Hans Wall is one of the most famous and distinguished figures in the German advertising industry.He achieved success and fame with his vision of providing cash-strapped cities with public toilets and covered bus stops for free---almost for free. In return, Hans Wall received the rights to the newly-created advertising space that the structures provided. In 1999, he received the German Federal Cross of Merit for his charitable engagement and contributions to German society. Hans Wall is the prototype of a owner of a medium-sized German enterprise. The self-made man was born in southern Germany but made his Berlin-based firm, Wall AG, into one of the most well-known and important companies in outdoor advertising in Germany.

Hans Wall was born on March 17, 1942 in Künzelsau in what is now the state of Baden-Württemberg. His father was from East Prussia and his mother was from a local farming family.

He quit school after the ninth grade and then completed an internship as a mechanic. Later on he went back to school to complete his diploma and eventually studied mechanical engineering for a few semesters.

In the 1976 he founded his own company, which operated on a concept similar to its biggest competitor—French market leader JC. Deceaux. Wall saw that public coffers on the local level were empty, so in exchange for putting up kiosks and notice boards of all kinds for free or for nearly no cost, his firm owned all of the advertising space. His idea has been successful in six countries and some 50 cities around the world. Sales for Wall AG are at about 150 million euros annually. The firm has about 700 employees right now.

But Hans Wall has never forgotten that there is a social component to being a businessman. He sees a social responsibility to being an entrepreneur and supports numerous social projects. In the current financial crisis, Hans Wall represents the ideal of socially responsible business — there’s more to business than just maximizing profits. For his contributions to German society and his charitable engagements he was awarded Germany‘s Federal Cross of Merit in 1999.

Since then Hans Wall has handed over the chair of his firm to his son Daniel and now only sits as the chair of the supervisory board. He married to his wife Claudia, but the couple does now live apart. In addition to a daughter with her, Hans Wall has three other children from his first marriage.