At the end of 2011, Wanzl invited 104 employees from the Leipheim and Kirchheim plants who had worked for the company for either 40, 25 or 10 years, along with their partners, to an evening of celebrations. Farewells were also said to 29 employees soon to be embarking on their retirement, and they were thanked for their dedication and commitment. The attendees also paid tribute to company founder and senior partner Rudolf Wanzl. The musical entertainment for the evening was provided by Leipheim's city band the Stadtkapelle Leipheim, conducted by Lisa Mayer, along with the Günzburg gospel choir, led by Christine Lerch.
Managing director Gottfried Wanzl warmly thanked the honoured employees for their decades of commitment and dedication. "They create continuity and stability– important values in turbulent times.” Gottfried Wanzl looked back over 2011 and emphasised the favourable general conditions prevailing in the last few months of the year, which he described as "a time of normalisation and burgeoning confidence." He argued that the year coming to an end had been a positive one for Wanzl when compared with the situation of its main competitors: "Coming out of the crisis, we are – as anticipated – going forward stronger." Spring 2011 got going with EuroShop in Düsseldorf, the world's leading retail trade fair. For the first time, Wanzl was represented at two stands at the event – one for Retail Systems and another for Shop Solutions in a different hall, which was visited by a large number of designers and architects. The success underlined how Wanzl is on the right track with its concept: customers were impressed by the innovative trade fair appearance. Furthermore, Carrefour – the leading European retailer – concluded a partnership contract with Wanzl there and then at EuroShop: over the next few years, Wanzl plastic Tango shopping trolleys and shopfitting systems for the organic departments will be delivered to Carrefour in five European countries as part of the new "Carrefour Planet" retail concept. At the end of the year, Wanzl confirmed positive sales figures and incoming orders – in fact the 2011 financial year concluded with a 15% increase in turnover. Gottfried Wanzl also argued that the general business outlook for 2012 was a positive one. He explained that the company would start the new year full of optimism, as "major orders have already been confirmed for the Retail Systems and Shop Solutions business areas".
Dieter Ammicht, Chairman of the General Works Council at Wanzl, emphasised "that it always comes down to the input of each individual". He looked back on the life of company founder and senior partner Rudolf Wanzl, who died in February of this year and for whom the development of Wanzl into a company with a global reputation was both his life's work and his lifetime achievement. Dieter Ammicht recalled: "Rudolf Wanzl knew how to win people to his side and how to motivate them." The employees held a minute's silence in remembrance of the company’s founder. Many of the employees celebrating at the event had also been influential in the success of Wanzl across the decades. Gottfried Wanzl thanked them for their commitment over the years, looking back across four decades to 1971, when Wanzl had just 500 employees. "It was a time of rapid growth, particularly in the European export markets."At that time, Wanzl was building its third European branch in Switzerland and at the same time was modernising the headquarters in Leipheim. Fifteen years later – when the employees now celebrating 25 years with the company started work – Wanzl already had over 1,000 employees and turnover had increased fivefold. In 2001, after another decade, Wanzl presented itself as a "small corporate group with production sites in China, the Czech Republic and France". This growth, which continued over decades and withstood economic crises along the way, was to a large extent a team effort by the long-serving employees. "They are representatives for co-operation and are the foundation on which we are building our future."This loyalty to the company also led to a commitment to provide secure employment, to investments and to ensuring good future prospects. A look ahead at the future also required recognition of the outstanding achievements of the new junior employees who completed their training with the company in 2011: out of 30 graduates, 21 achieved a grade 1 (1 prior to the decimal point), including nine with a score better than 1.5. Gottfried Wanzl: "When there is so much up-and-coming young talent, things can only continue to go well."
