German & Austrian Hutmachers

[besdor]

No one could ever make a hat like that today.

 

[mayserwegener]

Yes a classic hat too!

 

[Chepstow]

Great ads Steve!



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

 

[mayserwegener]

Thanks! It was great re-posting photos of your fantastic Rehfus & Cie. Melone!

 

[mayserwegener]

Exterior photos of the PolkaP factory that I received from the curator of the Novy Jicin City musuem. Up to WWII this was the J. Hückel´s Söhne Skoczów, Poland factory. PolkaP is still in business today but only a small operation.

http://polkap.myhat.us/

 

[mayserwegener]

I found this on the PolkaP website.

Market

In Poland, the Company's production, which is engaged in distribution of Skoczowska Hat Factory Polkap SA does not have significant competition. It is true that there are a few small companies, which distribute products of foreign manufacturers, mainly from the Far East, but do not play the market essential.

On the European market for the production and sale of hats competition are:
1 Tonak as (Czech Republic) - manufacturer of semi-finished and finished hats of felt the hair and
wool. Exports about 90% of its production mainly to the USA, Germany, Russia and Japan.
It is the main competitor of the company with revenues of approximately 60 million zł per year. Production ranks at 150 thousand. hats, 400 thousand. intermediates (80% felt hair, 20% wool felt)
2 FEPS Feltros Portugueses (Portugal) - production at 175 thousand. semi-
annually. About 60% felt hair, 40% wool felt.
3 ISES (Spain) - production is estimated at about one hundred thousand. pieces of felt the hair semi-annually
4 Borsalino (Italy) - production is about 100 thousand. semi-finished pieces of felt
the hair per year. Borsalino is a very famous brand hats in the world.
5 Sesir (Slovenia) - production ranks at about 100 thousand. intermediates of felt
hair follicle year,
6 Tirabasso Serafino (Italy) - a large wholesaler wool felt hats with low quality, manufactured from semi-finished products of Chinese,
7 Other wholesalers Italian: SORBATTI, Fratelli Reali, Trendintex, Grazia Gori. Their sale is a total of approximately 2 million units per year. They offer Chinese semi-finished wool felt at low prices.

The market non-European competition for the company are:
1 Bollmann (USA) - manufacturer of semi-finished wool felt, the hair and straw hats. It also owns brands such as Bailey, Bain, Country Gentleman, Helen Kaminski, Kangol, Timberland. Estimated production is około1 million pieces of finished and semi-annually.
2 Yanapi (Ecuador) - manufacturer of semi-finished wool felt, production is about
150-200 thousand. units per year,
3 Manufacturers from China - offer low-quality semi-finished and hats at low prices.

 

[besdor]

Very interesting. Ive never seen pictures of the factory. Their quality is similar to Tonak. Tonak does a better job on the velours and suede finishes .

 

[mayserwegener]

It appears the major part of their business is Trachten styles for the German and Austrian markets. It will be interesting to see if they can stay in business (I hope they can).

Sales Structure
The industry is seasonal sales. Lower revenues are recorded in the period December - February (which is associated with a long Christmas break in Germany) and in August, due to the holiday period.

Niemcy = Germany

 

[mikespens]

Interesting to see some actual modern production numbers Steve. Great research as usual!

 

[Panadora]

... If you check my site you can get a better idea of the makers ...

Have you ever heard about Habock? I can't find any info anywhere!
The size label includes the word 'schwarz' so I guess it's a German hat (in this case sold by a Danish dealer)?

Sorry for my late reply. Fantastic hat! I am not familiar with this make. Does it have a paper label behind the sweatband?
If so please post a photo if possible. This hat looks on the older side and also well made (the liner piping is reminiscent of JHS).

A golden sellers logo in the sweatband but no other marks or labels!

Unfortunately no company mark on the paper label. It's definitely German or Austrian.

I think it might be this company out of Berlin.

This is from the 1925 edition of Kelly's Directory Of Merchants, Manufacturers And Shippers, German Hat Manufacturers.

My guess is this hat is from around WWII or earlier. Where did you find it?

Also please post in the German - Austrian thread.

Ok this tread is better!

The hat belonged to my grandfather who passed away years ago


The felt is 3mm thick at the rim. The felt has a very soft surface but is structually stiff at the same time.
The crown is 10-12cm tall, the brim is 5cm wide and the weight is 121 grams.

The Danish store got it's name somewhere between 1938 and 1940.
(Denmark was occupied by Germany in April 1940).
The founder of the store were shot in 1944 by SS as revenge for sabotage.
The store closed in 1975.

 

[mayserwegener]

Thanks for the additional information. Does it easily take side dents? It might have been designed to be worn without them (a stiffer soft felt hat). Would it be possible to take a photo of the sweatband mark? I still think it could be from around the time of WWII. Would that fit your grandfather's time line?

 

[Panadora]

Not without steam, it's way too soft for permanent dents!
It turns out that the crown is way softer then the brim.
You can't flip down the brim in the front, it's too stiff for that.
The crown on the other hand is so soft that making dents is like making dents in your cheeks;
as soon as you let go the dents disappear (without 'popping' in and out).

My Grandfather got a big promotion in 1942 including going from engineering to administration work.

When were this style in fasion?
Would it be for private use or more work related use?

Could the hat have been made in Denmark during the occupation?

 

[mayserwegener]

My guess is WWII era but it could be later (late 40s, early 50s). Having a stiff brim + black color points towards business wear.

My guess is that it was made in Germany but it's possible it was made in Denmark. There were a couple of Danish hat companies but none with this name. The H. Bock company from Berlin is a possibility.

 

[TheDane]

I'm quite sure, it was not made in Denmark. Whether intended for private or work related work is hard to say. I'm sure, it was not part of a formal uniform, but it may have been part of a dress-code for your grandfather's new job. I put my bet on H. Bock, Berlin

- and by the way: Welcome to The Lounge, Pandora! Way too few Danes around here

 

[mayserwegener]

Just a thought. The name Habock might have been a marketing play on the Habig name.

If Habock was a surname it would probably be of Austrian origin. Not a common surname.

 

[mayserwegener]

Fabrikation von Damen- und Herren- Filzhüten, Der Deustchen Hutmacher Zeitung (1933)
Fabrication of Women's and Men's Felt Hats, German Hat Makers News (1933)

This book is full of valuable information regarding felt and hat manufacturing (text, drawings, photos, charts). There also advertisements at the the end of the book. To start I am posting photos of the cover, cover page and table of contents of the book.

Contents:

I. Fashion through the Ages

II. History of the Hat 17

III. Wool Scouring 27

IV. Wool Hat Fabrication 43
Wool Preparation 46
Wool Felting 51
Wool Twisting 53
Wool Carbonization 56
Fulling 57

V. The Pre-fabrication of Wool Hats 61
Grinding 63
Roughening 64
Turning 65
Stiffening 67
Molding and Decatizing 69
Mixing 71
Finishing 72
General Occurring Errors 78

VI. Fur Felt Hat Fabrication 81
Fur Cutting 83
Blowing 91
Fulling 92
Felting 93
Twisting and Fulling 95
Stock Felt Hoods 96

Page 7

VI. Finished Hat Production 99
Stiff Hat Production 101
Soft Felt Hat Production 104
Women's Hats and Hat Bodies 105
Plumes Fabrication 106

VIII. Article from the Practice - for Practice 109
Hat Dyeing of Yesterday and Today, by Master Dyer Kurt Richter 111
Modern Dyeing Process for Wool and Fur Felt Hats, by Gustav R. Arnold 137
Wool, Properties and Processing in Hat Manufacture, by Master Dyer Kurt Richter 149
On the Issue of Acceptability of Men's Hats, C.A.P. Pellaio 165
On the Issue of Light and Wear Resistance of Wool, Hair and Velour Hats, by Master Dyer Kurt Richter 175
Hair - Velour - Real Velour - Prima Velour, by C.A.P. Pellaio 185
The Good Velour Hat of Hare Fur 186
Machining 187
Finishing 189
Quality Differences in Hare Fur 191
When Can a Velour Hat be Referred to as "Real"? 191
The Source 194

IX. Source directory 195

Page 8

 

[TheDane]

Wow Steve, that looks extremely interesting!

 

[mayserwegener]

Yes a lot of interesting information. I plan to scan the articles and make rough translations. Currently I am working on the "Haar-Velour — Echter Velour — Prima Velour" article. The article discusses Real / Prima Velour vs. Wool and fake Velour finishes (what we see today).

 

[The Wiser Hatter]

Great stuff Steve I am sure we will learn a lot. Thank you for the effort.

 

[ManofKent]

Great stuff Steve I am sure we will learn a lot. Thank you for the effort.

+1