OUR COMPANY HISTORY

Our 30th company anniversary was the focus of the 2019 financial year. To mark the occasion, a large celebration with various demonstrations and a varied program took place at our headquarters in Schiffweiler. We are very proud to have been supplying you for three decades now with everything you need for your daily service and for the outdoors. At this point, we would like to thank you on behalf of the entire ASMC team for your many years of trust! Without you, we would not be where we are today.

Probably the biggest challenge in recent times was the relaunch of our website. In summer 2019 we were finally able to complete this project and proudly present our new online shop. Since then, attention-grabbing product presentations and special landing pages have given our online presence a new face. Under the premise of "mobile first", we are bringing our shop up to the latest state of the art and ensuring you the best possible usability on all end devices.

In summer 2018, we greatly expanded our airsoft range and added a lot of gear to our product offering. Since then, numerous new brands have been added to our portfolio to supply you with everything you need on the field.

In the 2017 financial year, construction began on our new warehouse and logistics hall not far from the company headquarters in Schiffweiler. This is intended to increase storage capacity and improve product availability in order to meet the constantly growing demand. The focus of the 2017 financial year was also the opening of our store in Berlin. There we now offer our customers from the capital the opportunity to try on their favorite products in our retail store and receive in-person advice.

In 2016 there were two reasons to celebrate: ASMC welcomed its one millionth customer in the online shop and also recorded growth of its Facebook community to over 50,000 fans.

This year saw a third TV commercial from ASMC, running under the slogan "ASMC – the online shop for real men". This spot was broadcast on the two target-group-strong TV channels DMAX and N24.

Another major change in 2015 was the internationalization of the online shop. In addition to performance, user-friendliness for customers from abroad was also optimized. The online offering is therefore no longer only available on asmc.de, but also on asmc.com, asmc.fr, asmc.es, asmc.ru and asmc.it.

At the beginning of 2015, the free ASMC flip catalog app was released. It is available for download in German, French, English, Russian and Spanish. All current catalogs are available here for download and browsing.

The highlight of this year was the company’s 25th anniversary. To mark the occasion, a special catalog with attractive offers and a big prize draw was released in October. In addition, the second ASMC TV commercial was broadcast on the channel DMAX.

The year 2014 was a big one for us and brought many innovations: In October, the 750,000th customer registered in our shop, and in the same year ASMC also took over the online shop www.armeeshop24.de along with its entire stock. But that was far from the end of all forward-looking changes in 2014: as a subsidiary of ASMC GmbH, ASMC France SAS, based in Ivry sur Seine in the greater Paris area, was also founded this year. With this consistent step, ASMC strengthened its commitment in its most important foreign market and further expanded its position in the French market. Our service for government agencies was also further expanded and optimized. Members of authorities now also have the option of placing special orders with us for specialist equipment. Finally, in 2014 we also further expanded our customer card concept. The free PROCARD is now complemented by the ASMC YOURCARD, a discount card aimed at all volunteers in Germany. With this, ASMC expresses its appreciation for the indispensable work of these professional groups and supports them with a permanent 15% discount on all purchases.

This year, two major retailers in the industry filed for insolvency. This gave ASMC the opportunity to acquire Ranger-Shop.de, its largest competitor in Germany. On 31/07/2013, we received the green light from the insolvency administrator and were able to secure the locations in Osterrönfeld and Munster. In addition, we acquired the naming rights as well as the entire stock. With this acquisition, the number of employees rose to almost 150, making ASMC probably the world’s largest army/outdoor online shop.

In 2013, the PROCARD was introduced as the first ASMC customer card. This free discount card is aimed at anyone who works full-time for a German authority such as the Bundeswehr or the police. Members of the armed forces of other EU member states can also apply for the PROCARD.

In 2012, the 4th construction phase was completed, expanding the goods-in area to around 700 m² and adding new office space with around 70 additional workstations. To meet the increased parcel volume, an additional automated packing line was also installed. This made it possible, for the first time in December 2012, to increase the daily parcel output to over 2,000 units.

In summer, the first ASMC TV commercial was broadcast on DMAX and Sport1. The number of employees rose to over 110 this year, and the number of customers grew to more than 500,000. To secure future growth, an additional property of over 16,000 m² was acquired about 500 m from the current location.

In spring, work began on the 4th construction phase. A two-story building is planned to house additional offices and the relocation of goods receiving. In mid-February, our newly redesigned online shop went live with a completely revamped design, many new features, and a clear, user-friendly structure. In 2011, revenue rose to over 20 million euros.

Construction of the third phase on the approx. 13,000 m² company premises began in July 2010. To secure sustainable growth and create sufficient storage capacity, two new warehouses with an additional 1,400 m² of space were built. Since November, around 2,000 pallet spaces have been available there in the new high-bay warehouse. In addition, more than 300,000 catalogues were sent out in 2010. Revenue exceeded the 15 million mark in 2010 and the number of employees, including temporary staff, rose to over 90. In summer 2010, the sole proprietorship ASMC Heinz Borkhard e.K. became ASMC GmbH. This transformation also marked the generational change: Birk Borkhard, born in 1982, is responsible for day-to-day operations as managing director of the new company. His extensive experience in mail order and retail ensures the company’s future development, while his vision is a guarantee of further growth.

The name adjustment from A.S.M.C. to ASMC was accompanied by a change of logo and a unified corporate identity. Together with iX-Tech, Heinz Borkhard founded asmc.it GmbH in September 2009 in response to the constantly increasing demands of the online shop. asmc.it GmbH, with its 7 permanent employees, has since worked exclusively for ASMC and ensures that the website is up to date and offers usability in line with current standards. The store in Saarbrücken-Scheidt finally moved to the Halberg, directly next to the Saarbasar shopping center, and now offers a locally adapted product range on around 400 m².

After just three years, both the storage and office space in Schiffweiler were bursting at the seams. As a result, the site urgently needed to be expanded in 2008. The number of items had meanwhile risen to over 20,000 products, while turnover had almost reached the 10 million euro mark and the number of employees had grown to over 50. Construction began in November 2008, and the following summer an additional 2,000 m² of warehouse space and 350 m² of office and social rooms were ready to move into. In November 2008, our army store also moved from the Saar-Center to Kaiserstraße in downtown Saarbrücken.

The year 2005 was certainly the most difficult year in the company’s history, because the enormous growth of A.S.M.C. required a significantly larger building. Turnover had temporarily grown to over 3 million euros and the number of employees had already reached 20. So at the beginning of 2005, a 13,000 m² plot of land was purchased in Schiffweiler and a 2,000 m² logistics hall including office wing was built there. After half a year of construction, the move finally took place at the beginning of October 2005. Before the move, a completely new merchandise management system was introduced, specially optimized for the needs of mail order. In addition, that year the external service provider iX-Tech from Saarbrücken brought our website up to the latest technical standards. At the same time, a branch was opened in Hammelburg in September of that year. Since then, A.S.M.C. has been offering its range there on more than 600 m².

The vision of a joint mail-order catalog in German, English, and French failed due to differing market conditions and conflicting views held by the French and U.S. partners. As a result, the companies eventually went their separate ways. To ensure a smooth transition in the mail-order business, the new name A.S.M.C. was introduced and registered as a trademark with the German Patent Office. A.S.M.C. stands for Adventure, Security, Military, and Camping and could hardly describe the company’s business areas any better. From then on, Heinz Borkhard was able to focus entirely on the specific needs of the German market without having to take the French or American partner into consideration. At the same time, this also made it possible to increasingly target foreign markets. The rebranding also involved a move to larger premises. From that point on, the mail-order business and the retail store were once again brought together under one roof in Saarbrücken-Scheidt. The number of employees had grown to 10 full-time staff and annual sales had already reached 2 million DM. In the summer of 2000, Birk Borkhard, the founder’s son, returned to Germany after spending a year in the USA and began his training as a wholesale and foreign trade merchant in the family business. With his fresh impressions from the USA, Birk Borkhard launched the first online shop, laying the foundation for above-average growth.

In Saarbrücken we had a competitor. The army store that had been based in the Saarcenter for over 25 years was taken over by Heinz Borkhard on 1 January 1997 and managed by his wife together with two employees.

The rapid, positive development of mail-order business in Germany required an expansion of warehouse and office capacity. For this reason, the shipping department, which until then had been located in the same premises as the retail store, was spun off. This in turn meant that the team could focus more intensively on the growing demands of the mail-order business. Mail-order revenue had already far surpassed in-store sales and amounted to 700,000 DM in 1996. The number of employees also increased steadily. By 1996, 7 permanent employees and various temporary staff were already employed.

In cooperation with the French partner U.S.M.C., Heinz Borkhard launched mail-order sales in Germany. With a 76-page color catalog published twice a year, the company presented, following the American model, a range of products focused on army and leisure/outdoor.

Encouraged by his experience as a sales manager in the wholesale trade of army and leisure items, Heinz Borkhard decided in 1989 to start his own company. Together with his wife, he opened a retail store in Saarbrücken under the name "US Warehouse". Back then, the focus was on selling Bundeswehr and US Army items, as well as Western/cowboy products and American football items.