Hartjes-Schuhe-Pramet-Geschichte

SINCE 1953

WE HAVE BEEN PRODUCING WHERE WE COME FROM SINCE 1953.

For more than 70 years, we have been producing in the middle of the countryside, in our home town of Pramet.
An established structure that means stability and transparency for our customers, our region and our employees.
The appreciative relationship with nature is always there.
You can feel this in our dealings with each other as well as in our shoes.

The company was founded in 1953 by Heinrich HARTJES – back then as an orthopaedic workshop.
This fundamental understanding of the needs of the human foot is the basis of our shoe fashion.

Comfort and health are still the focus today.
Combined with ever new, attractive designs that reflect the style of the times, HARTJES has developed purposefully into Austria’s largest family-owned shoe manufacturer – a success story that we will continue in the future.

1953

Master podiatrist and shoemaker Heinrich HARTJES founds a one-man business in Ried im Innkreis.

1970

Rudolf Hartjes, son of the founder, takes over the management of the company together with his wife Annemarie.
Sales are reorganized and deliveries are no longer made directly to end consumers, but via orthopaedic and comfort shoe retailers.

1976

Production moves from Neuhofen to its current location in Pramet.

1985

The plant in Pramet is expanded.

1990

The management consultant Dr. Curt Weckl buys the entire company and founds HARTJES GesmbH from HARTJES KG and
HARTJES Vertriebs GesmbH.

1993

Dr. Weckl goes into hiding, leaving behind a difficult economic
situation.
Four divisional managers continue to run the company under emergency management.
In the same year, a cooperation with the company Fischer-Ski and the development and production of Fischer cross-country ski boots begins.

1994

HARTJES GesmbH is completely restructured.
The four emergency managing directors each take over 25 percent of the company shares.
Thanks to capable employees and loyal customers, the restructuring quickly proves successful.
Johannes Vogl becomes Managing Director.

2002

The plant in Pramet is expanded.

2005

The wholly-owned subsidiary MUCOS is founded, which is now a world leader in the development and production of footbeds and technical cork parts.

2010

The subsidiary MUCOS relocates from Frankenmarkt to Pramet - making the company location even more attractive.

2012

The HARTJES XS collection is launched on the market.
This marks the beginning of a new, younger era of collection presentation, which is very successfully received.

2013

The new HARTJES store is opened, bringing HARTJES closer to our region and is very well received by the local population.

2016

HARTJES is awarded the silver shoe of the ANWR GARANT NEDERLANDS purchasing and marketing association.

2017

Implementation of the new advertising line "Comfort with Style" and the target group definition
"For shoe lovers".

2020

The new HARTJES store in Salzburg, Linzergasse 29,
is opened.

2021

Hans Sternbauer and Stefan Spreitzer take over the management.

2022

The successful model
PHIL 162.1409 99.02 02
has been sold more than 20,000 times.

2023

HARTJES is awarded the golden shoe of the ANWR GARANT NEDERLANDS purchasing and marketing association.

2024

Hans Sternbauer goes into well-deserved retirement after 45 years with the company.
At the beginning of the year, he handed over the commercial management to Christoph Götzendorfer, who will lead HARTJES into the future together with Stefan Spreitzer, Technical Managing Director.