Due to Nazi past, Krispy Kreme owners give millions to Holocaust survivors

One of Germany’s wealthiest families, the Reimanns, will establish a €5 million emergency assistance fund for Holocaust survivors after discovering their connection to the Nazi regime.The Reimann family, owners of Luxembourg-headquartered JAB Holding Company, will provide the funds to the Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) over three years through its newly-established Alfred Landecker Foundation.

Established in 1828, the JAB Holding Company is the owner of a list of consumer, food and fashion companies – including Krispy Kreme, Pret A Manger, Panera Bread and Coty. In March, the Reimann family publicly admitted the links between the company’s precursor Benckiser and the Nazi regime.Historian Dr. Paul Erker, appointed by the family, found that Albert Reimann Sr. and his son Albert Reimann Jr., who ran Benckiser, were both vocal antisemites and ardent supporters of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime.The company’s factories benefited from forced labor, including 200 individuals at Benckiser’s Ludwigshafen plant in the spring of 1942.