HERKA Frottier – Diversity that we weave.
About us
Unique Diverse
Diversity that we weave
Since 1927, the employees of the family business HERKA in the Austrian Waldviertel have been producing high-quality terry products such as towels and bathrobes – sustainably, regionally, fairly and, if desired, also in organic quality. In order for a company to survive successfully for 100 years, it needs to be able to adapt continuously. This flexibility is deeply rooted in HERKA’s DNA: every request for custom-made products is implemented in our fully digitalized factory and exported all over the world.
From custom-made products to HERKA collections for private individuals, HERKA fulfills a wide range of customer wishes: Soccer clubs have their logos embroidered on towels, dentists order humorous towels for their team, top hotels in Vienna and the Alps appreciate our fluffy towels, and golf clubs order practical buggy towels. Whether 1, 20 or 20,000 pieces – HERKA offers customized solutions for every requirement.
Our HERKA collections, which are published twice a year, are ideal for private customers who value domestic production, sustainability, sophisticated design and first-class quality.
Herka terry towelling – since 1927
Fully networked – from design to shipping
HERKA began as a small manufactory with manually operated looms. Today, HERKA is a fully digitalized, high-performance company that produces around 12,000 towels a day. What makes us special? The rapid implementation of customer requests. Thanks to an extensive warehouse with a wide range of material qualities and the high flexibility of our dedicated employees, we can quickly fulfill individual requests.
Despite advancing digitalization and automation, one thing always remains in focus at HERKA: our employees are the heart of the company.
Every step of the process – from design to final assembly – takes place in our factory in the Austrian Waldviertel region. The final assembly is carried out on one of the most modern assembly lines in Central Europe, but can also be done by hand on request. Our products are dyed and finished in our in-house dye works in nearby Gmünd. Textilveredlung Gmünd TVG (link to https://www.textilveredelung-gmuend.at/ ) is one of the last and at the same time most modern contract dyeing plants in Austria.
Our fair production
HERKA is one of the most modern terry weaving mills in Europe!
This is where traditional knowledge meets modern perfection. The family business has been consistently investing in the future for almost 100 years: Specialist knowledge built up over decades is continuously expanded through well-trained employees, specialist training and visits to trade fairs. A young, innovative and highly motivated team contributes ideas, continues to develop and surprises our customers time and again by making the impossible possible.
HERKA trains its own apprentices and employs technical college graduates in the structurally weak Waldviertel region. It is important to us to secure knowledge and skilled workers.
Around 12,000 towels per day
HERKA Frottier is a modern, high-performance company. Thanks to our continuous computerization and working in 3 shifts, we are able to produce around 12,000 towels a day. This efficiency enables us to produce a large quantity of goods in various qualities and to respond flexibly to individual customer requests.
HERKA stands for:
- High quality and strict controls
- Fast and reliable processing
- Flexible fulfillment of customer wishes
- Durable products
- Careful use of resources
- Regional production in the Waldviertel
- Technological leadership and continuous further development in the area of sustainability
- Internationally certified (BIO) quality
HERKA guarantees:
Fast and reliable realization of your projects
Even small quantities can be realized without any problems
Numerous samples available on request
Sustainable production, entirely in Austria
Wide range of qualities and sizes
On-site consultation possible at any time
All production steps from a single source
Finishing and in-house dyeing for the highest quality standards
HERKA terry towelling – master of weaving techniques
A wide variety of weaving techniques
from classic jacquard weaves and weaves with different pile heights to special weaves and plain weaves
Processing of different materials
such as cotton, linen, hemp, viscose, organic cotton according to GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) and polyester
Wide range of special fabrics
from a wide variety of materials
Embroidery directly at the factory
from names to logos and lettering
Quality assurance at HERKA
Ensuring consistently high quality is our top priority. That is why we closely monitor every phase of the production and packaging process.
What that means:
- Right from the start of production, yarn and fabric are continuously tested for their technical requirements and adjusted if necessary.
- Despite advancing digitalization, ongoing monitoring by our trained employees remains essential. No machine can see as well as an experienced eye!
- Even today, many work steps cannot be carried out entirely by machine and require manual precision.
- At the end of the manufacturing process, every single product is checked by our employees for weaving and sewing errors. Only 100% perfect products leave the factory!
The strength of HERKA
The fulfillment of (almost) all customer wishes!
From classic, timeless designs to modern patterns in HERKA’s own collection or for custom-made products, our designers can fulfill even the most unusual wishes. We create sketches to show how your desired motif or logo could look on a towel and coordinate every color decision with you. From parking tickets and photos to logos and slogans – HERKA turns everything into terry towels!
Certified quality
At HERKA, we implement every detail with the greatest care and love for our customers.
Standardized and “Made in Austria”
Our tested quality can be experienced up close. As HERKA manufactures textiles that are worn on the skin every day, it is a matter of course for us to test every product for harmlessness and freedom from harmful substances.
However, the focus is not only on people, but also on the environment:
HERKA pays attention to the careful use of natural resources, fair production conditions and sustainability for every product. This results in high-quality, multi-certified quality, Made in Austria.
All HERKA products comply with the OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 as well as the ISO 14001 and EMAS standards. On request, we can also produce according to the GOTS guidelines (Global Organic Textile Standard). GOTS-certified products are made from organic cotton and dyed with organic dyes. In addition to the highest ecological standards, the social criteria to be complied with, including all ILO core labor standards, are also checked.
Resource-conserving & regional
Terry production is energy-intensive, but at HERKA we rely on sustainable solutions. Our in-house photovoltaic system produces around 273,000 kWh per year – enough to supply 68 households with electricity. This saves us 72 tons of CO2 every year. In addition, the external power supply is covered by CO2-neutral sources such as water, wind and biomass.
GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard)
The GOTS standard is the most comprehensive international standard for textiles and covers all important health, environmental and social aspects. Samples are taken at every stage of the production process to ensure compliance with the strict requirements. Working conditions are also strictly monitored: these include hygiene, lighting, ventilation, appropriate wages, the ban on child labor and the right to form trade unions – and much more. In addition, every processing company in the supply chain must also be GOTS-certified.
EMAS (Eco-Management and Audit Scheme)
EMAS is a voluntary EU instrument for promoting sustainable development in business and administration. It guarantees savings in energy, raw materials and waste, offers legal certainty and facilitates operational management.
OEKO-TEX® Standard 100
The STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® is a globally standardized, independent testing and certification system. It applies to raw, intermediate and finished textile products at all stages of processing as well as to all accessory materials used. This standard ensures that textiles are tested for harmful substances and therefore meet the highest safety and quality requirements.
Get to know our team
Drawing on a long tradition
We are at home in a traditional textile region – in the heart of the Waldviertel. We and our employees draw equally on this tradition, continuity and the knowledge we have acquired over 95 years. Some of them are already working for us in the second or third generation, they characterize the high quality that makes us successful with our customers and is the only possible path to sustainable growth for us. As a training company, we also enable young people to enter the world of work. We are proud that we have such a great mix of employees who have been with us for a long time and young, up-and-coming employees.
The employees are the pride and joy of the company and motivate the founding family Pfeiffer to be a reliable and long-term partner. At HERKA, the promotion and safeguarding of employees is highly valued as valuable social capital.
Because we also want to be a reliable and long-term partner for our employees.
Management and team
Almost 100 years later, the management is still made up of members of the founding Hermann/Pfeiffer family.
The tasks at HERKA are varied and applications are always welcome in the following areas:
HERKA stands for:
- Marketing and product development
- Yarn purchase
- Warp production
- Weaving (master weavers, weavers, weavers and cleaners)
- Disposition of sister company Textile Finishing Gmünd
- Sewing shop (machine operator and manual assembly)
- Order picking and shipping
- Order processing
- Accounting and dunning
- Secretariat
- Distribution in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Benelux etc.