Attractive, functional, and eco-friendly
Interview with Boris Antochin, Site Manager, Head of Sales & Marketing at Heinze Solutions GmbH/Branch Gies
With colorful and innovative household products, the Gies brand scores with its customers. The branch, which recently joined the Heinze Solutions group and is based in Hauneck, is taking new paths. In addition to design and functionality, it places great emphasis on the use of recycled materials and bio-based raw materials. Thus, Gies also makes a significant contribution to the careful use of our resources in household articles.
That kitchen utensils can be not only functional but also aesthetically pleasing is evidenced by the products of the brand Gies. Gies manufactures, among other things, food storage and freezer containers, measuring cups, mixing bowls, and cutlery trays – all made of high-quality plastic and in a modern design. The range can be divided into eight categories: Household & Kitchen, Fresh Keeping, Freezing, Baking, Butler, Baskets & Tubs, Boxes & Transport, and Waste & Cleaning. "Our ‘Basic’ collection includes products made of polypropylene in fresh, vibrant colors," explains Boris Antochin, Site Manager and Head of Sales & Marketing. "The EcoRecycled line is made from processed polypropylene (Systalen), while EcoPremium is based on sugarcane." Gies's portfolio contains about 450 different items, positioned in the mid-price range. Customers include food retailers and wholesale markets as well as hospitals and household goods stores. Gies primarily focuses on markets in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland but is also active in the Benelux region.
Started in the Basement
Company founder Jakob Gies initially sold jukeboxes in the 1950s. Eventually, he recognized the increasing demand for plastic products and shifted focus: In the basement of his house in Mengshausen, he set up initial injection molding machines in 1961 and began manufacturing small medical parts, soon followed by household goods. The company flourished and moved to nearby Niederaula in 1989. There, a new logistics center was built in 2002. Jakob Gies handed over the company to his son due to old age. After the bankruptcy in 2022, Restart AG, under the leadership of founder and CEO Markus Hüter, took over the company and integrated it into Heinze Solutions GmbH in 2023, which outsourced production to a sister company and relocated the company headquarters to Hauneck.
"Today we employ nine staff at the sales location and generate a turnover of 5.5 million EUR," says Boris Antochin. 'Made in Germany', good quality and good service, as well as innovation and creativity are seen by the Site Manager as the most important success factors of Gies. In the coming years, the focus will be on growth and new markets as well as further innovations, including the Posh series with products made from recycled leather and the stylish Black Series.