- Improving local supply: Lidl and Kaufland are revitalizing city centers and developing retail locations.
- Securing supply chains: Schwarz Produktion is expanding its own food production with new and expanded production facilities.
- Digital sovereignty of tomorrow: Schwarz Digits is expanding the IT infrastructure.
- Sustainable construction: Companies of Schwarz Group are developing innovative recycled products for real estate.
Stores, production sites and data centers: At Stand B.130 at Expo Real from October 6 to 8, 2025, the companies of Schwarz Group will showcase how they are actively shaping the real estate landscape in Germany with their investments. The companies will engage directly with construction companies, project developers, investors and local authorities to forge new partnerships. The companies of Schwarz Group will share their expertise and seek partners they can work with to realize construction projects and expand the sovereign infrastructure of Germany as an economic hub.
Focus on Security of Supply
As food retailers, Lidl and Kaufland ensure a reliable local supply for the population and drive urban development by opening up new locations. Lidl is focusing its expansion on revitalizing city centers and metropolitan regions, among other areas. With a focus on flexible and efficient retail concepts, the food retailer demonstrates how existing buildings can be used optimally while at the same time ensuring sustainable use of the space. This combats the growing number of vacancies and simultaneous shortage of space. In line with this approach, Lidl is looking for attractive existing sites for new stores that will enable it to provide a comprehensive local supply in people’s immediate living environment. Whether in retail parks, shopping centers or stand-alone stores, Kaufland creates attractive one-stop shopping locations for everyday needs with individual store concepts and leasing to other retailers — all adapted to the needs of local people.
Schwarz Produktion is investing in the expansion of its production capacity as it seeks to ensure the continuous security of supply of important foodstuffs, even in times of fragile supply chains. For example, the company is implementing targeted expansions at the site for the production of baked goods in Halle (Saale) and at the site in Rheine, which produces coffee and dried fruit. As an innovator, internal project company Pro Projekte plans, manages and implements the construction of entire factories and the expansion of production sites.
Infrastructure Projects for Digital Sovereignty
As well as ensuring the greatest possible independence in supplying the population, the digital sovereignty of Germany as an economic hub is also essential. Schwarz Digits offers impressive services and products with the STACKIT cloud and XM Cyber cybersecurity solutions, artificial intelligence, communication and workplace. This makes the company an important partner for the digitalization of companies and authorities. Schwarz Digits also offers innovative digitalization solutions for the construction industry. In order to meet the high level of demand for digital services and expand the range of services available to businesses in the future, the consistent expansion of future-proof infrastructure is essential. This includes the construction of data centers and the creation of new server space. Work is set to start on the construction of a data center in Lübbenau, Brandenburg, before year-end.
Schwarz Immobilien Service, a Schwarz Corporate Solutions company, acts as the developer for these infrastructure projects on behalf of Schwarz Digits. The company is therefore actively looking for suitable land for future facilities. Schwarz Immobilien Service is also an important service provider for the numerous projects of the companies of Schwarz Group. At Innovation Park Artificial Intelligence (IPAI), Schwarz Immobilien Service acts as the client representative to ensure that the interests of the parties involved are optimally managed. The Schwarz Project Campus, the future home of Schwarz Digits, is due to be completed at the beginning of next year. This year sees the start of construction of the IPAI Campus in Heilbronn, one of the largest AI construction sites in Europe at around 30 hectares.
Schwarz Immobilien Service is also an important service provider and developer for the numerous projects of the companies of Schwarz Group. At Innovation Park Artificial Intelligence (IPAI), SIS acts as the client representative to ensure that the interests of the parties involved are optimally managed.
Making Construction More Sustainable with the Circular Economy
Alongside security of supply and digital sovereignty, sustainability is a decisive factor for the future viability of Germany as an economic hub. As the construction and real estate industry represents one of the most significant levers for climate protection, the companies of Schwarz Group consistently focus on innovative approaches to sustainable construction. For example, energy-efficient concepts and innovative approaches from PreZero and Schwarz Corporate Solutions are used, which utilize recyclates from internal sources of recyclable materials.
These plastic recyclates, which are manufactured by the environmental service provider PreZero, are durable alternatives to solutions made of wood and other materials. The recyclates are used in a wide range of products for the construction industry: These include bollards, benches and grass pavers as well as roof sheeting and crash rail elements, which are made entirely from recycled material and have already proven their worth many times over in the logistics properties and stores of Lidl and Kaufland. By switching to recyclate crash rails, Lidl and Kaufland were able to save around 489 tons of new plastic across all countries in 2024. The recyclate used is called post-consumer recyclate and is obtained from used packaging from private households, mainly from the recycling waste bag or container in Germany.
