Trigema boss Wolfgang Grupp is giving up his position as head of his company in Burladingen at the end of the year. The 81-year-old sole managing director and owner is handing over management to his daughter Bonita (34) and his son Wolfgang Grupp junior (32), the manufacturer of sports and leisure clothing announced.
Wolfgang Grupp Jr. will become a personally liable partner and managing director on January 1, 2024. Bonita Grupp will become a member of the management at the same time. Both are equal partners, said Grupp junior to the German Press Agency. Elisabeth Grupp, who is married to Wolfgang Grupp senior, will continue to work in the company as a partner. She is therefore not part of the management.
The company will continue to operate under the name Trigema W. Grupp KG. Until now, Grupp Trigema had operated as “eK” (registered merchant). As a registered merchant, he was liable with his private assets. “From January 1, 2024, I will withdraw from operational business and hand over responsibility to my daughter and son. I trust their abilities to ensure the continued existence of the company and lead Trigema into a secure future,” said Grupp. Bonita and Wolfgang Grupp Jr. joined the family business in 2013 and 2014.
Grupp is one of the most prominent and dazzling German medium-sized companies. The sole owner of the textile company Trigema in Burladingen in the Zollernalb district, Swabia, became known through iconic television commercials. In these, a chimpanzee – most recently a digitized animal – advertises its T- and sweatshirts.
The textile entrepreneur was born on April 4, 1942 in Burladingen. After attending the Jesuit college in St. Blasien, he studied economics at the University of Cologne, where he also received his doctorate. In 1969 he took over the heavily indebted company founded by his grandfather in 1919. He turned the company into Germany’s largest T-shirt and tennis clothing manufacturer. Production sales in 2022 were 127.2 million euros and the number of employees was around 1,160. Grupp often criticized the megalomania of some entrepreneurs and demanded personal liability for all bosses. “We need entrepreneurs again with responsibility, discipline and role model function.”