Winkels

What Winkels does

Winkels Interior Design Exhibition GmbH is a privately held, family-owned German trade-show construction and interior fit-out company headquartered in Kleve, North Rhine-Westphalia, founded in 1962 as a carpentry workshop and evolved over six decades into one of Germany's largest exhibition builders. It plans, designs, manufactures, and installs exhibition stands, interior environments, event structures, museum installations, yacht interiors, and custom kitchens for enterprise clients across automotive, consumer durables, sanitary, and lifestyle industries. Production is anchored in approximately 18,000 sqm of workshop and warehouse space within a 30,000 sqm campus, supported by two 5-axis CNC machines, in-house carpentry, spray-painting booths, and pre-assembly/probe-assembly capabilities. The firm is ISO-14001 certified and holds Klimaschutz-Partner 2024 status through a reforestation partnership with PLANT-MY-TREE®.

The business generates revenue through professional-services, project-based contracts awarded via competitive pitches, framework agreements, and design-agency referrals. Pricing is bespoke to each project, driven by scope, size, materials, and timeline, with no publicly disclosed rate cards. Go-to-market is direct enterprise sales led by a Head of New Business, supported by a Düsseldorf sales/design office opened in 2023, and reinforced by long-standing design partnerships with agencies including Meiré und Meiré, Mutabor, and 1zu33. Customer segments are horizontally diversified across large enterprise corporates, interior-design clients for permanent installations, and a smaller pool of high-end private clients for bespoke kitchens and yacht interiors. The firm deploys teams internationally on projects across Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Asia, but has no parent company, external investors, or disclosed revenue figures.

Name

Winkels

Legal name

Winkels Interior Design Exhibition GmbH

Website

https://winkels-interior.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1962

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Winkels is a family-owned German trade-show builder and interior fit-out firm, designing and manufacturing custom exhibition stands, interiors, and event structures for enterprise clients in automotive, consumer durables, and sanitary industries from its Kleve, Germany headquarters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Exhibition Stand Construction

NAICS

Indoor and Outdoor Display Advertising (541850), Office Furniture (including Fixtures) Manufacturing (33721)

SIC

Miscellaneous Furniture & Fixtures (2590)

akta.pro primary industry

Custom Booth & Stand Design (Concept, 3D, Branding) (THAHAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Trade Shows & Exhibitions (Booths, Show Management) (BPAFAGAD), Joinery, Millwork & Casework Installation (Cabinetry, Built-Ins) (IMAFANAJ)

Keywords

• Trade show construction
• Exhibition stand building
• Interior fit-out services
• Custom furniture fabrication
• Event construction services

Headquarters

HQ city

Kleve

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Exhibition Stand Construction: Custom project-based services for designing, producing, and installing exhibition stands for trade shows and events. Revenue is generated through individual project contracts with pricing based on scope, size, complexity, and materials used.
2. Interior Design and Fit-out: Interior design services for showrooms, retail spaces, museums, offices, restaurants, yachts, and private residences. Projects include custom furniture design and construction, total space concepts, and high-end finishing.
3. Event Construction: Temporary structures for events, filmsets, stage backgrounds, press walls, and pavilions with quick assembly and disassembly capabilities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Winkels plans, designs, manufactures, and installs custom trade show exhibition stands and interior fit-out projects for enterprise brands. The company delivers end-to-end services across temporary event/exhibition construction, permanent interior build-out for showrooms, retail, museums, offices, restaurants, yachts, and private residences, as well as custom furniture and kitchen solutions. All production is handled in-house at the company's 30,000 sqm Kleve facility using advanced CNC machining, carpentry, and painting capabilities.

Product overview

Winkels Interior Design Exhibition GmbH is a trade show booth builder and interior design company offering a portfolio of construction and design services. The core offerings include Messebau (trade show booth construction) for temporary exhibition stands at international trade fairs, and Innenausbau (interior design) for permanent installations in showrooms, retail, business, museum, and residential settings. Supporting services include Eventbau (event construction) for temporary event structures, Yachtausbau (yacht interiors), Pop-Up-Store concepts, WINKELS Kitchen for custom kitchen solutions, and Museumsbau for museum exhibitions. The company operates from Kleve, Germany (NRW) with approximately 75 employees and over 18,000 m² of production facilities, providing design, project management, and in-house manufacturing under one roof.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Messebau (Trade Show Booth Construction) Design, planning, and construction of temporary trade show exhibition stands for international trade fairs and events, including modular and custom booth designs, delivered for enterprise clients across automotive, consumer goods, and industrial sectors.
• Innenausbau (Interior Design and Fit-out) High-quality interior design and construction services for showrooms, retail spaces, offices, museums, restaurants, and residential projects, including custom furniture and total space concepts with premium finishing.
• Eventbau (Event Construction) Temporary event constructions including stages, press walls, room-in-room designs, coverings, and wayfinding installations for events and film sets, with quick assembly and disassembly capabilities.
• Yachtbau / Yachtausbau (Yacht Interior) High-class interior construction for yachts and residences, including counters, bars, wall cabinets, and seating with premium materials and craftsmanship.
• Pop-Up-Store Konzepte (Pop-Up Store Concepts) Temporary pop-up store concepts and mobile exhibition solutions for brand activations and roadshows, including traveling pavilions and modular retail experiences.
• WINKELS Kitchen Custom kitchen planning and construction for premium clients, including individual furniture design and bespoke kitchen solutions under a dedicated brand site.
• Museumsbau (Museum Construction) Interior design and exhibition construction for museums, including display cases, furniture, graphics, and tactile guidance systems, delivered for public institutions and museum operators.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully executed projects ranging from 100 sqm to 11,000 sqm exhibition spaces
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 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 minor.

• PLANT-MY-TREE®coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for climate protection through forest reforestation. Winkels supports regional afforestation, CO2 compensation, and creation of natural habitats for insects and animals through tree planting initiatives in Germany. The partnership aims for long-term climate protection goals with minimum 99-year project durations.
• Meiré und Meiré GmbH & Co. KGcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing design partnership for exhibition stand projects. Meiré und Meiré provides design and art direction while Winkels handles production and execution. Notable projects include Dornbracht ISH exhibitions and BMW motor show stands.
• Mutabor Design GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign partnership for major automotive exhibition projects. Mutabor provides conceptual design while Winkels executes. Projects include Volkswagen IAA Mobility and Daimler Truck IAA Transportation exhibitions.
• 1zu33 GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign partnership for Occhio exhibition stands and showrooms worldwide. 1zu33 creates design concepts that Winkels manufactures and installs at international locations.
• Puchner p3 GmbHminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerArchitecture partnership for BMW Luxury Excellence Pavilion. Puchner p3 provided the architectural concept that Winkels implemented for the traveling pop-up showroom.
• FAMABminorOthersMentioned in copyright and intellectual property notices as a reference for industry standards.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Freeman Company: US-headquartered largest North American exhibition services and brand experience provider, with growing international reach — broad incumbent comparable on exhibition stand construction, brand activation, and event services for Fortune 500 clients.
• Lindner Group KG: German interior fit-out, finishes, and facades specialist with significantly larger scale than Winkels — broad incumbent that overlaps with Winkels' Innenausbau (interior fit-out) business for offices, retail, and institutional spaces but operates across a much wider portfolio.
• GL events SE: French-headquartered global exhibition and event services group offering venue management, exhibition stand construction, and event services across multiple continents — broad incumbent competitor at the international scale where Winkels is more regionally concentrated.

Direct peers

• Atelier Damböck Messebau GmbH: Wuppertal-based German exhibition stand builder with in-house manufacturing and project management serving enterprise clients — closely comparable in vertical integration, geographic market (DACH), and project complexity to Winkels.
• VOK DAMS Group GmbH: Wuppertal-based German event and live communication agency offering corporate event production, including exhibition and brand activation services — listed in Winkels' own customer references (Engelbert Strauss, Brenntag), making it a meaningful DACH peer with overlapping enterprise client base.
• MAC Messebau und Ausstellungs GmbH: German exhibition stand construction specialist with design, manufacturing, and project execution services for trade show booths — comparable mid-sized German Messebau competitor targeting enterprise clients.
• Gahrens + Battermann GmbH: German event technology and exhibition services provider headquartered in Leverkusen, offering event technology rental, exhibition stand construction, and corporate event services to enterprise clients — directly comparable in business model and customer base to Winkels.
• Schnepp GmbH: German exhibition stand builder with in-house production capabilities and full project management services — direct competitor in the DACH market with comparable design-build execution model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xinstagram.com/winkels_interior
• Facebookfacebook.com/Winkels.Interior.Design.Exhibition
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/winkels-interior-design-exhibition-gmbh

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Winkels