Friedrich Wenner

What Friedrich Wenner does

Friedrich Wenner Versmolder Vollpappen-Verarbeitungswerk GmbH is a family-owned German solid-board (Vollpappe) packaging manufacturer founded in 1930 in Versmold, where it still operates from a single integrated site of roughly 27,000 sqm with about 70 employees and a 20,000 sqm automated warehouse. The company converts recycled paper into heavy-duty and shelf-ready cardboard packaging — including lid boxes, BayPack shelf-ready packaging (7 variants), trays/steigen for produce, skin packaging (PappZack) for meat/poultry/fish, beverage carriers, bakery and floristry packs, mailing envelopes, and customer-specific Sonderkonstruktionen — using large-format 6-color offset printing with low-migration standards and water/fat-barrier coatings, with throughput up to ~15,000 sheets/hour and 100M+ boxes produced annually from ~35,000 tonnes of solid board. Wenner is a member of the HZI Group (Halbzellstoff-Industrie), which secures CO2-neutral upstream cartonboard supply and broader market reach, and the company supplies national and international food-industry and adjacent non-food customers via direct field and inside sales teams, with minimum orders of 2 tonnes per article, ex-works unit pricing, and 48-hour just-in-time delivery throughout Germany using its own fleet of 7 all-electric MAN lorries. The entire portfolio is positioned as PPWR-compliant, 100% recyclable, and FSC-supported, backed by on-site solar PV (590.7 kWp), heat-recovery systems, and a near-fully-recycled-fiber raw material base.

Name

Friedrich Wenner

Legal name

Friedrich Wenner Versmolder Vollpappen-Verarbeitungswerk GmbH

Website

https://wenner-gmbh.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1930

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Friedrich Wenner is a family-owned German solid-board packaging manufacturer producing heavy-duty and shelf-ready fiber-based packaging for food, produce, beverage, and non-food customers from a single Versmold site, selling direct via field and inside sales under the HZI Group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Packaging Manufacturing

NAICS

Corrugated and Solid Fiber Box Manufacturing (322211), Folding Paperboard Box Manufacturing (322212)

SIC

Paperboard Containers & Boxes (2650)

akta.pro primary industry

Paper & Paperboard Packaging Converting & Finishing (Die-Cutting, Gluing, Windowing, Coating) (IMALACAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Folding Cartons & Paperboard Packaging Converting (IMAMAHAB), Protective Paper Packaging (Honeycomb, Paper Cushioning, Paper Wrap) (IMALACAH)

Keywords

• Solid board packaging
• Cardboard boxes manufacturing
• Food packaging solutions
• Shelf-ready packaging
• Sustainable packaging production

Headquarters

HQ city

Versmold

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Packaging Product Sales: Wenner generates revenue through the manufacture and sale of corrugated cardboard packaging products, including standard and custom-designed solutions. Revenue is derived from one-time product transactions (one-time license model equivalent), with minimum order quantities of 2 tonnes per article. The company also derives revenue from logistics and warehousing services integrated with their packaging offering.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Friedrich Wenner manufactures solid board (Vollpappe) packaging, converting recycled paperboard into a broad range of custom and standardized cardboard packaging for the food and non-food industries. Its portfolio includes lid boxes (Stülpdeckelkartons), heavy-duty cartons, shelf-ready packaging, displays, folding cartons, trays and crates, skin cards, mailing envelopes, and specialized packaging for fish, plants/flowers, and baked goods. The company is based in Versmold, Germany, and is part of the HZI Group.

Product overview

Friedrich Wenner is a family-owned packaging manufacturer specializing in sustainable cardboard and solid board packaging solutions. The company operates as part of the HZI Group and offers a comprehensive portfolio of approximately 50+ distinct packaging products and variants. The core product lines include two-piece lid boxes (Stülpdeckelkarton), heavy-duty cardboard (Schwerlastkartonage), the BayPack shelf-ready packaging series with 7 variants, display cartons, counter displays, folding cartons, trays and crates for produce, skin cards for food packaging, beverage packaging including Bag-in-Box and bottle carriers, plant and flower packaging (Flora Vase, plant trays), bakery packaging, custom constructions, edge protection, and mailing envelopes. All products are made from recycled paper materials and are 100% recyclable. The company serves the food industry, non-food sectors, and industrial applications, with a focus on the German market.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Stülpdeckelkarton (Lid Boxes)

Quantifiable outcome

• 100 million+ cardboard boxes produced annually
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• HZI Group (Halbzellstoff-Industrie)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWenner is a member of the HZI Group, which unites efficient and innovative cartonboard manufacturers and finishers as well as packaging manufacturers in a joint corporate group. The HZI network provides Wenner with constant raw material supply, diverse raw material selection, and a wide product range with high delivery reliability. Wenner's raw material partner HZI produces raw cardboard for packaging in a CO2-neutral manner, reducing upstream emissions.
• FIRST PRIVACY GmbHminorOthersFIRST PRIVACY GmbH serves as Wenner's external ombudsman for the group-wide complaints procedure. Reports are forwarded via an anonymized procedure to FIRST PRIVACY, where information is treated confidentially and after initial review forwarded to the HZI Group's Compliance Manager.
• Host Europe GmbHminorOthersHost Europe GmbH (Hansestraße 111, 51149 Köln) provides web hosting services for Wenner's website content. Wenner uses Host Europe on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR for reliable website depiction.
• etracker GmbHminorOthersetracker GmbH (Erste Brunnenstraße 1, 20459 Hamburg) provides web analytics for Wenner's website, analyzing visitor behavior patterns including page interactions and click data. Analytics are conducted without cookies on the basis of Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR.
• CleverReach GmbH & Co. KGminorOthersCleverReach provides newsletter distribution services for Wenner's customer communications. The service analyzes newsletter recipient behavior including open rates and click-through rates on tracked links.
• Microsoft Ireland Operations LimitedminorOthersMicrosoft Teams is used for communication with customers as part of Wenner's conference tools. Data processing is governed by Microsoft's privacy statement. The company is certified under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework (DPF).

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Mondi plc: Global paper and packaging group with significant European paperboard and corrugated packaging operations serving food and consumer goods. Directly comparable in product category and food-industry customer base, but vastly larger scale and broader geographic footprint.
• Smurfit Westrock: World's largest paper-based packaging company following the Smurfit Kappa / WestRock merger, with deep European paperboard packaging operations. Comparable in converting activities and food-industry customer base, but operates at global scale across many geographies.
• Graphic Packaging Holding Company: US-headquartered but globally operating folding carton and paperboard packaging manufacturer, particularly strong in food and beverage packaging. Comparable in folding carton substrate and food-customer verticals.
• Stora Enso: Nordic paperboard and packaging producer with strong European footprint in consumer board and packaging solutions. Comparable substrate (paperboard) and food packaging customer base, though at significantly larger scale and integrated up to pulp.
• Mayr-Melnhof Karton: European paperboard and folding carton manufacturer with operations in cartonboard and converted folding cartons. Comparable in paperboard substrate and folding-carton converting, with similar food-industry customer verticals.
• DS Smith: Major European and global corrugated and paperboard packaging supplier, now part of Smurfit Westrock. Comparable in paperboard packaging manufacturing and food/consumer customer verticals, though primarily focused on corrugated vs. Wenner's solid board specialty.

Direct peers

• Thimm Group: German family-owned packaging manufacturer specializing in corrugated board and solid board packaging for retail and industry. Closely comparable to Wenner in substrate (paperboard), customer base (food and consumer goods), German Mittelstand profile, and B2B direct-sales GTM.
• Carl Edelmann GmbH: German family-owned packaging company producing folding cartons and solid board packaging for premium consumer brands, food, and pharma. Comparable in substrate (paperboard/solid board), German Mittelstand profile, and B2B GTM.
• PAV Card GmbH: German manufacturer of solid board and folding carton packaging serving food, consumer goods, and industrial customers. Closely comparable mid-sized German paperboard converter with similar customer verticals.
• Gizeh Verpackungen GmbH: German family-owned manufacturer of paperboard and plastic packaging serving food and consumer goods. Comparable in mid-sized German converting profile and food-industry customer base, though with broader material portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/friedrich-wenner-gmbh
• Facebookfacebook.com/wennergmbh

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Friedrich Wenner