Gerhard Höllinger, the managing director of the fruit juice company IMS Höllinger GmbH, and his team of eight employees awarded with the highest award: the Austrian Federal Coat of Arms. Gerhard Höllinger recognized with decrees by the Federal Ministry of Digital and Economic Affairs for company’s outstanding performance and contributions to the Austrian economy.
Every year Federal Ministry of Digital and Economic Affairs, led by Mag. Dr. Martin Kocher, awards national companies with high distinction of the national coat of arms for their outstanding achievements and contributions to the Austrian economy. The award of the Federal Coat of Arms recognizes the continuous and intensive work of the business leaders and exemplary Austrian enterprises. Gerhard Höllinger, the founder and managing director of IMS Höllinger GmbH, is known for his creative and fearless business approaches. These two aspects are essential for the excellent performance of the company, which is an international advertisement for Austria that also significantly contributes to the high competitiveness.
National recognition 25 years after the idea was born
"In 1997, I had the idea of introducing the first naturally cloudy cold-pressed apple juice to Austria's food retail trade. It is the perfect opportunity to celebrate the Federal Coat of Arms award with our 25th anniversary," says Gerhard Höllinger, who spreads the gratitude towards his team of 8 employees by showing appreciation: "The reason that we are here today, celebrating, is because of their performance.“ The Höllinger fruit juice company has always been a pioneer when it comes to cold-pressed juice and a strong business partner: from the early days, Gerhard Höllinger worked with local fruits and farmers and therefore supported regional agriculture.
Organic products around the globe
The Federal Coat of Arms recognition for Höllinger comes after 25 years of developing remarkable products and companies great evolution. Inspired by the core values of simplicity, naturalness and flexibility, the product range has grown to more than 40 organic products and yet the new products are being introduced continuously based on trends and consumer behaviour. Participating at trade fairs around the globe, the expansion of the listings was very successful. Among others, the organic fruit juice range can be found at Carrefour in Dubai and the organic juice pack range at Geant in Doha. The company already exports to the 42 countries worldwide, with an export quota of around 40 percent. On the one hand, the national coat of arms award emphasizes the competences in export, but is also a chance to win further export countries.
Investments apart from the product range
Flexibility is also a big part of the working environment: as the father of two children, Gerhard Höllinger knows how important flexibility is in order to balance career and family. Therefore, the possibility of partly working remotely from home is encouraged. Höllinger also invests continuously in sustainable developments. For instance, when the company building was constructed in 2006, energy efficiency and sustainable materials were taken into account, furthermore Höllinger was one of the first beverage companies in Austria to convert its PET bottles to 100 percent rePET in 2019. Living up to the award, new product launches are already being planned as well as further sustainable developments in 2022.
About Höllinger
Innovative and high quality organic fruit juices are what Höllinger is known for. It all began in 1997, when Gerhard Höllinger introduced the first directly pressed, naturally cloudy apple juice made from Styrian apples to Austrian food retailers under the mission statement "For our children, the best quality is just good enough". The basic values of that time - simplicity, naturalness & flexibility - are still in focus today: simple as well as delicious recipes without additives and the flexibility to react to current taste and nutrition trends have ensured the company its successes. Today, Höllinger exports its wide range of high-quality organic products such as organic fruit juices, organic soft drinks, organic school juices, organic syrups, organic sports drinks and organic shots to 42 countries worldwide. They bring the full taste of nature directly to the glass - as delicious as fruit fresh from the tree!
Further information:
Mag. Karin Lehner
Himmelhoch GmbH Text, PR & Event
T: +43 676 774 54 11
karin.lehner@himmelhoch.at
