Jürgen Siegwarth will hand over operational management to Martin Esslinger.
Siegwarth worked for four years together with founder Hartmut Ortlieb. Esslinger has been part of the management duo since February 2021 and will replace Siegwarth at the end of February, the outdoor specialist announced on Monday.
After the company had sought a realignment in 2017, Siegwarth was appointed managing director in 2018 as an “experienced expert”. The bike and outdoor specialist undoubtedly benefited from his knowledge and experience, says founder Ortlieb in a statement on Monday. “The generation change in the CEO position that has now taken place as planned, from Jürgen Siegwarth to Martin Esslinger, is also an example of Jürgen’s successful work in recent years,” said Hartmut Ortlieb. Siegwarth will continue to work as a consultant at Ortlieb.
Ortlieb sees challenges in digitization and automation, as well as increasing brand awareness and profiling as a sustainable brand – and hopes to be able to achieve the desired goals with Esslinger “and the entire team”.