Saica Group and Schumacher Packaging Reach an Agreement for Poland

Saica Group has reached an agreement with Schumacher Packaging to acquire their Polish subsidiary. That includes all activities in Poland: the whole management, all employees, two state-of-the-art corrugated board plants in Bydgoszcz and Wroclaw, two paper mills in Grudziadz and Myszków, one of which was completely modernised in 2023 and three service centres. Completion of this transaction is pending clearance by the Polish anti-trust authorities, as well as the fulfilment of certain conditions precedent.

The integrated Schumacher Packaging Group is one of the largest family-owned producers of customised corrugated and solid board packaging in Europe, recognised as an industry leader in innovation and technology, it has also pioneered high performance digital printing for corrugated board. The Group has enjoyed a dynamic international growth over the years, with 26 sites in Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Great Britain, Italy and the Netherlands. In Poland, they have developed a solid portfolio of customers and they have a capacity production of 440,000 tonnes of paper and 535 million square metres of corrugated board. Schumacher Packaging is comprised of 1,540 employees in Poland and the turnover was EUR327 (USD357.1) million in 2023 (aggregated sales).

Both companies are working passionately towards its vision of climate-neutral packaging made from renewable raw materials.

We are very happy that we came to this agreement with Saica – for our employees and our customers. There is a cultural proximity between the two family-owned companies, which will allow for rapid integration. The two companies’ products and services are complementary in Poland. Saica fills a gap in its already extensive geographic coverage by expanding into Europe’s sixth largest economy. This is an important step for Schumacher Packaging, as well, to lead our successful and healthy medium sized company into a long-term future. The spin-off of the Polish subsidiary will not cause any complications for the rest of the Schumacher Packaging Group. This is because the Polish organisation works almost independently of the other country organisations with its own management.

Björn Schumacher, CEO of Schumacher Packaging

“This will be a very important milestone. Not only this is a step forward in Saica’s business growth strategy, but it also aims to further develop our infrastructure and services in Eastern Europe. We are eager to welcome the Schumacher people in Poland, and further develop our culture and values with them, caring for the future, valuing people and accepting the challenges we have ahead,” said Susana Alejandro, President of Saica Group.

This offer is part of the development plans of the company defined by Saica 2025, the strategic plan of the company.

Back in 2011, Saica Group entered the Polish market through a joint venture with Thimm Group, acquiring a corrugated cardboard packaging plant in Tychy, named TOP THIMM (with 51 per cent of shares and Saica Group with 49 per cent of shares). In 2022, Saica Group acquired 76 per cent of shares of Fox Recykling, a waste management company in the city of Gdynia.

About Saica Group
Saica Group offers sustainable paper solutions for the manufacture of corrugated cardboard and packaging, promoting circularity in waste management. With over 10,300 employees and a presence in Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Turkey, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, and the United States, Saica Group has four business lines: the production of recycled paper for corrugated cardboard (Saica Paper), waste management and environmental services (Saica Natur), the production of corrugated cardboard packaging (Saica Pack), and flexible packaging (Saica Flex).

About Schumacher Packaging
The Schumacher Packaging Group, based in Ebersdorf near Coburg in Bavaria, is one of Europe’s largest manufacturers of customised corrugated and solid board packaging. As an integrated group of companies, Schumacher Packaging comprises three paper mills for recycled corrugated base paper, two board mills, 15 converting plants and various service centres. As a medium-sized company (“German Mittelstand”), it is very flexible in responding to market changes and customer needs. With many of its customers and suppliers, the company has enjoyed close and cooperative partnerships for decades.

The company is managed in the third generation by brothers Björn and Hendrik Schumacher and has 26 locations in Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, the UK, Italy and the Netherlands. In 2023, the family business celebrated its 75th anniversary, marking 75 years of tradition, dynamism and innovation.