PFEIFFER und MAY SE

What PFEIFFER und MAY SE does

PFEIFFER und MAY SE is a privately held German sanitary, heating, and climate (SHK-Großhandel) wholesale distribution group headquartered in Germany and operating under the umbrella "PFEIFFER & MAY Gruppe." The group serves trade craftsmen (Fachhandwerker) — plumbers, installers, and bathroom fitters — across six German states (Saarland, Baden-Württemberg, Rheinland-Pfalz, Bayern, Thüringen, Hessen) through 46 bathroom exhibition (Badausstellung) locations spanning 42 cities. Multiple regional brands operate within the Gruppe, including PFEIFFER & MAY, LINK, LINSS, LÖFFELHARDT, and Bagno e Vino, each retaining legacy identity while sharing centralized services through wholly-owned subsidiaries such as P&M Digitale Dienste GmbH.

The product and service portfolio spans bathroom fixtures and furniture, tiles, heating and solar systems, ventilation and climate control, photovoltaics, kitchen faucets, and installation/building technology. Distribution is operated through a B2B online portal (online.pfeiffer-may.de) for trade customers, supplemented by physical showrooms that serve end customers via consultation and referral to qualified craftsmen. Supporting digital tools include a 3D bathroom planner (3D-Badplaner, powered by palettehome.de) and a Spotimpulse online discovery tool for browsing bathroom concepts, alongside dedicated news blogs and social media channels targeted separately at trade professionals and end consumers. No proprietary technology platform is disclosed; the business is fundamentally a physical wholesale network augmented by light digital tooling.

The business model is wholesale product sales to trade craftsmen on a quote-based, transaction-fee pricing structure, complemented by a referral/service linkage that connects end customers visiting showrooms with vetted installation partners. The corporate structure is an SE (Societas Europaea) with regional GmbH and GmbH + Co. KG subsidiaries, and a PFEIFFER & MAY Stiftung signals corporate social responsibility activities. Revenue, headcount, and ownership disclosures are not available in the source material.

Name

PFEIFFER und MAY SE

Legal name

PFEIFFER und MAY SE

Website

https://badimpulse.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1906

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

PFEIFFER und MAY SE is a privately held German SHK (sanitary, heating, climate) wholesale group operating 46 bathroom showrooms across 42 cities in Southern Germany, serving trade craftsmen (Fachhandwerker) with products, consultation, and referral to installation partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Karlsruhe

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices42 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Wholesale Product Sales: Revenue generated from selling sanitary, heating, tiles, and installation products to trade craftsmen (Fachhandwerker). Products include fixtures, bathtubs, showers, furniture, tiles, heating systems, solar, PV, ventilation, kitchen faucets, and installation hardware.
2. Trade Craftsmanship Services: The company connects end customers with qualified trade craftsmen from their network who provide installation and renovation services. While the company itself operates as wholesale, this referral/network service enables the complete transaction lifecycle.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

PFEIFFER und MAY SE operates as a German SHK (sanitary, heating, climate) wholesale group serving trade craftsmen (Fachhandwerker) and end customers across Southern Germany. The core offering is the wholesale supply of bathroom, heating, tile, ventilation, photovoltaic, and building-technology products combined with 46 physical bathroom exhibition showrooms used for consultation, inspiration, and connection to qualified installation craftsmen.

Product overview

PFEIFFER & MAY SE operates as an SHK (Sanitär, Heizung, Klima - sanitary, heating, climate) wholesale distribution group serving South Germany. The company offers a unified platform of physical bathroom showrooms (46 locations across 42 cities) combined with digital services including an online B2B portal, 3D bathroom planner, and Spotimpulse discovery tool. The product portfolio spans bathroom products (fixtures, bathtubs, showers, furniture), tiles, heating and solar systems, building technology installation, ventilation and climate control, photovoltaics, and kitchen fixtures. The group includes subsidiary sub-brands (Bagno e Vino, LINK, LINSS, LÖFFELHARDT) each operating dedicated showrooms, while serving end customers through specialized trade partners (Fachhandwerker).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Spotimpulse: Online tool for discovering bathroom booths and researching specific products
• 3D-Badplaner

Products and services

• Badausstellungen (Bathroom Showrooms) Physical showroom locations where customers can experience bathroom designs, receive expert consultation, and explore products including fixtures, bathtubs, showers, furniture, and other bathroom elements. The company operates 46 showrooms across Southern Germany.
• Badezimmer (Bathroom Products) Complete bathroom products and solutions including fixtures, fittings, and accessories for bathroom renovation and new construction projects, supplied wholesale to trade craftsmen and end customers.
• Fliesen (Tiles) Tile products for bathrooms and other areas, with dedicated tile showrooms operated by the LÖFFELHARDT subsidiary brand.
• Heizung & Solar (Heating & Solar) Heating systems and solar energy solutions for residential and commercial buildings, supplied wholesale to trade craftsmen.
• Installation & Haustechnik (Installation & Building Technology) Building technology and installation products for plumbing and technical building infrastructure, supplied wholesale to trade craftsmen.
• Lüftung & Klima (Ventilation & Climate) Ventilation and air conditioning solutions for residential and commercial spaces, supplied wholesale to trade craftsmen.
• Photovoltaik (Photovoltaics) Solar panel and photovoltaic systems for generating electricity from sunlight, supplied wholesale to trade craftsmen.
• Küchenarmaturen und Spültischarmaturen (Kitchen and Sink Faucets) Kitchen faucets and sink fixtures for kitchen installations, supplied wholesale to trade craftsmen.
• B2B Online Portal B2B online portal for trade craftsmen to access products, place orders, and manage accounts at online.pfeiffer-may.de.
• 3D-Badplaner (3D Bathroom Planner) Interactive online 3D bathroom planning tool allowing customers to design and visualize their new bathroom layouts before purchase.
• Spotimpulse Online Tool Online tool for discovering bathroom concepts and exploring specific products digitally before purchase.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Qualified Trade Craftsmen Network (Fachhandwerker)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPFEIFFER & MAY works closely with qualified trade craftsmen from the region who provide installation services. The company recommends partner craftsmen to end customers and maintains an extensive network for bathroom renovation projects.
• LINK GmbH + Co. KGcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliated partner company operating bathroom exhibitions under the LINK brand at multiple locations (Karlsruhe, Rastatt, Villingen-Schwenningen). Part of the PFEIFFER & MAY Gruppe with shared branding.
• LINSScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliated partner company operating bathroom and tile exhibitions under the LINSS brand at multiple locations (Fulda-Künzell, Gotha, Kassel). Part of the PFEIFFER & MAY Gruppe with shared branding.
• LÖFFELHARDT GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAffiliated partner company operating bathroom and tile exhibitions under the LÖFFELHARDT brand at multiple locations (Heidelberg, Heilbronn, Ilsfeld, Karlsruhe). Part of the PFEIFFER & MAY Gruppe with shared branding.
• Bagno e VinominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner bathroom exhibition located at Waldstraße. Specialized showroom concept under the PFEIFFER & MAY Gruppe umbrella.
• Leading ManufacturerscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPFEIFFER & MAY presents products from leading manufacturers in their showrooms, alongside their own brands (Eigenmarken). These manufacturer partnerships enable a comprehensive product range for trade craftsmen customers.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• BayWa Baustoffe: Building materials division of BayWa AG serving trade craftsmen across Bavaria and South Germany; comparable as a southern-German distribution incumbent overlapping on tiles, sanitary, and renewable-energy product categories.
• EUROBAUSTOFF: German building materials and DIY cooperative with a broad assortment including sanitary, tiles, and installation; comparable as an alternative distribution channel for trade craftsmen and end-customers, though spanning a wider product scope than PFEIFFER & MAY.
• GC Group (Großhandels Contor): Head of the GC Group, the largest SHK-Großhandel network in Germany; a broader incumbent that owns multiple regional SHK wholesalers (including Cordes & Graefe) and represents an aggregated competitive force versus PFEIFFER & MAY's regional roll-up.

Direct peers

• Richter+Frenzel: One of Germany's largest SHK-Großhandel (sanitary, heating, climate) wholesalers with a multi-regional showroom and trade-craftsman model closely mirroring PFEIFFER & MAY's go-to-market, including bathroom exhibition centers serving installers.
• BTI Befestigungstechnik: German trade wholesaler with showrooms and a strong craftsman-facing distribution model spanning sanitary, heating, and installation products; comparable in the trade-only wholesale positioning and showroom-based customer acquisition approach.
• Cordes & Graefe: Part of the GC Group, Cordes & Graefe is a major German SHK wholesaler with showroom concepts and trade-craftsman-focused distribution; directly comparable in product mix (sanitary, heating, installation) and B2B channel structure.
• ZEG Zentraleinkauf Sanitär-Heizung: German SHK cooperative wholesaler serving independent sanitary/heating/climate trade partners across multiple regions; comparable as a competing wholesale distribution platform supplying Fachhandwerker with the same product categories.
• Alexander Bürkle: German technical building services and SHK wholesaler with regional showrooms and a Fachhandwerker customer base; comparable as a multi-region sanitary/heating wholesale competitor targeting the same trade-craftsman end-customer flow.

Emerging players

• Sonepar Deutschland: Germany's leading electrical wholesale distribution group; an emerging adjacent distributor that increasingly overlaps with installation and building-technology categories PFEIFFER & MAY addresses via its Haustechnik line.

Regional players

• Hager & Elsässer: Regional SHK wholesaler with strong roots in Baden-Württemberg and surrounding areas; comparable as a regionally focused sanitary/heating competitor operating in some of the same South German markets as PFEIFFER & MAY.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@pfeiffer-may
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php?id=100080069533944
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pfeiffer-may-gruppe
• Instagraminstagram.com/pfeifferundmay
• Pinterestde.pinterest.com/pfeifferundmay

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries6 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 PFEIFFER und MAY SE