The Business History of the HORNBACH Group

1877	Michael Hornbach, a master slater, establishes a workshop in Landau / Pfalz.
1900	His son, Wilhelm Hornbach, expands his father's business by adding a construction materials trading business.
Post 1945	Alongside the construction materials trade, the production of domestic and municipal sewage plants becomes an important springboard for further growth in the next generation with Albert and Wilhelm Hornbach. For this, HORNBACH moves to Bornheim bei Landau.
1968	Otmar Hornbach, great-grandson of the company founder, takes a pioneering step – opening the first combined DIY store and garden center in Bornheim. This combination is the first of its kind in Europe.
1980	The first large-scale "DIY supermarket", with a sales area of more than 8,000 m², is opened in Karlsruhe. HORNBACH becomes the market leader in the megastore segment.
1987	The company holds its first initial public offering (IPO). Its workforce grows to around 1,000 employees.
1991	After the fall of the Berlin wall, HORNBACH is the first company in the DIY sector to build megastores in the former East in the same way as in the West. Dresden is the first such store. At the time, it is Germany’s largest DIY store and already has a drive-in system.
1993	HORNBACH conducts a further IPO. HORNBACH AG is subdivided into HORNBACH HOLDING AG and HORNBACH–Baumarkt-AG.
1996	HORNBACH launches its expansion into neighboring countries, starting with Austria. This is followed by stores in the Netherlands (1997), the Czech Republic (1998), Luxembourg (1998), Switzerland (2002), Sweden (2003), Slovakia (2004), and Romania (2007).
2001	The succession to the fifth generation is complete. Albrecht Hornbach becomes Chairman of the Board of Management at HORNBACH HOLDING AG, while his brother Steffen Hornbach becomes Chairman of the Board of Management at HORNBACH-Baumarkt-AG.
	Strategic alliance with the British retail group Kingfisher, Europe’s largest DIY store operator.
2002	HORNBACH celebrates its 125th anniversary and opens its first DIY megastore with a garden center in Switzerland at Littau near Lucerne.
	Foundation of the HORNBACH Foundation “People in Need”.
2003	Swedish premiere: the first HORNBACH DIY store in Scandinavia opens its doors in Gothenburg in October. This also represents the birth of a new store type with an integrated drive-in construction materials facility. HORNBACH introduces the drive-in concept to the DIY sector – once again acting as a pioneer.
2004	Another country market is on the agenda: HORNBACH expands to Slovakia, opening its first store in Bratislava.
2005	Opening of a further logistics center in Vilshofen (Lower Bavaria). Alongside Hanover and Essingen in the Palatinate region, this is the third central distribution center to shop, rearrange, and transfer pooled merchandise to the stores.
2007	The first store in Romania opens in Bucharest in June.
2009	Given the growing importance of social media, HORNBACH joins Facebook.
2010	HORNBACH launches its online retail under the motto “Hornbach is coming home”. An online DIY store and garden center is offered at www.hornbach.de
2012	Dutch, Swiss, and Romanian businesses mark their 15th, 10th, and 5th anniversaries. The HORNBACH Foundation can also look back on ten years.
2013	Opening in March of the “Memorial for Victims of National Socialism” on the site of the former Turenne Baracks in Neustadt – now “Quartier Hornbach” and in company ownership.
2014	End of strategic alliance with the Kingfisher Group.
	Opening of former Praktiker/Max Bahr locations in new HORNBACH look: Trier, Schwabach, Ulm, Lüneburg, Kamen und Saarbrücken.
2015	150th HORNBACH DIY megastore with a garden center opens its doors in Geleen, Netherlands.
	HORNBACH HOLDING AG is converted into a German partnership limited by shares: HORNBACH Holding AG & Co. KGaA.
2018	With the launch of its online shop in Romania, HORNBACH has completed its international e-commerce roll-out and now offers multi-channel retailing in all of the countries in which it operates.
	HORNBACH celebrates the 50th anniversary of its combined DIY stores and garden centers
2019	Erich Harsch (formerly DM) takes over as Chairman of the Board of Management of HORNBACH Baumarkt AG from Steffen Hornbach.
2021	HORNBACH Baumarkt AG opens two specialist stores for hard floors ("BODENHAUS") in Berlin and Cologne.
2022	HORNBACH Holding takes HORNBACH Baumarkt private. The listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange ended on February 28, 2022.

The Business History of the HORNBACH Group

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