The former squatter Ariane is the head on the label of the organic red beer, and Talu, who is committed to social neighborhood projects, can be found on the label for the shandy. This is how the Kreuzberg brewery Quartiermeister advertises its various varieties. Susi Sendling has now joined the very special brewery. The Munich drag queen adorns the organic wheat label (there is an interview on quartiermeister.org). For years she has been a volunteer in Sub e.V. – a gay communication center in Munich – for more public awareness of the queer scene.

All of these people, according to the company based in Kreuzberg’s Oranienstraße, stand for a colourful, open and diverse society – in other words, what the Quartermasters are committed to. That’s why the types of beer have been changed since 2017. And the profits of the constantly growing company, whose beers can be found at Rewe, Edeka, Bio Company, Denn’s and many other shops, are handled differently. The brewery has been supporting social and cultural projects for years. More than 190 projects in the region have already been supported with more than 200,000 euros. Now the company, which has a public interest balance and started as a voluntary project, is going one step further. “Mission for the benefit of all secured forever and forever inalienable”, is the motto of the beer brewers. They set up their own foundation. From now on, the Quartiermeister Foundation is the owner of the Quartiermeister brand and, thanks to its charitable purpose in its statutes, links the use of the brand to a fixed, community-oriented commitment. “Regardless of who makes the decisions in the company, the sense and purpose of the company – namely the support of social projects through our economic activities – is permanently ensured. The step of transferring the trademark rights to our non-profit company helps us to contractually protect our mission, even if we are no longer managing directors ourselves,” says David Griedelbach, co-founder and managing director of Quartiermeister GmbH To keep it short and to use regional raw materials, the beer for East Germany is produced in the family-run city brewery Wittichenau in Upper Lusatia and for the south by the cooperative brewery Gut Forsting near Munich. During production, Quartiermeister pays attention to ecologically produced raw materials and environmentally friendly production conditions as well as green electricity. You can find out more about all projects on the quartermaster’s website. Transparency at all levels is important to them – also when it comes to their own business. Income, expenses and salaries are published every three months. In addition, the company is the only company in the industry to undergo a certification for the common good. All factors of ecological sustainability, social justice, internal democracy, job quality and equality as well as a fair distribution of income are checked. With the steward-ownership model, a particular ownership structure that social enterprises like Quartiermeister use to ensure their social alignment over time is becoming increasingly popular. According to the coalition agreement, the traffic light government wants to decide in this legislative period whether there will soon be a separate legal form for this with tied assets. “It is time for a broad social rethinking to take place: companies must take responsibility and become credible actors in solving social challenges,” says Sebastian Jacob, founder and idea generator of Quartiermeister and managing director of the Quartiermeister Foundation.