Outstanding manufacturing quality and proven safety. - The history of Sschäper Ssportgerätebau GmbH from 1960 to the present -

Quality has a long tradition at Schäper. 50 years, innovative and absolutely top-quality sports equipment has been manufactured in Muenster/Roxel, in the German state of North-Rhine Westphalia. Here, on 1st October 1960, at the age of 27, Klemens Schäper, who was a qualified cabinet maker, laid the foundations for the current business activities.

Not least because of his strong interest in sport, the current head of Schäper found out early in his career that manufacturing sports equipment was a promising business area. Instead of making football and handball goal posts from thin tree stumps, as had been customary until that time, he used standard furniture wood which was substantially more durable and of higher quality than the materials which had been used previously for sports equipment. By cutting four goalposts from one tree trunk, the goal posts ‘pulled together’ in a natural process, which the ingenious Klemens Schäper used to achieve his manufacturing and business objectives. He manufactured football goals with the round side on top, so that the goals, in contrast to many of the competing products at that time, did not dip in the middle. The firm‘s regular customers, of whom there were still few, at that point, soon became aware of this competitive advantage. From that point onwards, football goals were manufactured in considerably higher quantities by Schäper. The constantly growing familiarity of Schäper products was the basis for the decision to extend the product assortment by shot-put stop boards and long jump bars. Because of their high quality, these products are still being manufactured in an almost unchanged form. In 1967, ‘production capacity was bursting at the seams’, so that Klemens Schäper moved his business from Muenster/Gievenbeck to Muenster/Roxel.

The 1972 Munich Olympics had their impact and Schäper extended its production capacity substantially. More employees were hired, particularly those with expertise in manufacturing with metal. The first orders for the Olympic stadium were secured successfully and carried out, which in turn increased the profile of the enterprise.

Then came the big bang: on 3 rd April 1971, one of Germans football‘s most famous goalposts collapsed. This resulted in the sales of wooden football goalposts collapsing as well. W w hat had happened? At the match between Borussia Moenchengladbach and SV Werder Bremen, the score after 88 minutes was 1: 1. There would be no third goal. Instead, the goal post framework collapsed, because Laumen, Gladbach‘s centre forward, fell into the net of the opposing team and the goalposts couldn‘t take the strain. The goalposts and the use of wood to make them, collapsed in the last minute of the game. Source of illustration: http://anstoss.indirekterfreistoss.de/

Klemens Schäper saw his big chance and used the know-how which his team of employees had recently acquired in metal-work. The magic word was aluminium. Along with several other enterprises, Schäper was one of the first to manufacture goals from this light but extremely stable material. Here too, the innovative spirit of Schäper and its ingenious boss really paid off. The firm welded the corners of the ‘Schäper Goalposts’. The enterprise acquired a steadily growing regular clientele as one of first in the German-speaking region to offer fully welded goals. Quality and stability were in demand and Schäper had the answer. The logical consequence was rising turnover and consistent production at full capacity. Schäper grew and with it, the need for greater production capacity. In 1977, the foundation for the current premises was laid, and this has since been adapted to market developments and consistently expanded and modernised.

However, the competition was, of course, not sleeping. As the innovation and quality leader, Schäper products were often the role model for developments by other enterprises. Klemens Schäper took this with good sportsmanship and impressed his customers constantly with new innovations and the firm‘s high-level flexibility with respect to the often complex preferences of its customers. Accordingly, for example, Klemens Schäper developed a goal profile with a mill-cut net suspension safety system. The enterprise founder obtained legal protection for this and other ideas, often frustrating the competition. The level of familiarity of the enterprise and its products started to increase in the international arena. Trade fairs both at home and abroad are now important platforms for Schäper products. Klemens Schäper was, however, no longer alone - with 13 committed and highly motivated employees, and in 1997, his son Ulrich joined the company.

Like his father before him, at the age of 27, Ulrich Schäper assumed responsibility for the future of the enterprise. In 2000, leadership was transferred to Ulrich Schäper. As a highly-qualified manufacturing and machinery engineer, Ulrich matches his father in all respects. For example, the current junior chef introduced such innovations as special ground sockets for football and handball goals as well as a mobile safety cage for hammer and discus throwing. These products were successfully introduced to the market. The latter innovation in particular, was one of the reasons why the firm was able to manufacture at full capacity again and again. In 2002, the factory was expanded and production modernised.

Ulrich is a member of various sports and leisure-time committees and active in the further development of sports equipment in this capacity. Furthermore, his objective is not ‘only’ to sell customers sports equipment, but to provide comprehensive support services such as purchasing advice, advice on location, assembly and disassembly. These are all part of the current service offer and form the basis for the very high level of satisfaction experienced by Schäper customers. Since July 2004, the daughter Cornelia Hesse (née Schäper) and Dr. Josef Hesse also joined the enterprise. As a business graduate, Cornelia and Dr. Josef Hesse will further develop and expand customer management for Schäper in order to cope effectively and cater for the constantly rising number of customers with their often complex preferences and requirements.

To sum it all up, today as yesterday, Schäper stands not only for innovative and high-quality products. The Schäper family itself - Klemens, his wife Anni, son Ulrich and daughter Cornelia - maintain the tradition of the enterprise and sound relationships with often very long-term customers who, with their trust and loyalty, have made Schäper what it is and will continue to be. Through a relationship based on integrity and mutually respectful interaction with one another, partners and customers, the foundations for a successful future have been laid.

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