During its existence, Hanwag did not belong to the typical representatives of startups. Its growth was not rocket, but rather slow. On the other hand, it was stable and continues to this day. This is what got Hanwag where it is today. In the first 83 years of its existence, this German company had only two directors. The first was Hans Wagner, after whom the company takes its name and who was already the third generation of shoemakers, or cobblers if you prefer, in his family.

Loyalty above all else

The second long-time head of Hanwag was Hans's nephew Josef Wagner. Today, it is no longer a small workshop as it was at the beginning, but even so, Hanwag remains a highly specialized company and an expert in what it does. This is appreciated not only by customers, but also by the company's employees, who have a legitimate feeling that the work they do has meaning.

One of these employees was Franz Kreutner, who came to the company as a refugee shortly after World War II. And he stayed there for a long 47 years, between 1947 and 1994. Another constant in the ranks of Hanwag was Adam Weger, who worked at the company with short breaks between 1968 and 2015. A large part of that in the position of head of research and development – and he was respected even by Josef Wagner himself, who spoke of him as a "perfectionist in terms of functional and technical details."

Quality portfolio

Quality and loyal people naturally bring quality results. And so already in the 1960s, Hanwag was exporting ski boots to the United States in large quantities. Hanwag climbing shoes came to the market even before mountaineering was modern. Before that, it was a highly specialized matter for a relatively small number of enthusiasts, for whom it was not worth it to sew shoes in bulk. Hanwag boots for parachutists were designed to allow for the softest possible landing.

However, the most important element of the Hanwag product range so far are hiking boots and trekking boots. This type of footwear has been perfected by the German manufacturer. Hanwag hiking boots have always been designed to handle not only the "steep" streets of German cities, but also (and above all) the mountains of the whole world, remote tropical areas and multi-day treks.

Hanwag shoes have endured a lot. Which means, among other things, that this company promoted the idea of sustainability long before the word became ubiquitous – or, as Hanwag itself writes on its website, "before it was rediscovered in today's age of greenwashing".

Exclusively European production

Although it may have been tempting at various stages of Hanwag's existence, the company never resorted to moving its footwear production outside of Europe. Even at the cost of higher costs. For Hanwag, quality has always been more important than short-sighted savings, which would ultimately damage the perception of the company in the eyes of customers.

The difficulty of production means that good trekking boots will cost hundreds of dollars, but on the other hand, their producer has a lower margin on them than the producer of average sneakers, which cost half that amount. One shoe consists of more than a hundred parts, and each of them must be of high quality. Which means zero tolerance for compromise. And now it is also necessary to take into account that part of the technology of Hanwag - as well as other manufacturers of hiking shoes - is obtained from external suppliers, such as Vibram or Gore-Tex.

Hanwag is based in Vierkirchen (which could be translated as "Four Churches") near Munich in Bavaria, and the shoes are made for it, among others, by a certain family shoe company in Croatia, which has been supplying exclusively for Hanwag for more than three decades.

The end of an era

At the beginning of the millennium, Hanwag had grown so much that the management could no longer maintain it as a purely family business. In 2004, the then head of Hanwag, Josef Wagner, retired, and since he could not find a suitable replacement for himself in the area, he started looking for a buyer. In the end, the Fenix group from Sweden was chosen, mainly because they agreed to keep the Hanwag brand independent. Even under the new owner, it remains a manufacturer of quality footwear from Bavaria, which has a name all over the world.

And what makes a good shoe a good shoe? In conclusion, we can quote Josef Wagner, who said: "A good shoe is never really finished." His words indicate that innovation is something we can count on at Hanwag during the next century of its existence.