Michael Gauselmann (born 28 November 1955) is the second son of Paul Gauselmann, founder of the Merkur Group. He gained early exposure to the family business, working in various departments from age 13. After earning his A-levels, he studied Business Administration at the University of Hamburg, graduating with a degree.
In 1982, he joined the family company as Executive Assistant at Nova-Apparate in Hamburg. Over the following decades he held senior operational and financial roles, including Commercial Manager of Franken-Automaten Südvertrieb (1983), Commercial Manager of adp Merkur and CFO of the Group (1984–1986), and management of the Merkur Spielothek arcade chain (1986–1992). A key milestone was his establishment of the Atronic subsidiary in 1993, which became a major manufacturer of casino slot machines and drove the Group’s international expansion. He also oversaw the acquisition of Bell-Fruit Games in the UK and the creation of Stella Electronic for the European market.
He served as Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of Gauselmann AG from 1994 to 2004, and from 2004 until 2016 acted as co-spokesperson of the Management Board alongside his father. From 2016, he was a member of the Advisory Board of the Gauselmann Family Foundation. In October 2024, following his father’s retirement, Michael Gauselmann became Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Merkur Group and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Gauselmann Family Foundation. He is described as a "game designer at heart" and passionate about product development and international strategy.
Career History
| Company | Role | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Nova-Apparate | Executive Assistant | 1982-01-01 – 1983-01-01 |
| Franken-Automaten Südvertrieb | Commercial Manager | 1983-01-01 – 1984-01-01 |
| MERKUR | Commercial Manager and Group CFO | 1984-01-01 – 1986-01-01 |
| Merkur Spielothek (later Merkur Operations) | Manager | 1986-01-01 – 1992-01-01 |
| Gauselmann Group | Deputy Chairman of the Management Board | 1994-01-01 – 2004-01-01 |
| Atronic | Founder and Manager | 1993-01-01 – 2008-01-01 |
| Gauselmann Group | Co-Spokesperson of the Management Board | 2004-01-01 – 2016-01-01 |
| Gauselmann Family Foundation | Member of the Advisory Board | 2016-01-01 – 2024-01-01 |
| Gauselmann Group | Chairman of the Supervisory Board; Chairman of the Gauselmann Family Foundation | – present |
| Gauselmann Family Foundation | Chairman of the Foundation Board and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Merkur Group | – present |
| Atronic (Gauselmann subsidiary) | Founder & Head | – present |
| Gauselmann Group / MERKUR GROUP | Chairman of the Supervisory Board and Chairman of the Gauselmann Family Foundation | – present |
| MERKUR | Chairman of the Supervisory Board & Chairman of Gauselmann Family Foundation | – present |