How to Apply to Fielmann

10 min read Last updated April 20, 2026 5 open positions
Blake Crosley
Blake Crosley Researched using publicly available information, hiring data, and ATS analysis.

Key Takeaways

  • Fielmann is the dominant optical retailer in Germany and the wider DACH region, with around 750 stores, roughly 24,000 employees, and a footprint that now spans Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, and the United States
  • The Augenoptiker Ausbildung is the primary credential gate for any in-store role in German-speaking markets — without it, you are generally not hireable as a customer-facing optician
  • The company is family-controlled and run by Marc Fielmann (CEO since 2018), son of founder Günther Fielmann who died in 2024 at age 84; the founding ethos of affordable, accessible eyewear remains the cultural center of gravity
  • Hamburg HQ runs in German and operates with traditional Familienunternehmen rhythms — slower decisions, longer tenure, deeper continuity — which is a feature, not a bug, for the right candidate
  • The 2024 acquisition of SVS Vision and Eyebobs created a US business that operates on US retail norms (at-will, English-language, ABO/NCLE-anchored, US healthcare benefits) rather than German ones
  • Compensation in the German retail business follows the regional Augenoptiker Tarifvertrag, with apprentices earning roughly €900–1,200 per month, qualified Augenoptiker earning approximately €2,200–3,500 per month, and store managers (Niederlassungsleiter) earning roughly €45,000–65,000 annually plus performance components
  • The Probearbeiten (paid trial shift) is a serious and decisive part of the retail hiring process; treat it as the real interview
  • Vision 2025 has opened more digital, omnichannel, and IT roles at HQ than the company has historically offered, which has begun to broaden the profile of the Hamburg workforce
  • The post-Günther era is intact and stable under Marc Fielmann; candidates who treat the founder's death respectfully and the succession as continuity will land well in interviews

About Fielmann

Fielmann AG is the largest optical retail chain in Germany and one of the dominant eyewear businesses in Europe, headquartered in Hamburg and operating roughly 750 stores across the DACH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), Italy, and, since 2024, the United States. The company employs approximately 24,000 people, the bulk of them trained Augenoptiker (German master opticians) and apprentices working in retail branches that combine optometric examination, frame retail, and on-site lens production. Founded in 1972 in the small town of Cuxhaven by Günther Fielmann, the firm became famous in West Germany during the 1980s for breaking the cartel-style pricing of traditional optical retail. Günther Fielmann negotiated directly with Germany's statutory health insurance funds (the gesetzliche Krankenkassen) to offer a free pair of eyeglasses fully covered by insurance, fundamentally democratizing eyewear access for working-class Germans and turning Fielmann into a household name. The company went public on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FRA: FIE) in 1994 and remains family-controlled, with the Fielmann family holding the majority stake through a holding structure. In 2018, Marc Fielmann, Günther's son, took over as Chief Executive Officer, completing a long-planned generational transition that had been in motion for years; Günther had groomed Marc through the business and onto the board before formally handing over the title. Marc Fielmann inherited a company that was profitable but facing structural questions: the German optical market had matured, e-commerce competitors like Mister Spex were eroding the lower end, and the founding generation's brand promise needed to be carried into a more digital, more international era. Under Marc Fielmann, the company launched a strategy called Vision 2025, which committed Fielmann to international expansion, omnichannel retail, and a broader product range including hearing aids. The COVID-19 pandemic hit retail eyewear hard in 2020 and 2021 with store closures across Europe, but Fielmann recovered strongly, and by 2023 revenue was setting records again. In 2024 Fielmann executed the largest acquisition in its history, buying SVS Vision, a Michigan-based optical retailer with roughly 80 stores, marking the company's first serious entry into the United States. It also acquired Eyebobs, a US direct-to-consumer reading-glasses brand. The same year, Günther Fielmann died at the age of 84, ending an era for the company and for German retail as a whole. He was widely eulogized as one of the country's most consequential post-war entrepreneurs. For job seekers, the practical reality is that Fielmann remains a deeply traditional German retail-and-craft business at its core, with a strict apprenticeship culture, a Hamburg head office that runs in German, and a newly globalizing footprint where the US business operates on US retail norms rather than German ones.

Application Process

  1. 1
    Search openings on the official careers portal at fielmann-karriere

    Search openings on the official careers portal at fielmann-karriere.com (German) or fielmann.com/career for English-facing roles. The portal separates roles into Niederlassungen (store positions, the vast majority of openings), Zentrale Hamburg (corporate HQ), Logistik & Werkstatt (logistics and lens production), and Ausbildung & Duales Studium (apprenticeships and dual-study programs). US openings under SVS Vision and Eyebobs are listed on their own careers sites rather than through Fielmann's German portal.

  2. 2
    Choose the right track

    Choose the right track. Most retail roles require either a completed Augenoptiker Ausbildung (the three-year German master-optician vocational program) or active enrollment in one. Without this credential, you generally cannot work as a sales-and-fitting optician in a German Fielmann branch. Apprenticeships start each August or September and applications open roughly twelve months in advance. Corporate, IT, marketing, supply-chain, and legal roles in Hamburg follow a more conventional white-collar process and do not require the Augenoptiker credential.

  3. 3
    Submit a Bewerbung in the German format

    Submit a Bewerbung in the German format. Fielmann expects a Lebenslauf (CV in chronological order with a photo, date of birth, and nationality, per German convention), an Anschreiben (cover letter, one page, addressed to the named recruiter where possible), Zeugnisse (school certificates, vocational certificates, and any prior employment references), and any relevant qualification documents. Upload everything as PDFs through the portal — email applications are not preferred.

  4. 4
    Expect an initial screening call

    Expect an initial screening call. For store roles, this is typically conducted by the regional HR partner or the Niederlassungsleiter (store manager) of the specific branch. They will confirm credentials, ask about availability, and discuss which branch you are applying to. For HQ roles in Hamburg the first call comes from a recruiter in the central People & Culture team.

  5. 5
    Complete a Probearbeiten (trial day) for retail roles

    Complete a Probearbeiten (trial day) for retail roles. Fielmann is unusual among large German retailers in that it commonly invites finalists for a paid trial shift in the actual branch they would join. You shadow opticians, observe customer interactions, and demonstrate you can work the floor. This is a serious evaluation step, not a formality.

  6. 6
    Sit a structured interview with the hiring panel

    Sit a structured interview with the hiring panel. For HQ roles this typically includes a People & Culture representative plus the hiring manager, sometimes a department head. Expect competency-based questions in German, plus a values discussion grounded in Fielmann's Familienunternehmen (family-business) identity. For senior corporate roles a case study or presentation is common.

  7. 7
    Receive an offer and sign a German Arbeitsvertrag (employment contract)

    Receive an offer and sign a German Arbeitsvertrag (employment contract). Standard German labour terms apply: 30 days paid vacation, employer-paid health insurance contribution, statutory pension, and the standard six-month Probezeit (probation period). Most retail roles are paid against the regional Augenoptiker Tarifvertrag (sector wage agreement) rather than individually negotiated.

Resume Tips for Fielmann

recommended

Use the German tabular Lebenslauf format for any role based in Germany, Austria,

Use the German tabular Lebenslauf format for any role based in Germany, Austria, or Switzerland. Reverse-chronological is acceptable but chronological is more traditional and Fielmann is a traditional employer. Include a professional photo, date of birth, and place of birth — these are still standard in German hiring and their absence reads as careless rather than progressive.

recommended

Lead with your Augenoptiker credentials if you have them

Lead with your Augenoptiker credentials if you have them. State the exact qualification (Augenoptiker/in Geselle, Augenoptikermeister/in, or Bachelor of Science in Optometrie), the institution (e.g., Höhere Fachschule für Augenoptik, ZVA-akkreditierte Schule, or a Hochschule like Aalen or Jena), and the year of completion. For Meister candidates, name the Handwerkskammer that issued the title.

recommended

Quantify retail performance

Quantify retail performance. For store roles, include conversion metrics if you have them: average number of customers fitted per day, refraction volume per week, sell-through on premium lens add-ons (Gleitsichtgläser, photochromic, blue-light coatings), and contact lens fitting volume. Fielmann is a high-volume retailer and store managers screen for candidates who can sustain throughput without sacrificing care quality.

recommended

Demonstrate German language fluency explicitly

Demonstrate German language fluency explicitly. List your level using the Common European Framework (B2 minimum for retail customer-facing roles, C1 strongly preferred; native or C2 effectively required for HQ roles in Hamburg). Do not assume the recruiter will infer fluency from your education — state it. For US roles under SVS Vision or Eyebobs this does not apply.

recommended

For HQ roles, emphasize Familienunternehmen experience

For HQ roles, emphasize Familienunternehmen experience. Fielmann is run as a family business and reacts well to candidates who understand the rhythms of owner-led companies: longer decision cycles, stronger continuity, less tolerance for consultancy-style turnover. If you have worked at other large German Mittelstand or family-controlled firms (Otto Group, dm-drogerie markt, Hipp, Würth, Trumpf, Miele), call that out.

recommended

For US applicants joining SVS Vision or Eyebobs, follow standard US resume conve

For US applicants joining SVS Vision or Eyebobs, follow standard US resume conventions (one to two pages, no photo, no date of birth) and emphasize US optical retail experience: ABO/NCLE certification, state opticianry licensure where applicable, vision insurance plan experience (VSP, EyeMed, Davis Vision), and EHR systems used (RevolutionEHR, Compulink, OfficeMate).

recommended

Highlight any apprenticeship-instructor credentials

Highlight any apprenticeship-instructor credentials. Holders of an Ausbildereignungsprüfung (AdA) or active Ausbilder status in optics are highly sought after because Fielmann trains around 2,000 apprentices at any given time and constantly needs qualified instructors at the branch level.

recommended

Mention digital fluency for newer roles

Mention digital fluency for newer roles. Vision 2025 has pushed Fielmann into omnichannel retail, online appointment booking, and a stronger app. Candidates with experience bridging traditional retail and digital — Salesforce Commerce Cloud, SAP, or omnichannel CRM — are increasingly valued at HQ.

Interview Culture

Fielmann interviews carry the unmistakable texture of a German Familienunternehmen that has not forgotten where it came from.

The tone is formal, polite, and deliberately unhurried. Expect to be addressed with Sie throughout, expect punctuality to be treated as a moral test rather than a logistical convenience, and expect the company's history to be referenced more than once. Interviewers commonly bring up Günther Fielmann's founding mission of affordable eyewear for everyone, and they want to hear that you understand it is not marketing copy but the operating principle the company is built on. Strong candidates speak about service to the customer in plain, unflashy terms. Candidates who pitch themselves with consultancy-grade buzzwords or who push aggressive personal-brand language tend to underperform; Fielmann rewards what Germans call Bodenständigkeit (groundedness). For Augenoptiker roles, expect the technical bar to be taken extremely seriously. The Augenoptiker craft is a regulated Handwerk with centuries of tradition in German-speaking Europe, and Fielmann treats it as such. You will be asked detailed questions about refraction technique, frame fitting, lens selection logic, contact-lens consultation, and the legal scope of what an optician versus an ophthalmologist may do. The Probearbeiten trial shift is where most decisions are actually made — interviewers care less about how you describe your skills and more about how you behave in a real branch with real customers. For HQ roles in Hamburg, the interview style is closer to traditional German corporate: structured, competency-driven, and conducted in German unless explicitly otherwise. Decisions move at the speed of a deliberate organization, not a startup; do not be alarmed by a two-to-four week gap between interview rounds. The death of Günther Fielmann in 2024 has if anything heightened the company's emotional attachment to its founding ethos. Marc Fielmann's leadership is widely seen internally as continuity rather than rupture, and candidates who treat the succession as an interesting strategic moment rather than a problem will land well. The post-SVS Vision US integration is a separate cultural conversation entirely. SVS Vision and Eyebobs operate on US retail norms — at-will employment, US healthcare benefits, English-language operations, faster hiring loops, and ABO/NCLE-anchored credentialing rather than the Augenoptiker Ausbildung. Candidates joining the US business should not expect German interview conventions, and candidates from the US side who interact with Hamburg should expect the German side to move slower, document more, and make decisions more collectively.

What Fielmann Looks For

  • Completed Augenoptiker Ausbildung or active progression toward it for any in-store role in the German-speaking markets — this is a hard credential gate, not a preference
  • Genuine service orientation toward customers, expressed in plain language rather than performance, with evidence of long-tenure customer relationships
  • German language fluency at B2 or higher for retail roles and C1 or higher for Hamburg HQ roles
  • Demonstrated stability and willingness to grow inside one company over years rather than job-hopping every eighteen months
  • Comfort working inside a publicly listed but family-controlled business, where the owning family's voice matters and decisions are made for the long term
  • For corporate hires, evidence of working effectively in German Mittelstand or Familienunternehmen environments and an ability to build trust slowly rather than impose change quickly
  • For US hires under SVS Vision or Eyebobs, US optical retail experience including ABO/NCLE certification, state opticianry licensure, and fluency with US vision insurance plans
  • For digital, IT, and omnichannel hires, the ability to translate between Vision 2025 strategic ambition and the realities of a traditional retail operation that values continuity

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to be a trained Augenoptiker to work at Fielmann?
For any in-store, customer-facing optical role in Germany, Austria, or Switzerland, yes — this is effectively a hard requirement. The Augenoptiker Ausbildung is a regulated three-year German vocational qualification, and Fielmann hires almost exclusively from people who have completed it or are actively in it as apprentices. Non-optician roles (cashier-style sales support, logistics, HQ functions, IT, marketing, finance) do not require the credential. The US business under SVS Vision and Eyebobs uses US opticianry standards (ABO/NCLE certification and state licensure where applicable) instead.
What does Fielmann pay store-level Augenoptiker in Germany?
Compensation follows the regional Augenoptiker Tarifvertrag rather than individually negotiated salary. A qualified Augenoptiker/in Geselle typically earns in the range of €2,200 to €3,500 per month gross depending on region, experience, and Meister status. Augenoptikermeister and contact-lens specialists sit at the top of that band. Apprentices earn roughly €900 to €1,200 per month across the three-year Ausbildung, scaling up each year. These figures are German market norms; pay is competitive within the optical retail Tarif structure but Fielmann is not a top-of-market wage payer relative to non-Tarif employers.
What does a store manager (Niederlassungsleiter) earn?
A Fielmann Niederlassungsleiter typically earns in the range of €45,000 to €65,000 per year gross in base salary, depending on store size, region, and tenure, with a performance-linked bonus on top tied to branch revenue and customer-experience metrics. Larger flagship branches in major German cities (Hamburg, Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Cologne) sit at the upper end of that range. The role carries full P&L responsibility for the branch, staff scheduling, apprentice oversight, customer-complaint escalation, and direct accountability to a regional manager. Career progression from Niederlassungsleiter typically runs into regional management or specialized HQ functions in Hamburg.
What does Hamburg HQ pay for corporate roles?
Corporate compensation in Hamburg is competitive with other large publicly listed German Familienunternehmen but generally below pure-play tech or consulting pay. Mid-level specialists in IT, marketing, finance, or supply chain typically land in the €55,000 to €85,000 range; senior managers and team leads sit in the €90,000 to €130,000 range; director-level roles move materially above that. Fielmann pays a 13th-month salary, statutory benefits at full strength, employer-subsidized health insurance, and offers strong long-tenure job stability, which materially changes the total-compensation picture relative to higher-base, lower-tenure employers in tech or finance.
What is the application process like for the Ausbildung program?
The Ausbildung application cycle opens roughly twelve months before each intake, with most apprenticeships starting in August or September. You apply through fielmann-karriere.com selecting a specific Bundesland and ideally a specific store. Required documents are your most recent two school report cards, a one-page cover letter explaining why you want to become an Augenoptiker, and a tabular Lebenslauf with a photo. Selection involves a recruiter call, a personality and aptitude assessment, and a Probetag in a branch. Fielmann is one of the largest training employers in German optics, with around 2,000 apprentices in the system at any time.
How does the SVS Vision acquisition affect US applicants?
SVS Vision continues to operate under its own brand and HR systems out of Michigan, and its hiring follows US optical retail conventions — ABO/NCLE certification where applicable, state opticianry licensure where required, US-format resumes, US healthcare benefits, and at-will employment. SVS roles are posted on the SVS Vision careers site rather than the German Fielmann portal. Eyebobs, the direct-to-consumer reading-glasses brand also acquired in 2024, operates similarly with its own careers site. US applicants interacting with Hamburg HQ on cross-business projects should expect a slower, more formal cadence than is typical in US retail.
Is German fluency really required for HQ roles?
For most Hamburg HQ roles the practical answer is yes — C1-level German is the working baseline, and roles outside of a small number of international or technology-leadership functions are conducted in German. The company has begun to add English-friendly digital and product roles as part of Vision 2025 and the US expansion, but these remain a minority. Candidates without German fluency should focus on the US business or on the small subset of explicitly English-language openings posted at HQ.
What changed when Marc Fielmann took over from his father?
Marc Fielmann became CEO in 2018 after years of structured succession planning during which he held progressively senior roles inside the business. His tenure has been characterized by continuity of values rather than rupture: Vision 2025 launched under his leadership, the international expansion accelerated, and the SVS Vision and Eyebobs acquisitions in 2024 marked the first serious move into the US. Internally he is treated as a continuator of his father's mission rather than a reformer breaking from it. Günther Fielmann remained on the supervisory board until his death in 2024 and his influence on the company's identity remains visible in how the business talks about itself.
How traditional is the work culture day-to-day?
Quite traditional, particularly in retail and at HQ. Expect Sie-form address until explicitly invited otherwise, expect formal written communication, expect long employee tenure to be common, and expect a measured pace of internal change. The flip side of that traditionalism is genuine job security, predictable career progression, statutory benefits at full strength, strong apprentice training infrastructure, and a workplace that does not burn people out the way some faster-moving retailers do. For candidates who value stability and craft over startup pace, this is a feature.
What are the strongest reasons to join Fielmann right now?
The clearest reasons are durable job security inside Europe's largest optical retailer, world-class apprenticeship infrastructure for those entering the optical profession, a credible international growth story under Vision 2025 with newly expanded US operations, and the cultural stability of a family-controlled public company that thinks in decades rather than quarters. The clearest reasons not to join are if you require pure remote work, if you do not speak German and are targeting a HQ role, if you find traditional formality stifling, or if you want to work outside the regulated optical Handwerk framework — Fielmann is not a generalist retailer, it is an optical specialist, and the entire culture reflects that.

Open Positions

Fielmann currently has 5 open positions.

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Sources

  1. Fielmann Group — Official Corporate Website — Fielmann Group AG
  2. Fielmann Karriere — Official Careers Portal — Fielmann AG
  3. Fielmann Group Annual Report 2024 — Fielmann Group AG
  4. Fielmann completes acquisition of SVS Vision in the United States — Fielmann Group AG
  5. Günther Fielmann obituary — Founder of Fielmann optical chain dies at 84 — Reuters
  6. Marc Fielmann becomes CEO — generational succession at family-controlled optician — Handelsblatt
  7. SVS Vision Careers — US Optical Retail Openings — SVS Vision
  8. Augenoptiker Ausbildung — Zentralverband der Augenoptiker und Optometristen (ZVA) — Zentralverband der Augenoptiker und Optometristen