Some careers can be told through milestones. Others become part of a company's history.
As a company looks back on 100 years of history, it is not only the products, innovations, or milestones that have shaped its journey. Above all, it is the people who have driven change day after day. Gerhard is one of them.
Of uvex's 100-year history, he has witnessed nearly half of it firsthand. Decades marked by technological progress, economic challenges, and social change. He has seen the workplace evolve, watched new ideas take shape, and experienced how tradition became the foundation for the future. This is a personal reflection on 45 years at uvex—and on what defines a company across generations.
Between punch cards and digitalization
When Gerhard joined uvex, the working world looked very different. Emails, mobile devices, and real-time digital supply chains were still a long way off. Work was done using punch cards, magnetic tapes, and typewriters. Orders arrived by mail, inventory was tracked on index cards, and invoices were passed manually from one department to the next.
At the time, no one could have imagined how profoundly not only uvex but the entire world of work would change. Gerhard not only witnessed this transformation—he helped shape it over the course of four and a half decades.
You really had to work carefully and have neat handwriting.
When processes were still manual
Gerhard began his career in the Footwear division, where he worked as a production planner. The role required a high level of organization and precision: coordinating deliveries, monitoring inventory, and managing workflows—all at a time when much of the work was still done manually. Many decisions relied on experience, a clear overview of operations, and close personal coordination.
That was exactly what Gerhard enjoyed. He was interested not only in keeping processes running smoothly but also in finding ways to improve them. Colleagues still remember that he never simply worked through a list of tasks. He asked questions, looked for solutions, and was often thinking one step ahead. It was an approach that quickly caught the company's attention.
Over the years, the young production planner grew into a leader with broad responsibilities. In 2008, he was appointed Head of Supply Chain Management Footwear for uvex and Heckel.
It was a major career milestone—at a time that could hardly have been more challenging.
Crises reveal what a company is made of
Shortly after taking on his new role, the global financial crisis shook markets and supply chains around the world. Many companies came under immense pressure. Decisions had to be made quickly, often in the face of great uncertainty. For Gerhard, it was an intense period. But it also reinforced something that has stayed with him ever since.
"Whenever things got difficult, everyone at uvex pulled together."
That sentiment runs like a common thread through his 45-year journey with the company. It had become especially clear many years earlier during an event he has never forgotten.
In 1994, the production site in Italy was hit by severe flooding. Machinery was submerged, and large parts of production came to a standstill. The objective was clear: production had to be up and running again within six weeks. Otherwise, the production site faced closure. To many, that seemed almost impossible. But it was in moments like these that the true character of a company became evident. Teams worked together across locations, sourced replacement parts, redesigned processes, and raced against the clock. Gerhard was right in the middle of it.
Six weeks later, the first machine was running again.
To this day, he speaks of that moment with pride—not because of the numbers or the processes, but because of the people who together achieved what had once seemed impossible.
From a family business to a global group
Over the course of 45 years, Gerhard has witnessed uvex reinvent itself time and again.
He experienced the company's move from its original headquarters on Salzstraße to Fichtenstraße, and later to Hardhöhe, which remains uvex's headquarters today. He was there when SAP was introduced in the late 1990s, fundamentally transforming many day-to-day business processes. He also saw multiple individual warehouses evolve into modern logistics centers.
What was once managed with paper lists and phone calls is now handled through digital, internationally connected, and highly integrated systems.
From ties, clear hierarchies, and a new world of work
The company culture has also undergone noticeable change over the past four decades. In the past, suits and ties were part of everyday life. Hierarchies were more clearly defined, meetings were often more direct—and sometimes louder. Today, Gerhard experiences uvex as more modern, open, and personal. Communication has become faster, teams collaborate more flexibly, and many things are less formal. Yet he still recognizes the same core values: responsibility, trust, and togetherness.
For Gerhard, these values are a key reason why uvex has been able to successfully evolve over so many years.
When our apprentice asked him which skills will be particularly important today and in the future, Gerhard did not have to think for long. The world of work has changed rapidly in recent years—driven by artificial intelligence, constant access to information, and increasingly complex global connections. That makes the willingness to continuously develop and remain open to new ideas more important than ever.
"The world is constantly changing. You have to be willing to move with it."
A sentence that perhaps best captures why, after 45 years with the company, Gerhard still approaches change with the same curiosity and openness.
45 years at uvex. And not a moment of standing still.
When asked whether there is anything he would have done differently looking back, Gerhard does not hesitate.
"No. Everything that happened has brought me to where I am today."
Perhaps that is the true message behind his story. Forty-five years at uvex represent far more than four decades of work. They stand for change, trust, responsibility, and the ability to overcome difficult times together.
As uvex celebrates 100 years of company history this year, Gerhard's journey is a powerful example of the fact that behind every transformation are the people who make it possible. And sometimes, one person becomes part of nearly half of that entire story.
