Our history

PAPER suppliers
OFFICES openings
MACHINERY suppliers

1986

Company Foundation

1989

POLO Handels GmbH was founded in 1986 as a sales and marketing arm for the paper groups Mayr-Melnhof and Frantschach – today Mondi for the far East market. And since we started exploring unknown Asian markets, just like famous traveller Marco Polo, we decide to go on this long journey with a name Polo.

 

1990

Slovenia

New Focus

Political changes in Europe lead to a new focus for Polo and since that time the strategy has been to become a leading sales, marketing and service organisation in the paper and packaging industry in CEE.

 

1990

Beukema

1991

 

1991

Hamburger

Expansion in CEE markets

The expansion of Polo in the markets of CEE starts by opening a first office in Slovenia covering all ex-Yugoslavia markets. Since then, offices in Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Russia, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Ukraine and Baltics were successfully established.

 

1992

Arctic paper 

Weig

 

1992

Poland

 

1993

Czech rep.

Bulgaria

 

1994

Hungary

1995

Cooperation with Iggesund

POLO start a cooperation with Iggesund – the premium paperboard company for purposeful solutions. Cooperation with this member of the Holmen Group and Europe’s leading manufacturer of high quality virgin fiber paperboard was ongoing for more than 20 years.

 

1995

Kappa

 

1995

Mondi Coating

 

1995

Russia

Romania

 

1996

Croatia

Ukraine

 

1998

ESKA

 

1998

Slovakia

 

1999

Bosna and Herzegovina

China

 

2002

OLI

Vollenda

 

2005

Baltics

 

2005

R. Bosch GmbH

2005

Diversification
& Extension

 

2006

Kanzan

Polo decides to diversify and extend its business by selling process and packaging machinery to national and international brand producers in CEE. Furthermore, Polo starts to offer spare parts and field service to the new customer base.

 

2010

Houdijk

Sapal

 

2012

Herma

 

2012

Bauermeister

Lantech

 

2013

Parenco

 

2014

Arranow

Rotzinger

 

2015

CPS

Norden

 

2017

Slim Alu

 

2018

Koehler

 

2019

HDG

2019

Take over

 

2020

Klabin

Polo takes over the former Bosch PA Russia sales and service organisation in Moscow and now employs more than 90 people in 12 countries. Polo continues to provide excellent paper and machinery products to its customers as well as new sustainable packaging solutions as an alternative to plastics.

 

2021

Kama

 

2021

TG packaging

R. Deckert

Klenzaids

2022

Ownership change

A change in the ownership of the Polo shares has taken place in 2022. Mr. Johannes Binder-Krieglstein and Mr. Wilhelm Massegg took on the 37 % of shares of the trust of Mr. Thomas Prinzhorn. This will strengthen POLO in respect to flexibility and speed and enable to cope with changes on the markets, our customers and suppliers and digitalisation.