Speciality Coatings for flexible materials: leather, plastics, textiles and packaging
Stahl Holdings B.V.
Waalwijk (Netherlands) · Kawasaki (Japan)New on Amplifa
About Stahl
Stahl is a global provider of speciality coatings for flexible materials. Founded in 1930 in Peabody (Massachusetts, USA), with its international headquarters today in Waalwijk (Netherlands), the company develops and produces coating solutions in three business areas: Leather Finishing (base coats, top coats, edge coats, foam finish, impregnation), Performance Coatings for synthetic materials (water-based finishes, carbodiimide crosslinkers, VOC-free pigments) and Packaging Coatings (water-based and UV coatings for paper, board and flexible packaging). The substrates processed include leather, plastics, rubber, PU-coated textiles as well as paper and board; in addition, Stahl offers bio-based polyurethanes (Stahl NuVera®) and PolyMatte®. Customers come from the automotive, fashion, footwear, luxury goods, furniture/home furnishing, packaging as well as the printing and graphics industries. The company employs around 1,790 people in 22 countries and also operates a sales and service office in Kawasaki, Japan. In 2026 Stahl was acquired by Henkel and operates as a pure-play speciality coatings provider.
- Site
- PE Waalwijk
- Processes
- Speciality coatings for flexible materials (leather, textile, synthetics, packaging), Leather finishing (base coat, top coat, edge coat, foam finish, impregnation), Performance coatings for synthetic materials (water-based finishes, topcoats,, Packaging coatings (water-based and UV coatings, matte to high gloss; print finishing), Metallic coatings (Senoprint®) for packaging, Haptic coatings (Sensora®) for premium packaging, Color matching / color standard formulation, Application support, testing and prototyping by Golden Hands technicians
- Materials
- Leather, Synthetic Plastics, Rubber, PU-coated Textiles, Bio-based Polyurethane (Stahl NuVera®), Bio-based PolyMatte®, Paper & Board, Flexible Packaging
- Certificates
- EcoVadis Platinum, ZDHC MRSL Level 3 (over 2,000/2,151 products), EcoVadis Platinum (company-wide), ZDHC MRSL Level 3 (product certification)
- Founded
- 1930
- Employees
- 1790
- Industries
- Automotive, Fashion/Apparel, Footwear, Luxury Goods, Furniture/Home Furnishing, Packaging
- 01
Research & development (R&D and application laboratories)
- 02
Color formulation (color matching)
- 03
Coating formulation and production
- 04
On-site application support (Golden Hands)
- 05
Testing and prototyping (Brand Services)
- 06
Training and knowledge transfer (Stahl Campus®)
Materials & Processes
Leather
Substrate for leather finishing with base coat, top coat, edge coat, foam finish and impregnation for automotive, fashion and furniture.
Synthetic Plastics
Water-based finishes and topcoats for plastics and synthetics manufacturers, also DMF-free.
Rubber
Coating solutions for rubber and synthetics applications with stain- and soil-resistant properties.
PU-coated Textiles
PermUCell® as a 100% water-based, solvent-free solution for PU-coated textiles.
Bio-based Polyurethane (Stahl NuVera®)
Polyurethanes based on renewable carbon sources as an alternative to fossil-based chemistry.
Bio-based PolyMatte®
Bio-based matting solution for luxury designs and surfaces.
Paper & Board
Substrate for packaging coatings with water-based and UV coatings from matte to high gloss.
Flexible Packaging
Coatings for flexible packaging materials including Senoprint® metallic and Sensora® haptic coatings.
Sites
Waalwijk
NLHeadquarters (Stahl Holdings B.V., Sluisweg 10)
Kawasaki (Takatsu-ku)
JPStahl Japan Ltd, sales and service office (Kanagawa Science Park B1013)
Products & Coating Systems
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Speciality coatings for flexible materials (leather, textile, synthetics, packaging)Surface | – | – | – | – | Leather, Synthetics/Plastics, Textiles/Fabrics, Paper & Board, Flexible Packaging |
| Leather finishing (base coat, top coat, edge coat, foam finish, impregnation)Surface | – | – | – | – | Leather |
| Performance coatings for synthetic materials (water-based finishes, topcoats,Surface | – | – | – | – | Plastics, Rubber, Synthetics, PU-coated textiles |
| Packaging coatings (water-based and UV coatings, matte to high gloss; print finishing)Surface | – | – | – | – | Paper & Board, Flexible Packaging |
| Metallic coatings (Senoprint®) for packagingSurface | – | – | – | – | Paper & Board |
| Haptic coatings (Sensora®) for premium packagingSurface | – | – | – | – | Paper & Board |
| Color matching / color standard formulationEngineering | – | – | – | – | Leather, Textile, Synthetics |
| Application support, testing and prototyping by Golden Hands techniciansTesting | – | – | – | – | Leather, Synthetics, Fabrics |
| Shoe finish / shoe & leather careSurface | – | – | – | – | Leather |
Additional services
Quality & Sustainability
Stahl has its sustainability performance assessed by EcoVadis (Platinum, five years in a row) and holds ZDHC MRSL Level 3 for 2,151 products. Product development is evaluated using standardized methods such as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), ASTM D6866 (bio-based content) and VDA 278 (emission testing); in-house test laboratories test abrasion and resistance of crust, shoe upper and automotive leather.
| Evidence | Waalwijk | Kawasaki (Takatsu-ku) |
|---|---|---|
| EcoVadis Platinum (company-wide) | ||
| ZDHC MRSL Level 3 (product certification) |
History
- 1930
Founded by Harry Stahl in Peabody, Massachusetts (USA); started with leather finishing chemicals.
- 1940er–1980e
Global expansion after the Second World War into a worldwide provider of high-performance coatings and finishes.
- 1990
Relocation of the international headquarters to Waalwijk, Netherlands.
- 2006
Opening of a production site in China.
- 2011
Joined the UN Global Compact.
- 2014
Establishment of Stahl Campus® in Waalwijk; later additional sites in León (Mexico) and Foshan (China).
- 2021
Launch of the ESG Roadmap to 2030.
- 2023
Acquisition of the packaging coatings business ISG from ICP Group.
- 2024
Acquisition of Weilburger Graphics GmbH.
- 2026
Henkel completes the acquisition of Stahl; carve-out of the wet-end leather business towards a pure-play speciality coatings provider.