On June 29th, during the General Assembly, the Board of the Bremen Cotton Exchange elected Jean-Paul Haessig as President of the association for the upcoming two years. Haessig is a director of the trading company Asian Cotton Traders PTE Ltd (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and Singapore). He succeeds the previous President Stephanie Silber (Managing Director of Otto Stadtlander GmbH), who remains a member of the Executive Committee in the role of a Vice President. The Vice Presidents Jens D. Lukaczik (Managing Partner of the service company Cargo Control Germany GmbH & Co. KG) and Fritz A. Grobien (Managing Partner of Albrecht, Müller-Pearse & Co. Trade (GmbH & Co.) KG) will continue to serve as members of the Executive Committee.

The Board

During the regular new elections of the Board of Directors at the General Meeting, the previous composition was confirmed. Hannes Drolle (Getzner Textil AG) and Axel Trede (Cotton Service International GmbH) retired from the Board as scheduled and were newly elected to the Board. The other members of the Executive Board include Ernst Grimmelt (Managing Partner of Velener Textil GmbH), Henning Hammer (Otto Stadtlander GmbH), Jan Kettelhack (Hch. Kettelhack GmbH + Co. KG), Dr. Uwe Mazura (General Manager of the Confederation of the German Textile and Fashion Industry), Konrad Schröer (Setex-Textil-GmbH), Peter Spoerry (Spoerry 1886 AG), and Roland Stelzer (Gebr. Elmer & Zweifel GmbH & Co. KG).

The Board of Directors and the Executive Committee consist predominantly of representatives from various sectors of the cotton supply chain, including trading, processing, and services. This composition grants the commodities association extensive access to a wide network and global information resources not only within the cotton sector but also in the broader textile industry.

Guest presentation

Guest speaker Professor Sarah Jastram, who holds positions as Professor of International Business Ethics and Sustainability as well as General Economics at the Hamburg School of Business Administration, delivered a lecture on the highly debated topic of “Securing human rights in the international supply chains of the textile industry – challenges and potential solutions for companies.” The complexity of the subject sparked a lively debate among the participants, who shared their perspectives on these developments from an entrepreneurial standpoint.

Donation to the Cotton Exchange

Former President Wolfgang Vogt-Jordan presented a donation to the Bremen Cotton Exchange following the General Assembly: a sculpture depicting a female spinner and representing the traditionally close connection of cotton traders to the textile industry. The sculpture “Minna” was designed by the well-known Bremen artist Claudia Krentz and can now be admired on the landing to the second floor.