On April 29, 2024, Bernd Eikens was appointed to the supervisory board of Koehler Holding SE & Co. KG as a full member. He is succeeding Fritz Holzhey, whose expertise and experience contributed to the development of the Koehler Group in his 11 years as a supervisory board member.

Fritz Holzhey was elected as a full member of the board in June 2013 and helped shape the development of the Koehler Group for 11 years. Wolfgang Furler, supervisory board chairperson at Koehler Holding commented: “Fritz Holzhey was always closely involved in the group and very highly valued as an excellent adviser, attentive listener and asker of questions, and a man of vision.” Holzhey’s resignation was officially approved at a supervisory board meeting on March 18, 2024. He hoped the group would understand his decision to step down for age-related reasons. The supervisory board and board of management thanked Fritz Holzhey for his work, trust, expertise, and conscientious approach.

Bernd Eikens joins the Koehler Group supervisory board as a veteran of the industry.

Bernd Eikens was proposed as a successor to Holzhey on the supervisory board. He was elected unanimously as the new full member of the board in the general meeting on 29 April 2024. Eikens will bring his extensive management expertise in the paper industry to the role. He has held various leadership positions at UPM in Germany, the US, China, and Finland for 18 years.

He is currently CEO of the family run shipbuilding company Meyer Group in Papenburg, where he was previously an advisory board member. In addition, Eikens has been a supervisory board member at Johann Bunte Bauunternehmung in Papenburg since 2009. He holds a master’s in paper engineering from the Technical University of Darmstadt, a PhD in chemical engineering from Colorado State University in the USA, and a master’s in international logistics and supply chain strategy from the Georgia Institute of Technology in the USA.

The Koehler Group was founded in 1807 and has been family-run from that moment to the present day. The group's core business activity lies in the development and production of high-quality specialty paper. This includes—among others—thermal paper, playing card board, beverage coasters, fine paper, carbonless paper, recycled paper, decor paper, wood pulp board, sublimation paper, and also innovative specialty paper for the packaging industry since 2019.