Handelshaus Kiennast

What Handelshaus Kiennast does

Handelshaus Kiennast is a 9th-generation Austrian family-owned wholesale and retail trading group headquartered in Gars am Kamp, Lower Austria, with commercial roots extending back to 1710 and a department store in Gars dating to 1585. The group operates through several integrated business units: Eurogast Kiennast and Eurogast Pilz & Kiennast deliver a 12,000-SKU wholesale assortment to more than 2,000 gastronomy customers (restaurants, hotels, catering, large kitchens) across Lower Austria, Vienna and northern Burgenland, including 24-hour delivery capability; Nah&Frisch serves approximately 75 independent retail merchants with fresh products delivered up to six times per week and shop-concept support; Shop Top Service / Nah&Frisch punkt provides convenience retail supply to mineral-oil-company gas station shops; Kaufhaus Gars am Kamp is the own retail flagship combining supermarket, fashion (Mode Kiennast), tobacco shop and a Shell service station; and a national government contract supplies 27 prison kiosks through six branch offices using a dedicated single-item picking hall. Revenue in FY2023 was €149.6 million (a 36% year-over-year increase) and headcount reached approximately 500 employees following the 2023 integration of unik GmbH (formerly Lekkerland Österreich), which added a convenience and tobacco wholesale arm.

The underlying operating model is an asset-heavy distribution platform: an owned logistics center in Gars am Kamp, an in-house truck fleet, fresh-delivery runs up to six times weekly, and a category-management organization spanning produce, fresh and frozen meats, beverages, dairy, dry goods and non-food. Technology differentiation centers on a Hybrid Market concept that fuses traditional assisted-service counters with automated self-checkout and access systems to address rural labor shortages, plus a voice-AI ordering product, Best.Friend Voice, deployed in 2024 as the consortium's first 24/7 conversational ordering channel. Proprietary private-label lines (GENUSS RIND, GENUSS HUHN, GENUSS SCHWEIN) carry 4x AT (Austrian-origin) certification, while IFS Logistics, IFS Broker, ASC, MSC, LVA BIO, AMA-GS and klimaaktiv Gold certifications support food-safety and sustainability positioning.

The business makes money predominantly through transaction-based wholesale margins on B2B food distribution (Eurogast, Shop Top Service, prison kiosk supply), transaction-based retail margin at Kaufhaus Gars, and franchise/partner economics in the Nah&Frisch merchant network. Go-to-market combines an external sales force (Außendienst), annual trade fairs (Genuss.Forum, Nah&Frisch fairs, Waldviertel Pur), regional media and digital channels, and consortium-level purchasing power via Eurogast Österreich, Markant Österreich and Hogast. Approximately €12.5 million was deployed in 2023 across logistics expansion, a new timber-built headquarters (a klimaaktiv Gold and Holzbaupreis 2025 winner) and fleet refresh, underscoring continued capital reinvestment into a regional Austrian food distribution and rural retail model now spanning wholesale, retail, convenience, government supply and AI-assisted digital ordering.

Name

Handelshaus Kiennast

Legal name

Julius Kiennast Lebensmittelgroßhandels GmbH

Website

https://kiennast.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

1710

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Handelshaus Kiennast is a 9th-generation Austrian family-owned trading group combining food wholesale (Eurogast Kiennast) to over 2,000 gastronomy businesses, supply to ~75 Nah&Frisch retail merchants, convenience retail, own department-store retail, and government prison-kiosk supply, headquartered in Gars am Kamp, Lower Austria.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Wholesale and Retail Distribution

NAICS

Grocery and Related Product Merchant Wholesalers (4244), Packaged Frozen Food Merchant Wholesalers (42442), All Other Specialty Food Retailers (445298)

SIC

Wholesale-Groceries & Related Products (5140), Retail-Food Stores (5400)

akta.pro primary industry

Specialty & Gourmet Foods Wholesale Distribution (CRAOAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Frozen Foods Wholesale (AFAIABAC)

Keywords

• Food wholesale distribution
• Gastronomy supply services
• Regional retail grocery
• Convenience store supply
• Hybrid supermarket concept

Headquarters

HQ city

Gars Am Kamp

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Wholesale Food Distribution (Eurogast): Full-range wholesale food distribution to gastronomy businesses (restaurants, hotels, catering, large kitchens) under Eurogast Kiennast and Eurogast Pilz&Kiennast brands. Product range includes over 12,000 products. Delivers to 2,000+ gastronomy businesses in Lower Austria, Vienna, and northern Burgenland.
2. Nah&Frisch Retail Partnership: Partnership model with independent Nah&Frisch merchants. Company supplies fresh food products up to 6x per week and provides support services to approximately 75 Nah&Frisch partners.
3. Retail Supermarket Operations: Own retail operations including Kaufhaus Gars am Kamp with full supermarket, fashion boutique, tobacco shop, and Shell service station.
4. Shop Top Service / Convenience: National service for mineral oil companies and their gas station shops including 24-hour delivery, adapted product ranges, and customer-friendly reordering.
5. Government/Kiosk Supply: Supply to 27 prison kiosks with 6 branch offices, with dedicated single-item picking hall.
6. Hybrid Market Model: Innovative hybrid supermarket model combining traditional counter service with self-service technology, addressing labor shortages in rural retail.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Handelshaus Kiennast is a diversified Austrian food trading house that operates full-range wholesale food distribution to 2,000+ gastronomy businesses under Eurogast Kiennast, supplies fresh products up to six times weekly to approximately 75 Nah&Frisch independent retail partners, runs a 24-hour convenience supply service for petrol station shops (Shop Top Service / Nah&Frisch punkt), operates its own Kaufhaus Gars department store with supermarket, fashion, and tobacco, and supplies 27 Austrian prison kiosks. It also markets the GENUSS private-label range of 4x AT-certified Austrian meat products and unik-branded convenience and tobacco goods following its 2023 acquisition of Lekkerland Österreich.

Product overview

Handelshaus Kiennast is a diversified Austrian family-owned trading house (9th generation, founded 1710) operating a multi-brand portfolio across wholesale food distribution, retail food trade, gastronomy supply, and convenience retail. The core products include: Nah&Frisch (regional supermarket brand with hybrid self-service format), Eurogast Kiennast and Eurogast Pilz & Kiennast (gastronomy wholesale), Shop Top Service/Nah&Frisch punkt (convenience for petrol stations), Kaufhaus Gars department store with Mode Kiennast fashion, unik (convenience wholesale, acquired 2023), and GENUSS private label meat products (RIND, HUHN, SCHWEIN). The company offers physical retail and wholesale operations supported by centralized logistics, AI-powered voice ordering (Best.Friend Voice), and digital hybrid market technology. The company achieved EUR 150 million revenue in 2023 with 500 employees.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Nah&Frisch punkt: Hybrid supermarket concept combining traditional service counter shopping with self-service checkout for extended evening hours
• Genuss aus Österreich
• Eurogast
• Kiennast Card

Products and services

• Eurogast Kiennast Gastronomy Wholesale
• Eurogast Pilz & Kiennast C&C Market
• Nah&Frisch Retail Partnership Program
• Shop Top Service / Nah&Frisch punkt Convenience Supply
• Kaufhaus Gars Department Store
• unik Convenience and Tobacco Wholesale
• GENUSS Private Label Meat Range
• IFS-Certified Centralized Logistics Services
• Austrian Prison Kiosk Supply (Justizanstalten)

Quantifiable outcome

• 40% revenue growth in 2023
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Eurogast ÖsterreichcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEurogast Kiennast operates under the Eurogast Österreich consortium, which comprises 11 family businesses and is the largest national gastronomy wholesaler in Austria. The partnership provides group purchasing power, shared brand identity, and collaborative events like the annual Genuss.Forum trade fair.
• Nah&FrischcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNah&Frisch is the company's flagship retail partner brand with approximately 75 independent merchant partners. Kiennast supplies fresh products up to 6x weekly and provides business support. The partnership is central to the company's rural supply mission and Nahversorgung (local supply) strategy.
• Markant ÖsterreichminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEuropean purchasing and marketing association for wholesale and retail. Provides additional purchasing power and European network for the company.
• AMA (Agrarmarkt Austria)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAMA Marketing is the Austrian agricultural marketing board. Kiennast participates in AMA-Marketing programs, attends AMA Forum events, and works with AMA-certified regional products. Partnership supports the company's focus on Austrian regional products.
• HogastminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAustrian purchasing association for gastronomy and hotel sectors. Hogast membership provides additional purchasing leverage for Eurogast operations.
• ECD (European Catering Distributors)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean association of catering distributors. Kiennast participates in ECD meetings and congresses, including events in Budapest, for international networking and best practice exchange.
• Österreichische Post AGminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAustrian Post partnership includes CO2-neutral delivery certification for logistics operations and postal services at retail locations.
• Shell AustriaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorShell service station operating at Kaufhaus Gars am Kamp location. Part of Shop Top Service convenience retail network.
• unik GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partnerunik GmbH (formerly Lekkerland Österreich) was integrated into the Kiennast group in 2023, representing the company's largest acquisition. The company now operates under Kiennast umbrella with approximately 500 employees and €150M revenue.
• UNIGRUPPEminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUNIGRUPPE is an Austrian group of independent food retailers. Kiennast collaborates with UNIGRUPPE on trade fairs and events for independent food retailers.
• Food Flow EuropeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean food distribution network. Partnership provides international collaboration opportunities in the food wholesale sector.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Handl Tyrol: Austrian regional food wholesaler and gastronomy supplier in the Tyrol region with deep roots in regional food sourcing. Highly comparable as a family-influenced HoReCa and retail wholesaler with regional Austrian focus and similar customer mix.
• METRO Cash & Carry Austria: Austrian cash-and-carry wholesale operation serving HoReCa and small businesses with broad food and non-food assortment. Directly comparable to Eurogast Kiennast's gastronomy wholesale business model, though at larger scale.
• Wedl Handels-GmbH: Family-owned Austrian food wholesaler and retailer headquartered in Salzburg, operating a hybrid model combining wholesale supply with own retail stores across Tyrol and Salzburg. Closest comparable in scale, structure, and multi-generational family governance to Kiennast.

Broad incumbents

• Lidl Österreich: Austrian arm of the Lidl Schwarz Group discount grocery chain with aggressive expansion into smaller Austrian communities. Competitive threat to independent Nah&Frisch retailers and to pricing power in regional wholesale supply.
• Hofer KG (Aldi Süd Austria): Austrian subsidiary of Aldi Süd operating a hard-discount grocery format with very deep rural penetration in Lower Austria. The most significant competitive pressure on independent Nah&Frisch merchants and on Kiennast's retail supply economics.
• SPAR Österreichische Warenhandels-AG: Austria's largest grocery retailer operating SPAR, INTERSPAR, and HERVIS formats nationwide with significant private-label penetration. Major incumbent competitor for both Kiennast's retail customers (independent grocers) and consumer-facing supermarket share.
• REWE Austria (BILLA): Austrian grocery retail division of REWE Group operating BILLA, BILLA Plus, and PENNY formats nationwide. Direct competitor to Nah&Frisch partners for consumer spend and a major counterparty in wholesale purchasing negotiations through Markant Österreich.

Regional players

• MPREIS Warenvertriebs GmbH: Family-owned Tyrolean food retailer and bakery operator with vertical integration into production (backery, dairy). Comparable to Kiennast as an Austrian family-owned multi-format food operator with regional concentration, though with a different geographic footprint and own-production emphasis.
• Sutterlüty Handels GmbH: Family-owned regional Austrian grocery retailer operating stores primarily in Vorarlberg and surrounding areas with a strong regional-product focus. Comparable as a multi-generational family retailer with emphasis on Austrian regional sourcing, but operates in a different geography.

Emerging players

• ADEG Österreich: Austrian voluntary grocery retail chain with independent merchant model similar to Nah&Frisch, but operating in different regions and under a competing banner. Useful comparable for Kiennast's franchise-like independent retailer support model and rural supply strategy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCX_q-T-G8lW1
• Facebookfacebook.com/Handelshaus-Kiennast-184482101562138

Compliance10 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

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 Handelshaus Kiennast