The Needs of Consumers as a Benchmark
Jan Niewodniczanski, Stephan Fahrig and Dr. Stefan Schmitz - three managing directors who share a common goal: to successfully lead our family brewery into the future and to hand it over to the next generation as an independent company. Always in focus: the needs of our customers and the responsibility towards each individual employee.
Jan Niewodniczanski
As a representative of the seventh generation of the family, Jan Niewodniczanski has been responsible for the technology and environment department of our traditional brewery since 2006. But even outside of the office there is no boredom for the passionate action fan: whether mountain biking, surfing, skiing or snowboarding - no slope is too steep and no wave too high for the managing director. His career is just as varied as his hobbies, which led the passionate brewer to America, South Africa, the Philippines and China after completing his degree in brewing and beverage technology.
„As a family business, we have always managed sustainably and dealt with the challenges of the present and the future. To this end, we continuously invest in quality, research, innovations and sustainability in order to guarantee the economic success and independent survival of our family-run traditional company for future generations as well.”
Dr. Stefan Schmitz
Dr. Stefan Schmitz has had executive responsibility for Human Resources and Legal since July 2021. The appreciation found in a family-run company and its social responsibility are particularly important matters to him, as is his clear focus on motivation and performance. He completed university studies in law, music, and business administration. After working as a business attorney in Düsseldorf, he became an in-house lawyer at Bitburger Unternehmensgruppe in 2007 and has since then held various leadership positions. A father of three, he is also a passionate fan of music, playing the piano, organ, and cello in his free time. He keeps up his fitness by jogging and climbing mountains.
As a family-run company, we have deep roots in the Eifel region, our home. One of the ways this is reflected is how long our employees work for us. Some of them come from families who have worked in our brewery for generations. We also place a great emphasis on education and training. Furthermore, we believe it is important to point out career opportunities for our young staff members and invest in initiatives for further training.
Stephan Fahrig
As managing director for finance and administration, Stephan Fahrig always has all important data and facts in view. The graduate computer scientist and business economist has been guiding the fortunes of the family brewery since 2016 and provides a fresh breeze with innovative and digital topics. He finds his personal balance in family and sport, where he can relax and collect fresh thoughts.
After completing his studies, he completed an MBA at the Rotman School of Management in Toronto - the best prerequisites for his professional career. This led him first to the IT industry and then to the Warsteiner Group, where he was responsible for the distribution and hotel business as CFO for the group and thus for various national and international breweries.
„In order to increase the company's value in the long term, we invest sustainably in the future of our company according to economic, ecological and social criteria. Our employees are an essential building block for our success. With attractive working conditions, a modern management culture, as well as training and further education at the highest level, we want to attract the best employees, offer development opportunities and bind them to our company in the long term.“