The Peter and Luise Hager Foundation has once again honoured outstanding founders in the electrical trade with the Meister-Gründerpreis. The patron of the award ceremony was Anke Rehlinger, Minister President of Saarland.

Every two years, the Peter and Luise Hager Foundation honours three outstanding founders in the electrical trade with the nationwide Meister-Gründerpreis. Anyone who has been successful with a business start-up or succession since 2019 had the chance to win €10,000 by taking part in this year's competition.  

The master craftsmen and women are honoured for their courage, their personal business concept and the associated success. The company is completely free to decide how to utilise the prize money. One of the focal points of the foundation's work is to promote young talent and fresh ideas and to act as a trailblazer and companion.

‘The Meister-Gründerpreis is a legacy from our founders to the industry and is intended to strengthen the entrepreneurial spirit in the skilled trades,’ says Dr Udo Götschel, member of the board of the Peter and Luise Hager Foundation, explaining the idea behind the competition. 

The foundation recognises the importance of sound vocational training in the electrical trade and reward and strengthen the courage of founders. In addition to economic factors, the assessment criteria for the award also include entrepreneurial public spirit, sustainable business practices, personnel management and training strategy as well as commitment to the community. 

The seven-member jury, consisting of well-known personalities from politics and business, selected three founders from a large number of applicants who impressed with their entrepreneurial spirit and sense of innovation.  

Jürgen Barke, Saarland Minister for Economic Affairs, Innovation, Digital Affairs and Energy and Deputy Prime Minister, hosted the event and emphasised the importance of the Meister-Gründerpreis for the electrical trade in his speech.  

Sabine Busse, CEO of Hager Group, congratulated the award winners in her welcoming speech and emphasised the central role of the skilled trades with well-trained professionals and courageous entrepreneurs for the energy transition.   

The 2024 award winners

This year's winners, Adrian Gloss from Eddison Electrics GmbH, Jan Ochterbeck from Elektrotechnik Ochterbeck GmbH and Leik-Kilian Valkai from IEV-Industrieservice & Elektroinstallation Valkai, impressed with projects in the fields of intelligent lighting technology, building automation and sustainable energy management. All of the award winners intend to invest the prize money in the further development of their businesses and thus strengthen the quality of their services and the training of their teams.

Working together for a sustainable future in the skilled trades

The Meister-Gründerpreis emphasises the importance of a strong and innovative start-up scene in the electrical trade. Hager Group and the Peter and Luise Hager Foundation are thus making a contribution to supporting the next generation of founders on their journey and further promoting the future of the electrical trade.

The next competition for the Meister-Gründerpreis will start at Light + Building 2026.