On January 1, 2023, Stephan Paffendorf will join the management of May Design GmbH. Mr. Paffendorf has many years of industry experience and has always been able to implement sustainable growth initiatives in his previous positions. Together with Roland Hauke, who joined the company as the new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) on December 1, 2022, new and fresh impulses are to be implemented for May, for example in the areas of digitalization and sales.

At the same time, the previous managing director Jens-Uve May will remain closely linked to the company as a shareholder and advisory board member after a transition phase in order to continue to support the company with products and market trends in the future. With high standards of detail and quality, May wants to continue to be the reliable furniture specialist. In the future, customer demands will be even more at the center of actions and entrepreneurial growth. With the new line-up at the company's management level, May is looking forward to a successful year together in 2023 and a good start!

Zum 1. Januar 2023 tritt Stephan Paffendorf in die Geschäftsführung der May Design GmbH ein. Herr Paffendorf verfügt über eine langjährige Branchenerfahrung und konnte in seinen bisherigen Positionen stets nachhaltige Wachstumsinitiativen umsetzen. Zusammen mit Roland Hauke, der bereits zum 1. Dezember 2022 als neuer Finanzleiter (CFO) zum Unternehmen gestoßen ist, sollen neue und frische Impulse für May beispielsweise in den Bereichen Digitalisierung und Vertrieb umgesetzt werden.

Gleichzeitig bleibt der bisherige Geschäftsführer Jens-Uve May nach einer Übergangsphase dem Unternehmen als Gesellschafter und Beirat eng verbunden, um die Gesellschaft auch zukünftig bei Produkten und Markttrends zu begleiten. Mit hohen Detail- und Qualitätsansprüchen möchte May auch weiterhin der verlässliche Möbelspezialist sein. Dafür stehen künftig noch mehr die Kundenansprüche im Mittelpunkt des Handelns und unternehmerischen Wachstums. Mit der neuen Aufstellung in der Führungsebene des Unternehmens freut sich May auf ein erfolgreiches gemeinsames Jahr 2023 und einen guten Start!

The fund Kapital 1852 SCS SICAV-SIF Equity Invest IV “MidCapPlus”, managed by the investment company Kapital 1852beratung GmbH (“Kapital 1852”), has acquired a majority stake in H. May GmbH & Co. KG (future May Design GmbH, “MAY”) ) involved. MAY is a leading provider of hospitality furniture with locations in Lehrte and Hamburg. The diverse product range consists of seating and tables for the indoor and outdoor areas of restaurants and hotels, but also for the office and health & care sectors. The company serves over 2,000 active customers every year with the demand for high design expertise and quality.

In times of pandemic-related easing, the catering sector represents the largest share of sales within the hospitality segment and is returning to growth. The Office and Health & Care customer segments are also seeing continually increasing demand for hospitality furniture, fueled by trends such as “New Work” or increasing design demands in lounge areas. This market environment offers significant growth potential for MAY. The focus is particularly on developing new customer groups and geographical expansion through a supra-regional sales rollout. MAY is ideally positioned to meet increasing customer requirements for product design and quality; The broad customer base and the attractive product range serve as the basis for the accelerated growth potential.

Managing partner Jens-Uve May is also convinced of the company's sustainably successful positioning and will therefore continue to have a significant stake in MAY in the future. “With Kapital 1852 we have found a reliable, entrepreneurial and long-term oriented partner with whom we want to develop the company into the market leader in Germany and a strong player in Europe. Our common drive is to set standards in the industry through high standards of detail and quality,” says Jens-Uve May.

“Kapital 1852 is pleased to have Jens-Uve May, a successful and experienced entrepreneur as a partner who has known the industry for a long time and has developed a deep understanding of the products and customer groups. In the future, Kapital 1852 will actively support the MAY team in implementing the various internal and external growth initiatives. In order to achieve our common goals, we will initially invest primarily in the organization and digitalization of MAY’s corporate processes,” adds Eberhard von Strenge, partner at Kapital 1852.

Kapital 1852 is the independent investment manager of Hauck Aufhäuser Lamp Privatbank AG with a direct investment fund in the area of private equity as well as funds of funds in the area of venture capital and private debt. The direct investment strategy of the private equity division of Kapital 1852 focuses on the structuring and financing of company successions, the takeover of group companies and the expansion financing of small and medium-sized companies. In its direct investments, Kapital 1852 pursues an entrepreneurial and constructive approach to increasing value with consistent involvement of the management teams. The direct investment fund SCS SICAV-SIF Equity Invest IV “MidCapPlus” has existed since November 2020 and has already made four investments. The fund most recently acquired a majority stake in KÜBLER Holding.

Further information can be found at: www.1852.capital/de

May Design GmbH, based in Lehrte, Lower Saxony, was founded in 1957 and is a provider of hospitality furniture. The company employs around 70 people and has developed into one of the most established German furniture providers in the hospitality segment. The company serves over 2,000 active customers every year and is the market leader in Northern Germany. MAY serves a broad customer base and is characterized by high design expertise, a diverse product range, high quality standards and fast and reliable delivery.