HILTL

HILTL is a German trouser maker founded in 1955 by master tailor Fritz Hiltl in Sulzbach-Rosenberg, Bavaria. It specialises in high quality men's trousers sold in more than 40 countries.

What is HILTL?

HILTL is a specialist menswear brand from Sulzbach-Rosenberg in Bavaria that has focused on one product, men's trousers, since 1955. Today the company trades as HILTL Hosen-Manufaktur GmbH.

History

Master tailor Fritz Hiltl founded the business in 1955 with his wife Hedwig, his brother Erhard and six apprentices, initially making around 20 pairs of made to measure trousers a day. The first collection was shown at Cologne Men's Fashion Week in 1958, and a new factory followed in 1968. By 1980 the company employed 370 people producing about 2,000 pairs daily.

• 1994: Hedwig Hiltl takes over management after her husband's death
• 2016: Nord Holding acquires HILTL
• 2020: Self-administered insolvency; Swiss investment firm Lorea AG becomes the owner
• 2022: A new trouser factory opens at the original site
• 2025: The company marks 70 years

Products and positioning

HILTL trousers are recognisable by details such as urea or corozo buttons, metal zips, keyhole buttonholes and half moon bar tacks on the pockets. The company's guiding principle, attributed to its founder, is to sell not the most trousers but the best.

Distribution

By 1980 the trousers were sold across much of Western Europe, the brand entered the American market around 2000, and by 2015 more than half a million pairs a year were shipped to over 40 countries. An online shop launched in 2019.

Frequently asked questions

Where are HILTL trousers made?

HILTL is based in Sulzbach-Rosenberg in Bavaria, where a new trouser factory opened at the original site in 2022.

Who owns HILTL?

Since 2020 the company has been owned by the Swiss investment firm Lorea AG and trades as HILTL Hosen-Manufaktur GmbH.

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