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Press Release
A.T.U Auto-Teile-Unger appoints Hans-Norbert Topp as
new Chief Executive Officer
Weiden in der Oberpfalz, 27 June 2013. A.T.U-Group decided to appoint Hans-
Norbert Topp (51) to serve on the management board. Topp takes over effective
immediately as CEO from Manfred Ries, who leaves the company by mutual
consent. Mr Ries thereby clears the way for the next step of the company’s
development. Mr Topp will seamlessly transition into all functions and
responsibilities.
“Hans-Norbert Topp will be tasked with strengthening the core business and intensifying
and accelerating the strategic focus on the core growth areas e-commerce and fleet
management. Mr Topp is a seasoned leader with extensive experience across general
management, distribution, finance and controlling. We are very pleased that we were able
to bring him on board at A.T.U and that he will lead the company through the upcoming
refinancing,” said Dr. Steffen Pauls, chairman of the supervisory board.
Mr Topp will be supported by Detlef Specovius, a reorganization specialist, who was also
appointed to the management board. The hitherto members of the management board
Christian Sailer and Christian Schmitz will maintain their current areas of responsibility,
respectively finance and sales/procurement. Henceforward, they will serve as corporate
officers and they will concentrate exclusively on the operational business of A.T.U.
Hans-Norbert Topp has over 20 years of management experience. Most recently, he built
his own business consultancy and successfully served as manager in various companies
and growth projects. In a previous role, he oversaw distribution Sixt AG as a member of
the management board. In this function, he was instrumental in realigning and
successfully implementing distribution activities in car rental and leasing across Europe.
He also played a key role particularly in the expansion of the online business. As a former
board member of Europe‘s fourth largest car rental company and a leading leasing firm,
Mr Topp has first-hand insight into the requirements of modern fleet management –
expertise he can now perfectly bring to bear in the expansion of A.T.U’s strategy. Before
joining Sixt, Mr Topp oversaw in the Asia-Pacific business of the Hamburg-based
environmental technology company Sulo as its CFO and regional CEO.
“At the moment, A.T.U is undergoing the biggest structural change of its corporate history.
The objective is now to strengthen the company by broadening its business base and
making it more impervious to seasonal effects. Our nearly 12,000 employees have
already mastered many difficulties in the past. We will again join forces to address the
current challenge”, the new CEO Hans-Norbert Topp said.
“A.T.U has growth potential not only in its core business but also particularly in ecommerce
and fleet management. In fact, A.T.U’s broad footprint and its competent
employees present what can be rightly called ideal conditions to service corporate fleets
of any size and age both inexpensively and expertly. Another top priority is the
development and implementation of a lastingly stable financing structure for A.T.U
together with the owner. I look very much forward to the collaboration with all the
employees, the management and the shareholder,” Topp added.
Manfred Ries has served for more than 10 years at A.T.U and was appointed CEO of the
A.T.U Auto-Teile Unger Group on 1 July 2011. The supervisory board thanked Mr Ries for
his commitment over the past years.
About A.T.U Auto-Teile-Unger
A.T.U is the German market leader in vehicle servicing and vehicle spares retailing. The company
has developed dynamically since its foundation in 1985. From its head office in Weiden, A.T.U
today operates about 650 branches in Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands,
Italy and Switzerland. Its about 12,000 employees generated EUR 590 million in revenues in the
shortened financial year 2012 (1 January to 30 June 2012).
A.T.U's business model is based on a combination of master-managed servicing workshops
combined with integrated specialist retailers for car drivers. A.T.U offers a broad range of vehicle
accessories and spare parts in OEM quality in all its locations. A.T.U’s state-of-the-art, mastermanaged
workshops offer the entire range of servicing and repairs for vehicles, which also includes
its innovative Smart Repair method to repair paint damages and the car glass service for all
vehicles. For products and services alike, A.T.U operates under the motto “quality at
uncompromisingly good value”. Regular trainings in the A.T.U Academy and independent third
party audits ensure consistently high service quality.
A.T.U has also actively engaged in environmental protection for years. This environmental
awareness is an integral part of the corporate strategy. With a capacity of 14 million tyres annually,
A.T.U is operating one of Europe’s largest tyre recycling plants. Similarly, the company also
recycles and competently disposes of all other reusable materials from its German branches in the
recycling centers in Weiden and Werl.
Hanno nominato il "cerbero" per sistemare i creditori
Una classica manovra per far fare il lavoro sporco (ben pagato naturalmente) a qualcun altro. 
