GENERATIONAL CHANGE AT APELDÖR ESTATE

Fleischmann-Feßler couple take over management of Golf Resort Gut Apeldör gAG in Hennstedt

Golf Resort Gut Apeldör gAG will be under new management in future. "At almost 76 years old, it's time to transfer the operational business into younger hands," says Dieter Worms. He is the founder of the golf club. Manfred Rathsack most recently held the position of Managing Director on an interim basis. The handover will be officially completed on January 1, 2026, when Florian Fleischmann and his wife Manuela Feßler will take over as Managing Directors. But the two are already at Gut Apeldör and getting a taste of the Dithmarsch air. "We are here as much as our time allows, getting to know the business and talking to the employees," says Fleischmann. Especially as he still has a professional commitment - as club manager of the Husumer Bucht golf club.

They could never have imagined that the couple would end up in the north of Germany. They both come from southern Germany. Fleischmann comes from Ludwigsburg in Baden-Württemberg, Feßler from Erlangen in Bavaria. The 44-year-old originally grew up on the tennis court. "My mother Eva played in the women's national league," he says. Sport was an important part of family life. His father Jürgen was a footballer in the extended professional squad at VfB Stuttgart. But tennis alone was not enough for Florian Fleischmann. "I started playing golf at the age of twelve and then also played in the national team," he says.

Fleischmann studied economics in Stuttgart and later worked in sports marketing at BMW and IBM, among others. He was then self-employed for several years with a gastro-event location and cookery school. For two years, he managed the Schloss Monrepos golf club in Ludwigsburg "in between". As a result, they decided to focus on the topic of golf. Florian Fleischmann therefore applied to manage the golf club in Husum and was awarded the contract. He started there as club manager in 2021. "It was an exciting challenge because demographic and financial issues had to be resolved," he says.

His wife Manuela Feßler moved to the north a year later. The family now includes daughter Elli (8) and son Henry (3). "We've never felt at home as quickly as we do here, it's absolutely beautiful," says the 42-year-old. Feßler is also a keen sportswoman. In her youth, she was an active figure skater. Today she plays golf with enthusiasm. Professionally, she worked in personnel administration and organization in the Ludwigsburg city administration, but originally comes from the tourism sector.

"We weren't directly looking for a new job," says Fleischmann. The contact came about more by chance through VR Bank, which is a partner in the company that owns Gut Apeldör. "We got talking. My father was a board member of VR Bank in Ludwigsburg, so the cooperative model is in my blood," he says. And so the couple decided on Gut Apeldör. "One key to our commitment was being able to take over ownership of the estate in the future," says Fleischmann. "The aim was always to find a successor who could take over shares in the Gut Apeldör GmbH & Co KG holding company," says Dieter Worms. This successor has been found in the couple, so Worms will hand over shares at a later date. He did not reveal when that would be, but said: "There is a precise timetable."

Joint photo: The previous managing director Dieter Worms (left) and the new managing directors of Golf Resort Gut Apeldör gAG, Manuela Feßler and Florian Fleischmann. Photo: Geschke

For the time being, there will be no fundamental changes to the company as a result of the change. "We'll start by looking at everything and talking to the employees. We want to take away the fear and uncertainty of not knowing what will happen next before Christmas," says the future managing director. In order to prepare the business for the coming season, the restaurant and hotel will be closed in January and February - apart from for events. "That sounds like a quiet period, but it means a labor-intensive phase for us," says Fleischmann. In future, they want to run Gut Apeldör like a family business.

For the previous managing director Manfred Rathsack, this marks the end of his interim period and his "retirement". "He will remain club president and captain and will certainly support the new managing director in the first few months," says Worms. An "ideal solution has been found" with Fleischmann and Feßler. This marks the end of an exciting journey for the 75-year-old, as the club was one of the first clubs to make golf accessible to everyone. "It was an adventure, but also a success story," he says. In future, he wants to enjoy time with his wife, play golf and travel.