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25 years of Innocel: Lörrach's innovation center celebrates a grand anniversary!
Lörrach celebrated 25 years of the Innocel Innovation Center with festive activities and looks back on successful company settlements.
25 years of Innocel: Lörrach's innovation center celebrates a grand anniversary!
On July 2, 2025, the Innocel Innovation Center in Lörrach celebrated its 25th anniversary, an event that attracted over 200 guests. As the city of Lörrach highlights on its website, this anniversary not only meant a celebratory get-together accompanied by a food truck and an ice cream truck, but also an appreciation of the history and development of this important location. Mayor Jörg Lutz took the opportunity to recall the roots of Innocel, which were linked to the closure of the Schöpflin mail order company and the threat to jobs at the textile company KBC in the late 1990s. At that time, the local council decided to acquire an area of around 40,000 square meters in order to found the Innocel Innovations-Center Lörrach GmbH and thus create an environment for new companies and jobs.
The current building in which the center is located was built in 1854 and was used for the production and printing of exclusive fabrics until 1929. The historic building has been a listed building since 1996 and was modernized in 2000 by a group of investors led by Dieter Trimpin. The official inauguration of the newly designed Innocel building took place in April 2002.
A center for innovation
The Innocel Innovation Center is now home to 37 companies from the areas of life sciences, medical technology, digital innovations and sustainable business. Over the last 25 years it has developed into a modern commercial area with high architectural and energetic quality. According to WFL Wirtschaftsförder Lörrach GmbH, which has been the operator since 2000, a lively community is supported here, consisting of creative start-ups and established companies. The aim is to express a common ideal of innovation and sustainable development.
Along with the opening of the Innocel district, reference was also made to the previous success of the KBC Manufaktur, which was founded in 1753 and was one of the most important textile printing companies in Europe until the 1990s. The Innocel, which stands for Innocel Innovations Center Lörrach, is located between the B 317 and a picturesque river meadow and extends over around 20 hectares, a large part of which consists of the former KBC facilities.
Future prospects
There are currently around 5,000 square meters of commercial space available in the northern section of Innocel, which is intended for companies in the life sciences, medical technology and information technology sectors. In the southern section, the new owner of an approximately 9 hectare site plans to develop an innovative commercial area, which was fully used by KBC and Contender until the end of 2019. These developments aim to drive structural change in the city and create a creative, dynamic environment for businesses.
WFL Wirtschaftsförder Lörrach GmbH is not only committed to Innocel, but also to urban development and the promotion of skilled workers. With a clear focus on networking and resource-saving management, Innocel will continue to play a central role in the economic landscape of Lörrach in the coming years. The vision of a place of collaboration and innovation that simultaneously respects the needs of companies and the environment characterizes the district to this day.