Backerei Keim

What Backerei Keim does

Bäckerei Keim GmbH is a privately held, family-owned artisan bakery (Handwerksbäckerei) headquartered in Reutlingen-Mittelstadt, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, founded in 1898 and operating continuously for over 125 years. The company produces handcrafted bread, rolls (Brötchen), pretzels, cakes, pastries, and snacks, and runs a standardized in-store baking protocol — the "Frische-Offensive" — under which Kleverle and pretzels are baked on-site at each retail location at minimum every three hours. As of the current operating period (website copyright 2026), the company employs approximately 430 staff and operates around 50 specialty retail stores (Fachgeschäfte) distributed across Reutlingen, Metzingen, Tübingen, Esslingen, Stuttgart, and Göppingen, with many locations offering in-store café/gastro seating.

The business operates a dual-channel commercial model. On the consumer side, Bäckerei Keim sells directly to individual customers via its Fachgeschäfte, supported by an online pre-ordering system with in-store pickup, a loyalty/payment card (Keim's Kärtle) awarding 2 bonus points per €1 spent and a 5% card-balance discount, and seasonal/monthly specialty products. On the B2B side, a dedicated sales motion — managed by a named trade customer representative (Jörg Herbst) — supplies fresh and TK (frozen) bakery products daily to gastronomy businesses, hospitals, senior residences, weekly market operators, independent bakeries, and sports/event organizers, with custom orders, training, allergen documentation, and marketing support provided. The company also operates a club/association discount program (Klever20) for community engagement. Management comprises three Geschäftsführer (Markus Keim, Michael Dietrich, Thomas Mende) plus Ulrike Keim-Rittelmann leading expansion, with no disclosed external institutional investors.

Name

Backerei Keim

Legal name

Bäckerei Keim GmbH

Website

https://baeckerei-keim.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1898

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Bäckerei Keim GmbH is a 125+ year-old family-owned Swabian artisan bakery headquartered in Reutlingen, Germany, operating ~50 retail Fachgeschäfte and ~430 employees across the greater Stuttgart/Reutlingen region, serving both individual consumers and B2B customers (gastronomy, hospitals, senior residences) with freshly baked goods and TK wholesale products.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Artisan Bakery

NAICS

Retail Bakeries (311811), Commercial Bakeries (311812)

SIC

Bakery Products (2050)

akta.pro primary industry

Retail Bakeries (Bread & Daily Bakery) (THAFAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wholesale / Commercial Bakeries (B2B Supply) (THAFAFAF), Refrigerated & Frozen Doughs and Batters Manufacturing (AFAKACAM)

Keywords

• Artisan bakery products
• Fresh baked goods
• Specialty breads pastries
• Wholesale bakery supply
• Regional bakery retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Reutlingen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Retail bakery sales: Sale of freshly baked goods directly to consumers through approximately 50 company-owned Fachgeschäfte locations in the Stuttgart/Reutlingen region.
2. Wholesale/B2B distribution: Supply of bakery products to business customers including gastronomy, hospitals, senior residences, weekly markets, independent bakeries, and event organizers. Includes custom orders and TK (frozen) bakery products.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Bäckerei Keim produces and sells handcrafted traditional Swabian bakery products — breads, rolls (Brötchen/Kleverle), pretzels, cakes, pastries, and savory snacks — through approximately 50 company-owned Fachgeschäfte in the Greater Stuttgart/Reutlingen region, supported by an in-store "Frische-Offensive" baking cadence, online pre-ordering with store pickup, a B2B wholesale delivery service to gastronomy/healthcare/institutional buyers, and a loyalty/payment card program (Keim's Kärtle).

Product overview

Bäckerei Keim GmbH ist ein schwäbischer Familienbäckereibetrieb mit über 125-jähriger Tradition (seit 1898), der handwerklich hergestellte Backwaren produziert und über rund 50 Fachgeschäfte in der Region Stuttgart/Reutlingen vertreibt. Das Kernproduktportfolio umfasst vielfältige Backwaren wie Brot, Brötchen, Brezeln, Kuchen und Snacks, ergänzt durch das Signature-Produkt "Das Bäcker-Brot" sowie saisonale Angebote wie "Pane Bianco" (Brot des Monats) und "Käsekleverle mit Ei" (Snack des Monats). Die Frische-Offensive "Kleverle" garantiert Frischbacken vor Ort mindestens alle 3 Stunden. Zum Serviceangebot gehören das Loyalitätsprogramm "Keim's Kärtle" mit Bonus- und Bezahlfunktion, "Klever20 für Vereine" mit 20% Rabatt, Online-Vorbestellungen zur Geschmacksabholung, sowie Allergenlisten und Ernährungsberatung. Für Geschäftskunden bietet die Bäckerei TK-Backwaren aus eigener Herstellung und einen täglichen Lieferdienst an Gastronomie, Großverbraucher, Wiederverkäufer und Wochenmärkte.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Keim's Kärtle: A loyalty/bonus card program with payment function that allows customers to collect bonus points (2 points per €1 spent), redeem points as cash (1 point = 1 cent), and receive 5% discount when paying with the card's loaded balance. Maximum 2,000 points (€20) can be accumulated on a single card.
• Keim's Tageshits
• Keim's Specials
• Frühstück bei Keim
• Klever20
• Keim's Kärtle

Products and services

• Keim's Backwaren (handcrafted bakery product range) Core handcrafted bakery assortment — breads, rolls (Brötchen/Kleverle), pretzels, cakes, pastries, and snacks — produced in the Swabian artisan tradition for retail sale at Fachgeschäfte and for wholesale supply to gastronomy and institutional customers.
• Das Bäcker-Brot (signature bread) Signature bread of Bäckerei Keim, made to a traditional recipe as a branded standalone SKU within the wider bakery assortment.
• Keim's Specials (special artisan baked goods) Specialty baked goods with distinct recipes and ingredient compositions, offered as a sub-range of the Keim baked-goods portfolio.
• Keim's Tageshits (daily fresh specials) Promotional baked-goods line featuring daily-changing fresh-offer selections at the Fachgeschäfte.
• Frühstück bei Keim (in-store breakfast service) In-store breakfast service combining the Keim baked-goods range with coffee specialties, served at Fachgeschäfte locations many of which include small café/gastro seating.
• Keim's Kärtle (loyalty and payment card) Customer loyalty and cashless-payment card program: customers collect 2 bonus points per €1 spent (1 point = €0.01 redeemable as cash) and receive a 5% discount when paying from the loaded card balance (loadable in €5 increments up to €50).
• Klever20 für Vereine (club association discount program) Discount program for registered clubs and associations: 20% off Kleverle (small bread rolls) for orders of 50 units or more, accessed via a Klever20 discount card obtained by application.
• TK Backwaren (frozen wholesale bakery products) In-house-produced frozen (TK) semi-finished bakery products (Tiefkühlbackwaren) supplied to B2B customers including gastronomy, retailers, weekly markets, and other bakeries for finishing at their own locations.
• B2B Wholesale Delivery (Frischedienst für Geschäftskunden) Daily wholesale delivery service using the company's own Frischedienst fleet to supply retailers, large-volume buyers, gastronomy, senior residences, weekly markets, and other bakeries; includes custom orders, training, allergen information, and marketing support, managed by a dedicated trade-customer account manager.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50 retail locations serving the Greater Stuttgart/Reutlingen region

Named customers7 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

Feature1 record

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bäckerei Görtz: Stuttgart-area traditional handcraft bakery chain with retail stores across Baden-Württemberg. Geographic and product overlap with Keim makes it the most relevant sub-regional direct competitor in the same Swabian market.
• Ditsch Brezelbäckerei: Specialty bakery chain producing pretzels (Brezeln) and related bakery snacks in retail locations and B2B supply. Directly comparable to Keim's signature Kleverle/pretzel production and in-store freshness positioning.
• Kamps Bäckereien: One of Germany's largest traditional bakery chains with hundreds of retail stores producing handcrafted breads, rolls, and pastries. Operates a similar retail bakery + B2B wholesale model with centralized production and own delivery — the closest large-scale comparable to Keim's craft bakery positioning.
• Bäckerei Brötje: Family-run German bakery chain operating multiple retail stores producing handcrafted artisan breads and pastries. Closely matches Keim's family-owned heritage, in-store baking model, and regional store footprint approach.
• Schäfer's Brot- und Kuchen-Spezialitäten GmbH: Regional German retail bakery chain with company-owned stores selling fresh handcrafted breads and confectionery. Operates its own production and retail distribution across multiple German states, mirroring Keim's integrated bakery-plus-retail mechanics.

Broad incumbents

• BackWerk GmbH: German self-service bakery franchise chain with hundreds of stores across Germany. Operates in the same retail bakery category at broader national scale, but with a low-price convenience model rather than Keim's artisan craft positioning.
• Harry-Brot GmbH: One of Germany's largest commercial/industrial bread manufacturers supplying supermarkets and discounters. Overlaps on bakery manufacturing and wholesale distribution but operates at industrial scale (no retail storefronts), serving the same end-product category through different channels.
• Lieken Brot- und Backwaren GmbH: Major German industrial bakery producing bread and rolls under private label for retailers. A scaled incumbent in the same overall category whose discount-supplier position is the structural backdrop Keim's artisan premium differentiates against.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/keimbackts
• Instagraminstagram.com/baeckereikeim

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 Backerei Keim