Review 2022/23: With momentum, success and confidence - review and outlook at hmmh

"It was a successful year for hmmh - characterised by a high level of interest in connected commerce, technological innovation and internationalisation." This is how Stefan Messerknecht, Managing Partner at hmmh, summarises the previous twelve months. The digital agency with headquarters in Bremen increased its turnover by 7% in the financial year that ended on 30 June 2023 and closed at over 29 million euros. The hmmh Group employed almost 380 colleagues at its German locations in Bremen, Hamburg and Berlin as well as its international locations in Poland and Dubai.

Bremen, 30th of August 2023 - The past few years, marked by Covid-19, have been characterised by cautious investments, especially in the SME sector. This has changed over the last two years. For many companies, it was important to establish digital sales channels or expand existing ones and, in particular, to utilise the opportunities offered by networked digital solutions.

Extensive new customer business, stable and satisfied existing customers
For hmmh, this was evident in all business areas. Numerous new customers were acquired across all sectors and enthused by the agency's wide range of digital services. Mobile solutions combining online and offline commerce in sports and fashion retail are particularly noteworthy in the retail and services sector. Whereas the AI-supported presentation of products and services is developing strongly in the furniture industry. In the B2B industrial environment, sales and service portals play a major role, particularly in the automotive and supplier industry as well as in the smart city sector, for example for waste disposal and recycling companies.

In addition, hmmh was able to build on stable business with existing customers. Based on a high level of customer satisfaction, many long-standing customers have continued to invest in and expand their existing digital platforms. In order to accommodate future growth, Gerd Güldenast was appointed to the Management Board of hmmh AG from 1st of January 2023. Güldenast has taken on the role of a Partner at the start of the financial year that began on 1 July 2023. Since 2008, he has been with hmmh in various functions, most recently as Managing Director and authorised signatory. In order to strengthen the connection to the Group, Güldenast also acts as Chief Technology Officer of Plan.Net Holding, where he is responsible for the organisation of the technology partner portfolio and M&A activities.

Expansion and development of business areas, partnerships and internationalisation
In addition to the concrete implementation of projects, the consulting area was also significantly expanded in the past financial year. "The opportunities in connected commerce are becoming ever more extensive and complex. Innovative but also realistic consulting and the development of integrated concepts play an important role, particularly in automation, marketing and customer relationship management (CRM), as well as in the interaction of many different systems," emphasises Stefan Messerknecht.

Last year, hmmh expanded its range of services with two new business units, particularly in the areas of marketing automation and customer relationship management (CRM). In this context, partnerships with technology leaders such as SAP, Salesforce, Shopware, Contentserv and Akeneo were also expanded. Since 2014, in addition to cooperating with various solution partners, hmmh has also been able to rely on a good and sustainable cooperation with its main shareholder, the Plan.Net Group, which climbed to first place with hmmh in the current Internet agency ranking of the German Digital Economy Association (BVDW e.V.). hmmh is successfully involved in joint group projects. Clients and agencies benefit equally from the joint strength.

New Work is more than just working from home
hmmh has relied on self-organised work and an agile project approach for many years. This mindset and the existing technical possibilities facilitate the necessary step towards remote working. However, Björn Portillo, also Managing Partner, sees a need for more than just the environment: "New Work doesn't mean handing someone a laptop and sending them to work from home. New Work is a question of leadership and attitude. Companies practise New Work when decisions are made where most of the expertise is.  We are proud to be the third-best employer in Germany in our sector." This was the result of a survey conducted by the ZEIT publishing group and kununu in June. "This is certainly the result of our implementation of New Work as we understand it," says Portillo.

Outlook 2023/2024: cautiously optimistic
The view from the Weser Tower in Bremen is not the only thing that gives hmmh a good outlook. hmmh has a positive outlook for the current financial year as well. Stefan Messerknecht comments: "Despite political and economic uncertainty in the market and increasing complexity, hmmh AG is aiming for further growth. The focus is on the innovative expansion of hmmh with connected commerce solutions. Thanks to our agile positioning, we are flexible and curious about what is to come!"

The international activities of the hmmh family are to be strengthened. hmmh Poland, based in Wroclaw, is led by Managing Partner Lukasz Bialonga. Joint customer projects in the shopware sector will ensure further growth there. Adam Pidcock, Managing Partner of hmmh Middle East in Dubai, and his team are pushing ahead with SAP-based connected commerce solutions. "In addition, we will soon be opening a sales and consulting office in Zurich and targeting the Swiss market in particular with our partner SAP," says Messerknecht. In addition, the increasing integration of artificial intelligence into existing solutions will add further components to connected commerce. Messerknecht continues: "hmmh has already had an AI expert team for several years, which has expanded over the past year. We are investing heavily in training and knowledge transfer for our team in order to remain innovative and capitalise on business opportunities."

About hmmh AG

hmmh is one of Germany's leading digital agencies. More than 380 experts from the fields of consulting, design, development and project management work at the German locations in Bremen (headquarters), Berlin, Hamburg and Munich as well as in Poland and the United Arab Emirates. The e-commerce pioneer, founded in 1995, has been part of the Plan.Net Group since 2014 and, with its expertise in connected commerce, completes the agency group's offering for overall consulting and implementation of digital transformations.

hmmh is driving developments in the digital economy and blurring the boundaries between online and offline. The transformation from stationary to digital sales requires comprehensive, flexible and seamlessly networked strategies and processes. To this end, hmmh provides comprehensive advice to national and international B2B and B2C companies and designs intelligent enterprise and customised individual solutions.