Go) round out the platform.

Name

Anchor

Legal name

Ankerbrot Holding GmbH

Website

https://ankerbrot.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

1891

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Ankerbrot is Austria's largest bakery chain, operating 100+ retail stores across Vienna, Lower Austria, and Salzburg, and serving B2B food-retail and hospitality clients nationwide with fresh and frozen baked goods from its new Lichtenwörth facility.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Bakery

NAICS

Commercial Bakeries (311812), Bread and Bakery Product Manufacturing (31181), Baked Goods Retailers (445291)

SIC

Bakery Products (2050)

akta.pro primary industry

Wholesale / Commercial Bakeries (B2B Supply) (THAFAFAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Retail Bakeries (Bread & Daily Bakery) (THAFAFAA), Frozen & Par-Baked Bakery Production (THAFAFAK), Frozen Bakery Products Manufacturing (AFAKAAAF)

Keywords

• Commercial bakery products
• Retail bakery chain
• B2b food service supply
• Bakery franchise operations
• Frozen baked goods

Headquarters

HQ city

Vienna

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Retail Store Sales (Direct-to-Consumer): Revenue from direct sales of bread, pastries, snacks, coffee and beverages through 100+ ANKER branded retail stores in Vienna, Lower Austria, and Salzburg. Stores offer dine-in seating and coffee service. Customers also order via Foodora delivery and pre-order click-and-collect (Weckerlboxen).
2. B2B Food Retail (LEH): Supply of packaged and unpackaged bakery products to food retail chains throughout Austria. Includes the LifeBalance product line (gluten-free, yeast-free breads) and specialty breads sold in packaged format in supermarket aisles.
3. B2B Gastronomy/Hospitality (Frozen Baked Goods): Supply of frozen bakery products (bread, pastries, pastries, savoury snacks, pizza, Flammkuchen, day goods) to restaurants, hotels, and caterers. ANKER provides freezers and ovens on loan. Enables portion-controlled, on-demand baking to eliminate food waste.
4. Franchise Fees and Royalty Income: Franchise model operating stores in Austria and Slovakia (Bratislava). Franchise partners operate under the ANKER brand, paying franchise fees/royalties. Three stores in Bratislava operated by franchise partner Vojtech Bertok.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Anchor (legal entity Ankerbrot Holding GmbH, brand ANKER) is Austria's largest bakery chain, founded in 1891 in Vienna, producing and selling traditional Viennese breads, pastries, desserts, savory snacks, and beverages through 100+ retail stores and B2B wholesale to food retail chains and the hospitality sector. The company also operates a franchise model in Austria and Slovakia and supplies frozen baked goods to restaurants and hotels with on-loan freezers and ovens for portion-controlled, on-demand baking.

Product overview

Ankerbrot is Austria's largest bakery chain operator, founded in 1891 in Vienna, operating over 100 retail stores across Vienna, Lower Austria, and Salzburg. The company operates a unified product platform combining traditional Viennese bakery craftsmanship with modern production facilities. The core product portfolio spans Brote (breads including Semmel, Weckerl, Kornspitz), Gebäck (pastries like Kipferl, Briochekipferl), Mehlspeisen (desserts including Topfengolatsche, Punschkrapfen, Kuchen), Imbisse (savory snacks including filled Weckerl, pizza, Flammkuchen), and hot/cold beverages with barista-prepared coffee. The offering includes branded sub-lines such as ANKER-Boxen (pre-order Weckerl boxes), Tiefkühl-Backwaren (frozen products for B2B), the premium ANKER Meisterstück line, functional ANKER Superbrot, LifeBalance health-focused products, and over 50 vegan products with a dedicated vegan store at Stephansplatz. Distribution channels include retail stores, the Foodora online delivery platform, franchise partnerships, and B2B supply to food retail and hospitality sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ANKER Meisterstück: Premium bread product line featuring traditional recipes without preservatives or flavor enhancers, launched in 2013.
• LifeBalance
• Weckerlboxen

Products and services

• Brote (Breads) Freshly baked traditional Viennese bread varieties sold daily across the 100+ ANKER retail stores, including classic rolls, spelt rolls, poppy seed rolls, day-baked breads, and packaged/unpackaged bread SKUs.
• Gebäck (Pastries) Austrian-style pastries and rolls including signature products such as G'staubter Wecken, Briochekipferl, and various filled pastries, sold across all ANKER stores.
• Mehlspeisen (Desserts/Sweet Pastries) Sweet Viennese pastries and desserts including Topfengolatsche, Punschkrapfen, cakes, strudels, and seasonal specialties such as Carnival Krapfen and Easter treats.
• Imbisse (Savory Snacks) Savory snacks made fresh throughout the day in stores, including filled rolls, pizza, Flammkuchen, and Jourgebäck.
• Frühstück (Breakfast) Breakfast service combining ANKER pastries, filled sandwiches, and barista-prepared coffee served across the store network.
• Heißgetränke (Hot Beverages) Hot beverages, principally coffee prepared by trained baristas, sold in ANKER stores with optimal roast and machine calibration.
• Kaltgetränke (Cold Beverages) Cold beverages including branded shakes (Cappuccino Freezer, Schoko Gorilla, Banana Muhh!, Frooghurt Mango) and other refreshments.
• ANKER-Boxen (Weckerl Boxes) Pre-packaged boxes of filled Weckerl (rolls) available for online pre-order with a €100 minimum order value, freshly prepared for pickup at the customer's chosen branch.
• Tiefkühl-Backwaren (Frozen Bakery Products) – B2B Gastronomy Frozen baked goods (breads, pastries, desserts, pizza, Flammkuchen, day goods) supplied to hotels, restaurants, and caterers, with freezers and ovens provided on loan to enable fresh, portion-controlled on-demand baking.
• Lebensmittelhandel Products (Food Retail Line) Packaged ANKER-branded bakery products (including the LifeBalance specialty line) sold wholesale to Austrian food retail chains for resale in supermarket aisles.
• ANKER Meisterstück (Premium Bread Line) Premium bread line featuring traditional recipes without preservatives or flavour enhancers, including Meisterstück Roggenbrot, Walnussbrot, Weizenbrot, and Handsemmel.
• LifeBalance (Health-Focused Line) Health-focused product line launched in 2015 for nutrition-conscious consumers featuring yeast-free and wheat-free breads (Dinkelbrot, yeast-free Roggenbrot, Topfenkornbrot).
• ANKER Superbrot (Functional Bread) Premium functional bread featuring zinc, 10 fibres, and natural wheat germ spermidine, positioned as a health-focused premium product.
• ANKER Super Soft Weißbrot New soft white bread variety positioned as a versatile enjoyment all-rounder for everyday dining, launched in June 2025.
• Vegan Products Line Line of more than 50 vegan products (breads, pastries, desserts, savory items) sold across the store network and concentrated at the dedicated vegan-only Stephansplatz store.
• ANKER Franchise System Franchise offering that licenses the ANKER brand, operating model, product supply, and training to independent operators in Austria and Slovakia (Bratislava).

Quantifiable outcome

• 120 tonnes of bread, pastries and fine baked goods produced daily
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• VollpensioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 May 2025Partnership with Viennese social enterprise Vollpension for the 'Erfahrene Semester' initiative to recruit retired seniors (pensionists) for part-time work in ANKER stores. Vollpension contributes expertise in intergenerational employment and senior workforce integration. The pilot project hired 11 seniors and won an HR Award in Gold in 2025. The initiative was subsequently integrated as a permanent recruitment programme. ANKER aims to expand cooperation with the PVA (Pensionsversicherungsanstalt) for trial workdays for retirees.
• NEOHminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 February 2024Partnership with Austrian food-tech company NEOH to launch the first vegan donut without added sugar in Austrian retail. The donuts, featuring NEOH's innovative sugar replacement formula, were introduced during Lent 2024. This was NEOH's first collaboration with a bakery chain.
• Holzofenbäckerei GraggerflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 September 2023Cooperation between ANKER and stone-oven bakery Gragger to sell Gragger specialty breads in selected ANKER stores. Five Gragger products (including four classics and one custom Urdinkel-Roggenbrot) launched in September 2023. Summer 2024 extension: three vegan mini sourdough loaves ('Brot-Zwerge') developed specifically for ANKER, sold at €3.40 (promo €2.90). Helmut Gragger's specialty is wood-fired baking using his custom-built 10-tonne stone oven.
• Too Good To GocoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 October 2022Partnership with the food waste app Too Good To Go. ANKER sells surprise bags of end-of-day bakery products at discount via the app. ANKER is described as the largest bakery partner of Too Good To Go in Austria and the first bakery chain with over 100 locations to participate in Vienna and Lower Austria.
• Wiener KinderfreundeflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 March 2022Long-term partnership with Wiener Kinderfreunde (Children's Friends Vienna), a charitable family organisation. Includes children's rights day activations, filiation mural painting projects, employee family events with donations, holiday sponsorship for children with disabilities, and children's baking stations at events.
• iglo ÖsterreichflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2022Long-term cooperation between ANKER and iglo Österreich (frozen vegetable company). First products: Marchfeld spinach/crescent with feta and a protein bar with iglo soybeans and peas from the Marchfeld region. May 2022 addition: Marchfeld vegetable-filled Weckerl with iglo Zarte Mischung. 2025 extension: two new vegan grain croissants filled with peas or red cabbage from Marchfeld. Both companies share values of Austrian quality and regional focus.
• Jung von Matt/DONAUflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 14 October 2019Creative agency partnership for the 'DEIN ANKER' brand campaign launched in October 2019. The agency developed the brand's new communication strategy and advertising campaign based on the emotional 'anchor' metaphor. The campaign achieved over 90% net reach in Vienna.
• CONCORDIA SozialprojekteflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 September 2019Partnership with Austrian aid organisation supporting children and youth in need. 2018: 'CONCORDIA-Guglhupf' mini chocolate gugelhupf where 50 cents per unit was donated to fund vocational training for disadvantaged youth in Romania. 2019: ANKER Jausensackerl (school snack bag) where each purchase funds one hot meal for a child in CONCORDIA's Eastern European projects.
• Ottakringer BrauereiflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 October 2018Two-Wiennese-tradition-company collaboration: ANKER produces a special beer bread (Bierbrot) using Ottakringer beer, and Ottakringer creates a rye lager 'Brotbier' using ANKER sourdough bread as a base ingredient. Limited edition products launched in autumn 2018. Both products reflect the historical connection between bread and beer (bread was historically fermented to make beer).
• Samariterbund SozialmärkteminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 October 2018ANKER supports Samariterbund social supermarkets (Sozialmärkte) with free bread on World Food Day (Welthungertag), providing quality bakery products to low-income customers. The partnership reflects ANKER's social responsibility commitment.
• ARA (Altstoff Recycling Austria AG) – 'Reinwerfen statt Wegwerfen'coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 August 2018Long-standing anti-littering partnership between ANKER and ARA's 'Reinwerfen statt Wegwerfen' campaign. ANKER distributes paper bags featuring the campaign's anti-littering message (500,000 bags annually). Campaign is Austria's largest anti-littering initiative. ANKER has participated since 2015.
• Linauer & Wagner BackstubencoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2017ANKER acquired 65% stake in 2017, increasing to 100% in 2018. Family bakery based in Lichtenwörth (near Wiener Neustadt) with 19 stores, 350 employees. Known for handcrafted premium breads and confectionery. All stores continue under Linauer & Wagner brand. Now a wholly-owned subsidiary strengthening ANKER's artisanal capabilities.
• ROTE NASEN ClowndoctorsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 September 2014Charitable partnership financing hospital clown visits for children. ANKER funded 15 clown sessions through the sale of 'Süße Ankerl' products.
• Verein NEUSTARTminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 September 2014Charitable partnership supporting reintegration of formerly incarcerated individuals. 2014: 'Paragrafenkipferl' product where 10 cents per sold unit was donated to NEUSTART. Raised €5,000 for youth reintegration programmes.
• FoodoracoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMarketplace delivery partnership through the Foodora food delivery platform. ANKER products (breakfast, lunch, pastries) are listed and delivered to consumers via the Foodora app and website.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Kamps Backstube: Germany's largest bakery chain operator with hundreds of retail outlets. Comparable retail bakery chain model with similar production-to-retail vertically integrated structure, serving as a scaled European benchmark.
• Resch & Frisch: Austrian frozen bakery and B2B supplier to gastronomy. Direct comparable to Ankerbrot's frozen bakery/gastronomy business model, sharing the Austria market with overlap in supplying hotels, restaurants, and caterers.
• Ströck: Austrian family-run bakery chain operating retail locations in the Vienna region. Direct competitor in the same geography with overlapping bread, pastry, and snack product categories.
• Ditsch (Brezelbäckerei Ditsch): German bakery chain specializing in pretzels and snacks with multiple retail locations. Comparable chain retail bakery model combining traditional baking with high-street branded storefronts.

Broad incumbents

• Aryzta: Swiss-headquartered global bakery supplier (previously Aryzta, now split into Aryzta and H&S). Comparable B2B frozen and fresh bakery supplier to retail and food service with European-wide production footprint.
• Harry-Brot: Germany's largest industrial bread producer with multi-site manufacturing. Comparable industrial-scale bakery operations serving B2B retail and food service, sharing continental European operating environment.
• Grupo Bimbo: Mexican-headquartered world's largest bakery company with extensive retail branded operations across multiple continents. Useful benchmark for scale, brand-driven retail bakery strategy, and multi-channel distribution.
• La Lorraine Bakery Group: Belgian industrial bakery group producing frozen and fresh bakery products for B2B across Europe. Direct comparable in industrial-scale bakery manufacturing and B2B frozen supply to food service and retail.
• Vandemoortele: Belgian bakery and frozen products manufacturer serving B2B across Europe. Comparable industrial-scale bakery manufacturer with frozen, fresh, and ambient product lines for food service and retail.

Emerging players

• BackWerk: European self-service bakery kiosk franchise chain. Comparable retail bakery franchise model with standardized grab-and-go format in urban and transport locations.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/dein.anker

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 records

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 Anchor