The second home.
The establishment and development of the Crailsheim site.
Every Friday evening, Werner Schmidt senior jumps on his bike and rides back to Göppingen. He knows the 70 kilometers between his family and the Crailsheim branch, where he works during the week, inside out. After spending the weekend at home, he gets back on his bike on Sunday evening and rides over the hills and along the gravel roads back to Crailsheim – back to LEONHARD WEISS second home.
The adventurous journey to Crailsheim began in 1938, at a turning point in the company's history. In February, founder Leonhard Weiß died unexpectedly at the age of 56. His son Walter Weiss, who was supposed to follow in his footsteps, had only just begun his studies that year. His widow, Ottilie Weiß, and his son-in-law, Werner Schmidt senior, took over the business and continued to run it in the spirit of their father. Among other things, they carried out his plans to establish a new site in Crailsheim in 1938. The company founder had already done a lot of work to pave the way for this major step.
It was a testament to his entrepreneurial vision that Leonhard Weiß chose Crailsheim, an upand-coming railway junction and the ideal location to open up new markets in north-east Württemberg and Bavaria. In addition, there was a high demand for labour in the then underdeveloped agricultural region. LEONHARD WEISS quickly became well connected in the area and was known as an up-and-coming employer. What started out as a simple hut in Brunnenstraße soon developed into a diversified construction company that soon outgrew the town centre. The 'Yellows', radiating from Crailsheim in all directions, are an integral part of the region.
For the Schmidt family, and later the Schmidt-Weiss family, Crailsheim became more than a strategic location, it became a real home. In the mid-1950s, Walter Weiss and Werner Schmidt Sr. decided to share responsibility for the two sites.
In 1965, the next generation, the two sons of the two men, Ulrich Weiss and Werner Schmidt-Weiss, joined the company as limited partners. Werner Schmidt-Weiss lived with his family in the company building in Crailsheim until 1972. His children Susanne and Stefan grew up on the building site, playing between the workshop, warehouse and carpentry shop.
Although the shareholder families work well together, the division of the Göppingen and Crailsheim sites inevitably leads to a certain competitive thinking. In 1998, 60 years after the founding of the Crailsheim site, the management set a new course. The two sites were merged into one company with a new corporate structure and new management. This also created a new, strong sense of community, encompassing all locations and employees and strengthening their sense of belonging to the family company. From now on, LEONHARD WEISS is no longer at home in Göppingen, Crailsheim or any other location. Instead, it is at home on the yellow building sites in Germany and abroad, where the joy of building is lived.