Taking what has grown over decades to the next level

 

With a fresh wind into the future

Meltem’s managing director, Vanessa Reynartz, in an interview with Heizungs-Journal Verlag on the occasion of the company’s 45th anniversary.

Ventilation engineers, fresh air afficionados and enthusiastic sailors alike all appreciate a nice healthy breeze. Not for nothing does the company name “Meltem” refer to the Greek wind that brings good weather – “Meltemi” – while also paying homage to company founder Knut Reynartz’s passion for sailing. In 1980, he established Meltem Lüftungsgeräte GmbH in Gilching together with his wife, Anneliese. Six years later, production was moved to Alling and in 1987 his son, Armin Reynartz, followed him onto the Board. In 2002, the family-owned company was expanded to include Meltem Wärmerückgewinnung GmbH & Co. KG and, in the anniversary year 2025, the two companies were merged to create Meltem GmbH. Today Meltem is one of the leading manufacturers of ventilation units in Europe and supplies ventilation solutions for apartments, hotels, homes and public buildings. In late 2021, Vanessa Reynartz became the third generation to join the family business and this year has become the sole managing director. In the interview she aired one or two secrets of success ...

1. Let’s not start with the business part. Let us first consider the work-life balance of a young managing director. Ms Reynartz, do you still have the freedom to go sailing at the moment? Or are your personal hobbies different? 

Yes, absolutely. Once in a while I am able to take a break to catch my breath, even if just for a short time. Just like my grandfather, I feel the desire to travel every now and again. But in contrast to him, what attracts me is visiting new countries, cities and unknown places, rather than sailing. Every country has its own special vibe and experiencing that atmosphere even for just a short time expands our horizons. This helps to stop me adopting a blinkered outlook in my everyday life and keeps me open to new perspectives.

2. Was it “predetermined” that you would join your parents’ company or had you considered striking out in new directions? Did you know what you wanted to be when you were a little girl? Tell me a little about your career path to date.

From the moment I could string a few words together, my family’s wish for me was clear – that I should become a part of Meltem at some point. It was often discussed at the dining table. So it was always present. But it’s just that if you “ought” to do something, then you generally want precisely the opposite at first. I was no different.

After I left school, I started training to be an estate agent at a medium-sized agent in Munich. I wanted to get to grips with new topics, assume responsibility and act as a point of contact. But after the training, I was drawn back to school and I started a degree in business administration. After the third semester, events took a very radical turn. My father, who until then had been the sole managing director of both companies, received a serious health diagnosis. In moments like this, the question of succession comes to the fore faster than one would like. My father asked me to join the firm as co-managing director – at least formally in the first instance – simply to be prepared for the worst case. People pull together at times like these.

So we went to the notary at the end of 2021. I became the managing partner of Meltem Wärmerückgewinnung GmbH & Co. KG and managing director of Meltem Lüftungsgeräte GmbH & Co. KG. It was a massive step and, to be honest, it all felt rather strange at the start: so much responsibility overnight without any real prior involvement in the day to day business. But one thing led to another. I put my studies on hold and immersed myself fully in the family business. I received a warm welcome from all my colleagues. Many had known me since I was a child and actively supported me in those early days. I am very grateful to them all. Since then we have become a great team and I have resumed my studies as well.

So my path has been anything but straight. A lot of it has been spontaneous and unplanned, but looking back it has all turned out for the best. The most important thing is that fortunately my father is now doing well again. He remains on hand for advice and I can turn to him at any time. Today I am proud to have the opportunity to lead our family business into the future with a great team, fair values and the clear objective of further developing Meltem in a sustainable manner.

3. In your opinion, what are the special challenges of becoming the managing director of a family business in which one has grown up? Is the sense of responsibility heavier in some way? 

Definitely. The responsibility is not technical or economic. There is also an emotional aspect to it. Because it isn’t just a company. It is the life’s work of your own family. Two generations before me have put their heart and soul into building Meltem, and now I am the third in line. I feel a particular obligation to further develop the company and move it on.

My father’s confidence in me has been a massive support right from the start. He has trusted me so much, given me space to make my own decisions. I am unbelievably grateful for that. Because it takes trust in both directions. At the same time, my relationship with the team is something very special. Many of our colleagues joined Meltem before I entered this world! So of course they deserve to be treated with great respect. But it is also clear how much all Meltem is dear to all our hearts. And this binds us together.

It is sometimes a challenge to take decisions which you know will not immediately be met with enthusiasm. And because you really know and value the team, it is tempting to try to manage by acceptance, but ultimately it is important to have the courage to take unpopular, but future-focussed decisions. For me it is a constant balancing act between the tried and tested and the new, between experience and fresh ideas. This is what makes working in a family-owned company so special. You not only have responsibility, but you are involved in continuing to shape something that has grown up over generations.

4. In the last few years, you initially shared the senior management role with your father, Armin Reynartz. How did you find working together in this sort of configuration? Were there ever “storm warnings” or did you tend to agree on the whole?

To be honest, of course our opinions sometimes differed. Anything else would have been strange. But there were never arguments or differences of opinion that couldn’t be overcome. Quite the opposite. My father placed incredible trust in me right from the start and gave me the freedom to make my own decisions. He intentionally withdrew little by little and gave me space to grow into my role. That helped me very much to develop my own leadership style. I quickly learned to closely coordinate with our team, to obtain support, but still act independently, and not rely on my father for every decision.

The great thing was that I was able to get to know Meltem through my own perspective and not with a preordained way of thinking that was imposed upon me. His openness and trust were worth their weight in gold for me. In the end it was a collaboration between equals, even though we are from two different generations. If you look closely, it wasn’t always plain sailing, but by and large it worked very well.

5. What do you find particularly fascinating about the topic of air and ventilation? What would you say to encourage an HVAC apprentice to consider this field?

To tell the truth, I didn’t become enthusiastic about ventilation overnight; I gradually developed this passion after joining Meltem. In the past, ventilation for me was simply a technical device that you might need or then again not. But the more I got involved, the clearer it became. Today it is actually no longer possible to do without ventilation if you want to live a healthy, energy-efficient and sustainable life. And that is the point at which it becomes really exciting. 

Modern ventilation units do an unbelievable range of things. For a start, they supply fresh, filtered air free from pollutants, allergens and viruses. They help to prevent mould growing. And they do all that without wasting precious heat. To put it briefly, they create a healthy room climate while saving energy at the same time. This is a massive benefit in these times of climate protection, energy efficiency and affordable living. Ventilation technology is a forward-looking industry. Only it is often underestimated because it works so unobtrusively in everyday life. But that is exactly what makes it so brilliant.

And what would I say to an apprentice? If you want to do something that really makes sense – for people, for buildings and for the climate – then you have come to exactly the right industry. Ventilation technology is anything but boring. It combines skilled trades, technology and genuine benefits. And that makes the job important as well as exciting.

6. How do you manage to successfully navigate a family business through the stormy times across three generations? Is there a special family recipe for success that you could reveal at this point or what makes your team special?

I believe one key is to have the right person at the top in every phase of a company, by which I mean someone whose strengths precisely meet the needs of the particular time. For us, that was a happy interplay: my grandfather had the courage to actually take the step to become independent and establish Meltem with all of his entrepreneurial and pioneering spirit. My father was the self-starter with the hands-on mentality, enormous creativity and a strong technical understanding. Under his leadership, a number of market-leading products were created in the decentralised ventilation industry. And my role is something else again. I care about preserving what has been created, structuring it and leading the company sustainably into the future with modern approaches, new ideas and a strong team behind me.

Perhaps that is our little recipe for success. That we, as a family, have never tried to tread exactly in the footprints of another, but have contributed our own strengths, at the right time and with a common goal. And naturally the team plays a massive role. Many of my colleagues have been here for decades and have put their heart, soul and technical knowledge into the company. Without them, Meltem would not be what it is today.

7. What would you say to other family businesses that need to plan for succession? What should they do if there is no one from the family prepared to take it on? 

Taking over a company from within the family is a huge gift, but it is also a huge responsibility. It brings many opportunities with it, but there are sacrifices too. Everyone involved needs to be aware of this and it needs to be discussed openly. Out of respect for what has been built in the past, a potential successor needs at least to dip their toe into the business. Sometimes you do not discover straight away how exciting and fulfilling this job can be. And in the best case scenario, genuine enthusiasm will develop from this.

But if there is no one in the family who is prepared or suitable, then the company needs to look internally. Perhaps there are employees who contribute just as much to the company as the family. People who are technically strong, know the company and would perhaps like to assume responsibility within the team. Even in family businesses where there is considerable identification with the company, there is often more potential lying dormant than appears at first glance. In the end, it doesn’t matter who takes the company forward. What is important is how they do it. Whether or not they are a family member, the important thing is that someone does what they really want and are able to do.

8. And finally, let’s look specifically at your company again. Where will Meltem be sailing in the next 45 years? What are your plans and goals?

Our course is clear. We want to continue to stand for what Meltem has represented from the very start. Quality, reliability and genuine proximity to our customers. We put our heart and soul into developing solutions that are not only technically convincing, but genuinely improve the everyday lives of our customers. And we want to continue to do this as an independent family-owned company.

Of course, we have lots of tangible plans: in product development, in the field of digitisation, employee retention and attraction and in terms of sustainability. But our most important goal is what it has always been. We want to be a strong, humane company, reliable for our customers, attractive for our employees and ready for Meltem’s next few decades.

 

Further interesting reports on the basic HVAC topics for trainees and people actively working in the trade can be found in @work magazine and at www.shk-at-work.de.