A pioneering spirit shapes the family business at the post-war zero hour
Kassel, Germany, 1945. Seventy-five percent of the city lies in ruins. Amid this devastation, Kurt Hübner and his father-in-law, Georg Schellhas, begin to build something new from the ground up. Officially, the company operates under the name “Kurt Hübner, Commercial Agent” – but behind this modest name lies a larger ambition: to find solutions where others only see problems. Private individuals, mining companies, cement works, power plants – all those coming with a problem from among these first customer groups gets an answer.
Limited space, boundless ingenuity
In the basement at Hauffstraße 14 in Kassel’s Fasanenhof district, there is little space but a great deal of ingenuity. A rubber production plant is set up there, and rubber proves to be a material that is as versatile as it is promising. On May 1, 1946, the time has come: HÜBNER is officially founded.
The opening balance sheet shows just under 23,000 Deutsche Mark – a currency that first came into existence only a few months earlier. The challenges could hardly have been greater. But so was their determination.
Reinhard and Margrit: Children of the founder
To this day, HÜBNER remains a family-owned company. From an early age, Reinhard and Margrit were part of the company story. As the children of Kurt and Anne Hübner, they witnessed the company’s development at close range – and over time, played increasingly active roles in shaping it themselves.
Internationalization begins in Brazil
Reinhard Hübner established the company’s first international location in Brazil in 1979. This marked the beginning of HÜBNER’s global expansion. Following the death of company founder Kurt Hübner, Reinhard Hübner assumed responsibility for the management in 1985. In 2014, he stepped down from this role and became Chairman of the Advisory Board.
A pioneering ecological building
His sister pursued a career in academia, becoming an internationally renowned and award-winning architect, urban planner, and ecologist. Prof. Dr. Margrit Kennedy remained closely connected to the company founded by her father until her death in 2013. At her initiative, the company’s Plant 2 building, featuring distinctive grass-covered roofs, was erected at the Kassel headquarters using ecological construction methods. It remains a benchmark structure today.
The next generation steps in
In 2025, Nora Oberländer, granddaughter of Margrit Kennedy, joined the General Management representing the third generation of the Hübner family. She takes her place as a Managing Director alongside her colleagues Uwe Bittroff, Kai Mentel, and Claus Schäfer. Previously she served as a trustee on the HÜBNER Group Advisory Board as well as on the Advisory Board of the Foundation Hübner and Kennedy gGmbH. After a year marked by a wide range of new experiences – including responsibility for digitalization and strategy, as well as assignments at locations around the world – Nora Oberländer has also assumed responsibility within the General Management for the Photonics division.
