The Supervisory Board of the KARL MAYER Group, a leading global provider of solutions in textile machinery manufacturing, has appointed Lutz Wolf (51) as the new sole CEO of KARL MAYER Holding SE & Co. KG.
Wolf will assume overall responsibility for the internationally active group of companies, which has its headquarters in Obertshausen, Germany.
Industry professional with over 30 years of international experience
Lutz Wolf most recently spent eight years on the Executive Board – including over four years as CEO – of the Neuenhauser Group, a family-owned, internationally active group of companies in the field of mechanical engineering and metal processing based in Lower Saxony with around 2,500 employees. During this time, he was responsible for the textile machinery and automation segments as well as the entire metal processing division of the family company, headed up central process optimizations, and shaped the strategic development of the group.
Lutz Wolf launched his career in 1995 at Siemens, where he held various management positions in Germany and China. After many successful years at Siemens (1995–2007), he moved to the GEA Group, where he was able to gain a wealth of valuable experience from 2007 to 2017, including as sole managing director of a US subsidiary.
Wolf succeeds Uwe Lüders, who will retire on 1 November 2025.
Dr. Lorenz Zwingmann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of KARL MAYER Holding SE & Co. KG: “On behalf of the entire Supervisory Board and all employees, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Uwe Lüders for his tireless commitment as long-standing Chairman of the Supervisory Board and, most recently, Interim CEO of KARL MAYER. Uwe Lüders has made a lasting impact on the KARL MAYER Group over his many years of service.”
Dr Lorenz Zwingmann on the appointment of Lutz Wolf: “We are delighted that Lutz Wolf has joined the KARL MAYER Group. Wolf’s comprehensive profile combines operational depth, strategic foresight, and, above all, international management experience – qualities that are key to the ongoing transformation of the KARL MAYER Group. On behalf of the entire Supervisory Board, I wish Mr Wolf every success in his wide range of tasks within our Group.”
Lutz Wolf, new Chairman of the Management Board of KARL MAYER Holding SE & Co. KG and CEO of the KARL MAYER Group from 1 November 2025: “With more than 85 years of market experience, KARL MAYER looks back on a long tradition as the global market leader in textile machinery manufacturing. We want to, we will, and we must now continue to focus the group on what has made us successful: strong products, customer proximity, and speed of implementation,” explains Lutz Wolf, adding: “We now need cohesion, focus, and speed. I am very much looking forward to my new responsibilities at this very special technology leader with its great potential – and the challenges they bring.”
Cultural change with a new focus and emphasis on results
With an experienced management team that has been newly assembled in recent months, Lutz Wolf wants to fully develop the group’s performance: “We want to refocus on what we do particularly well. In the future, we will concentrate on the core business areas of knitting machines, technical textiles, and warp preparation for weaving. All activities will be consistently aimed at current and future market requirements. It’s not about playing it safe – it’s about moving forward,” Wolf concluded.
