1. Hansa-Flex AG
The company specialises in industrial hoses, hydraulic components, pipes and sealing technology. With 458 branches in 41 countries, Hansa-Flex has a global presence, allowing it to reach its customers as quickly as possible, for example to deliver spare parts. Only a small number of its 4,275 employees – around 300 – work at the company's headquarters in Bremen, where it was also founded.
2. Mondelēz Deutschland Services GmbH & Co. KG
The food company has a long history, but its name is a very recent creation. Founded in 1903 as a cheese wholesaler, it became successful as Kraft Foods and evolved into Mondelēz in 2012, following a series of mergers. The American company has its German head office (German) in Bremen. This links back to the Bremen-based Jacobs Group, which sold its food business to a predecessor of today's Mondelēz corporation in 1990.
3. DMK Deutsches Milchkontor GmbH
Germany's largest dairy group processes around eight billion kilograms of milk every year – enough to fill around 3,200 Olympic-sized swimming pools. The group's headquarters are in Zeven, in Lower Saxony, but its main offices, with about 700 employees, are located in Bremen (German). It has 20 sites in ten of Germany's federal states and is also active in the Netherlands, Italy and Russia.
4. KAEFER Isoliertechnik GmbH & Co. KG
The KAEFER Group primarily made its name in insulation technology, i.e. anywhere pipes or containers need to be insulated against heat or cold. The company employs 30,000 people worldwide, and its activities also include surface technology, access technology (scaffolding, hydraulic lifts and ropes) and building services engineering. Around 1,700 employees work at the group headquarters in Bremen.
5. Anheuser-Busch InBev Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG
"One in four German beers drunk abroad is a Beck's" – according to the AB InBev corporate website (German). In Bremen, the brewery conglomerate operates Beck's Brewery, home of one of the world's favourite German beer brands. In addition to the brewery itself, the international group also has its German head office in the city. Overall, it employs around 1,400 people in Bremen.