Hawag wants to catch up with Lowa with new soles

That means: The sole is sewn on or glued to the shaft. Both of these traditional methods make it easy to resole your shoes. But it should not stop there: “Now is the right time to expand our portfolio with a new production technology in order to meet the needs of the market,” says Gröger.

Lowa is many times bigger

In the coming spring there will be shoes with molded soles from Hanwag for the first time. The sole is made in a mold and connected directly to the upper shoe. These models are lighter and also a little cheaper. “Our dealers also want everyday shoes from us,” explains Gröger.

The competitor Lowa has been offering such shoes for a quarter of a century. This is one of the reasons why Lowa is so much bigger than Hanwag today. Lowa says it will sell more than three million pairs of shoes this year. Hanwag does not provide any figures; according to industry estimates, the brand has a good 450,000 pairs.

Both brands have an eventful past. The shoemaker Hans Wagner founded Hanwag’s forerunner company, HaWa, in 1921 in Vierkirchen. Brother Lorenz followed suit with Lowa in neighboring Jetzendorf two years later. Another brother, Adolf Wagner, went into business for himself. His company Hochland no longer exists.

Initially, Hans and Lorenz made traditional Haferl shoes. During the war, both produced boots for the Wehrmacht. In the 1950s, however, Lowa had to file for bankruptcy for the first time, but survived the crisis. When winter holidays became mass fun, both companies got into the ski boot business.

In the 1990s, the last member of the Wagner family left Lowa, and the company found itself in a financially precarious situation. Werner Riethmann, who is still part of the management team today and holds a quarter of the shares, was hired as rescuer. Under his direction, Lowa opened up the business with light mountain boots and outdoor low shoes. The Zanatta family, owners of the Tecnica group with brands such as Moonboot, Blizzard and Nordica, came on board as majority owners. The Italians now own the other 75 percent of the shares.

Hanwag remained in family ownership until 2004. After the early death of his daughter, who had previously acted as managing director, owner Josef Wagner sold the business to the Swedish company Fenix ​​Outdoor. The listed group is controlled by the founding Nordin family, who also own the Fjällräven and Globetrotter brands.

Lowa is more successful than ever

Today both brands are doing well, Lowa is even heading for a record: “If there are not yet unforeseeable corona shutdowns, it will be the best year in our history,” says Lowa boss Alexander Nicolai. The company will generate well over 200 million euros in sales. In the pandemic, consumers are crowding into nature and the order books are full. “At the moment we are not able to meet the sharply increased demand 100 percent,” emphasizes the manager.

Owner Fenix ​​does not publish separate figures for Hanwag. Just so much: In the first nine months of the year, the Fenix ​​Group’s sales climbed by a good nine percent to 459 million euros. The profit rose by around a fifth to 45 million euros. In the “Brands” division, to which Hanwag belongs, however, revenues only grew by six percent to 117 million euros. The reason: There were difficulties in the supply chain.

In contrast to corporations such as Adidas and Puma, the Bavarian hiking shoe brands did not move their production to Asia in the 1980s, but instead stayed in Germany. The most important competitor in Germany is the Meindl family business from Kirchanschöring in Bavaria. Probably the best-known European competitors are Scarpa and La Sportiva from Italy. After the fall of the Iron Curtain, the companies also set up plants in Eastern Europe, and after the end of the Balkan War also in the states of the former Yugoslavia. Most of the material also comes from Europe.

This has advantages and disadvantages. “Fortunately, the problems in the supply chain in Asia don’t affect us,” says Lowa boss Nicolai. “But even we cannot expand production as quickly as we need to.” Lowa produces a little more than every tenth shoe at its headquarters in Jetzendorf.

Most of the goods come from a factory with 1700 employees in Slovakia, which Lowa took over two years ago. Nicolai is investing heavily there: “We are currently in the process of opening new sewing shops. We have also ordered additional machines. At the same time we are building a new hall, another one is being planned. “

At the beginning of the year, Hanwag boss Gröger had to hire new contract manufacturers on a large scale in order to process the many orders: “We have been using four additional factories in Bosnia since this year, but it is still not enough,” the manager says annoyed.

Vietnam spoils the deal for Adidas and Puma

With their strategy of fully relying on production in Europe, the hiking shoe manufacturers are still in a significantly better position than the large sports groups. Because they can deliver comparatively quickly and reliably. Adidas and Puma are meanwhile suffering severely from the fact that their suppliers’ factories in Vietnam have been shut down for weeks due to Corona.

Despite all the rivalry: Hanwag and Lowa treat each other with respect. On the occasion of Hanwag’s 100th birthday, Lowa boss Nicolai placed a congratulatory advertisement in the specialist trade journal SAZSport this summer.

There are two hiking signposts with the company names that point in different directions. Underneath the saying: “Two brothers, two ways. But always good shuah! ”In two years, they want to celebrate Lowa’s milestone. Let’s see what Hanwag boss Gröger comes up with.

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