Krombacher takes controlling stake in Starnberger Brauhaus

Krombacher takes controlling stake in Starnberger Brauhaus

Brewery eyes expansion despite production limits and Fristo delisting

Bavaria’s Hellbier boom has claimed another big-name convert: Krombacher is now the majority owner of the Starnberger Brauhaus. The deal, made via GL Verwaltungs GmbH, lifts the North Rhine-Westphalian brewery’s share to 65 %, with the remaining 35 % held by founder Florian Schuh. Schuh has since stepped away from the brewery’s day-to-day operations but retains strategic responsibility. Operational control now lies with two co-managing directors: Manuel Schulz, formerly Krombacher’s head of gastronomy, who brings extensive hospitality and sales expertise, and Sven Leindl, the brewery’s technical director and first brewmaster, known for overseeing production quality and recipe development.

Krombacher’s move follows the quiet withdrawal of its own Hellbier brand Eins Hell, which struggled to find traction without the cultural weight of a Bavarian heritage. Starnberger, rooted in the picturesque Lake Starnberg region, delivers exactly that credibility — a strength comparable to the enduring success of Tegernseer from Lake Tegernsee.

Currently producing around 40,000 hl annually, the brewery is fully integrated into Krombacher’s network. However, capacity growth at the Wieling facility is restricted by limited water availability. To overcome this, Schuh acquired a 41,000 m² plot in Starnberg’s Schorn industrial zone for a second brewery equipped with its own bottling line, while retaining all 15 employees at the original site. The project is on hold due to local concerns over wastewater capacity, with discussions ongoing.

Short-term challenges are also brewing: from 1 October, Starnberger’s prices will rise due to increased costs. In response, beverage retailer Fristo has pulled the beers from 40 South Bavarian outlets, replacing them with “Starnberg Bräu” from nearby Tutzing, a start-up owned by the Starnberg family with no links to the Starnberger Brauhaus.

Despite these hurdles, Leindl expresses confidence. Demand in the gastronomy sector is robust, the “Starnberger Wirtshaus” in Olpe is drawing visitors, and expansion plans for North Rhine-Westphalia — Krombacher’s home market — are firmly in motion.

Starnberger Brauhaus
DE
Starnberger - Hell
Lager / Helles
4,8% vol.
3,51
Starnberg Bräu - Helles
Lager / Helles
4,9% vol.
3,72
Krombacher - Eins Hell
Lager / Helles
5% vol.
3,28

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