What was changed
Birkenstock, the German sandal maker tracing its roots to 1774, had long been run as a loose collection of family entities. In the late 2000s the family consolidated 38 companies into a single group, and in 2013 appointed Oliver Reichert and Markus Bensberg as co-CEOs — the first leaders from outside the Birkenstock family.
The decision to hand over management was the turning point. Reichert ended years of drift, professionalized the business, tightened distribution, and repositioned a comfort shoe as a global lifestyle brand.
Results followed: revenue grew from €727.9 million in fiscal 2020 to €1,242.8 million in fiscal 2022, and in February 2021 buyout firm L Catterton — backed by LVMH's Bernard Arnault — acquired a majority stake in a deal the FT reported valued the company at about €4 billion ($4.8 billion), with brothers Christian and Alex keeping a minority stake.
What it achieved
Revenue rose from €727.9M (fiscal 2020) to €1,242.8M (fiscal 2022); the 2021 L Catterton deal valued Birkenstock at about €4B, with the family keeping a minority stake.
Why it worked
The family recognized that being owners and being managers are different jobs.
Bringing in outside CEOs ended years of internal drift and family infighting.
Professional management rebuilt distribution and brand positioning before any outside capital arrived.
What can be applied
A founding family can save its firm by separating ownership from management: bringing in outsiders with real authority, then stepping back, often unlocks growth the family could not achieve alone.
Aftermath
The L Catterton partnership funded global expansion, and in October 2023 Birkenstock listed on the New York Stock Exchange, capping a decade in which the family's decision to step back turned a 250-year-old maker of footbeds into a globally managed growth brand.
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