(Gruensfeld/Lauda-Koenigshofen) Today, the entrepreneur Volker Bohlender from Lauda-Koenigshofen celebrates his 50th birthday together with his family on his well-deserved Pentecost vacation. “I am entrepreneur because I like the challenge”, Volker Bohlender once told in an interview. Everyone knows that the President of the BOHLENDER GmbH, with its headquarter on the Waltersberg in Gruensfeld, is a man of action. He is an entrepreneur who works hard and bears a challenge rather today than tomorrow.
In June 1987 he entered his parents´ company at the age of 23. Since 1997 he has had the sole responsibility. Bohlender, age-group 1964, is skilled industrial mechanic and master as well as entrepreneur by conviction. He feels his responsibility in moving something, creating something new and motivating people.
The way of company management seemed to be prescribed, but it was not easy. Already as a child, he accompanied his father on many business trips and at the youth age he worked in his parents´ company to earn money for his moped. Some years later he accompanied his father on international trade fairs or assisted him as interpreter in negotiations. Even before his official entry, the company was an important part of his life.
After his apprenticeship at the manufacturer of temperature equipment LAUDA Dr. R. Wobser GmbH, the subsequent military service and interesting years as student trainee at companies DUPONT and HÖCHST, he immediately started to prepare BOHLENDER for international competition after his entry. He created new structures, defined responsibilities, remodelled the marketing, invested in modern machinery and expanded the vertical range of manufacture, always supported by his father and founder Hermann Bohlender.
This is why the change of responsibility from the father to his son was not a break but a smooth transition as the name BOHLENDER stands for continuity. Besides all enthusiasm for new things, readiness for permanent modernisation and despite rapid growth during the past years, Volker Bohlender wanted to keep the character of a typical family enterprise. All this by short communication channels, unbureaucratic decisions, direct contact to staff members and the possibility to intervene without ifs and buts, because it is the most elegant task of an entrepreneur, without any doubt says Volker Bohlender.
He was born on 20th June 1964 in the old hospital of Lauda. Still today he lives in Lauda with his wife Heike and his sons Moritz and Silas. There he has been member of the ETSV Lauda for years now, formerly in table tennis, today in handball. Besides his dedication as entrepreneur he has stood up for cultural and political concerns in his hometown for years now. After 10 years in the local council of Lauda-Koenigshofen he is nowadays co-founder, creative director and deputy manager of the civic foundation of his town. Happy Birthday, Volker Bohlender.