Economy

The economic structure of Hameln is relatively varied and well-balanced.
On top of the many small and middle-range businesses, the largest employer is in the credit and insurance industry, namely the BHW building society with more than 2,500 employees just in Hameln. The county hospital is the second largest employer. Public Services, town council and county council, follow in terms of number of employees.

The production industry, and in particular the electronics and building-machinery industries, also play their part in determining the economic structure with well-known firms such as ABG/Ingersoll-Rand, Actaris, Reintjes, Stephan Machinery, Rexnord-Stephan and other middle-range businesses.

Also of importance are the textiles and carpet industry (Vorwerk Teppichboden) and the chemicals industry (hameln pharmaceuticals).

As far as the food production industry is concerned important employers are Kampffmeyer-Wesermühlen Hameln, Vogeley and VITAM.

One of the outstanding companies in the energy-production industry is the electric power station. It belongs to the E.ON Westfalen Weser AG.

The economic structure of Hameln is also characterised by its geographical location within the attractive landscape of the Weserbergland and especially the world-famous legend of the Pied Piper: tourism plays a large role in Hameln´s economy.

Approximately 23,000 people are obliged to pay social insurance contributions. As Hameln is the economic centre of the region, a lot of these commute into Hameln.


Compared to Lower Saxony, less people obliged to pay social insurance contributions are employed in the manufacturing sector. Structural changes from the industrial to the service sectors in Hameln have thus taken place above average.


Credit institutions and insurance companies account for 16,6 % of people obliged to pay social insurance contributions. This figure is far greater than the state average for Lower Saxony (3,5 %). This is due to BHW, the insurance company and building society, which is the biggest employer in Hameln.