Bettina Schliephake-Burchardt is the new president of the Confectioners’ Association

Master pastry chef Bettina Schliephake-Burchardt is the new president of the German Confectioners' Association. The Hamburg native is known, among other things, as a judge on the SAT.1 show "Das große Backen" (The Great Baking Show) and is the first woman to head the association.

This article is part of the special feature on women in the trades.

"If someone had told me this 30 years ago, I would have thought they were crazy!" writes Bettina (Betty) Schliephake-Burchardt on her Instagram profile. The master pastry chef, chocolate sommelier, author, and television judge on "The Great British Bake Off" on SAT.1 has been elected the new president of the German Confectioners' Association (BIV) . This marks the first time a woman has led the association. Schliephake-Burchardt ( Betty's Sugar Dreams GmbH ) is also the state guild master of confectioners in Hamburg.

She succeeds Gerhard Schenk from Augsburg, who held the position for 16 years and will continue to work for the association as managing director. "The confectionery trade stands for creativity, quality, and genuine craftsmanship. I am very much looking forward to moving our industry forward together," said Schliephake-Burchardt after her election.

Gerhard Schenk also looks to the future with optimism: "With Bettina, the association gains a strong personality who will provide new impetus with her experience and clarity."

The vice president is Michael Wiecker from Wernigerode, state guild master of confectioners Saxony-Anhalt.

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The German Confectioners' Association is the national guild association for the confectionery trade. It is the central organization for all independent master confectioners and serves as a platform for representing their interests at the national and international levels.

Total sales are just under two billion euros

The confectionery trade in Germany includes 3.458 medium-sized specialized businesses with 67.819 employees and 3.740 apprentices (as of December 31, 2024). In the majority of artisan confectioneries, the bakery is directly connected to the shop and café. There are also branch businesses, but these are less common. Total sales amount to just under two billion euros, 2,4 percent more than in 2023. The proportion of female entrepreneurs is almost 45 percent.

The pastry café's total turnover is divided between 48 percent from takeaway sales, 45 percent from the café area, and seven percent from deliveries, reports the Confectioners' Association. 

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