FELT SPECIAL >>
to somewhere else in the production line over the years. The technicians who put all the details for an order on the production sheets started in production as well. So they know exactly which information is needed on the floor to meet the customers’ request.”
Natural product
Since its beginning in the 18th century, the company has manufactured hat bodies as well as finished hats. The finished hats are purely for business to business, with only made-to-order customer collections, besides some small collections for the two Tonak brand shops in Prague. The woollen and fur hat bodies that
Tonak produces are mainly for other hat factories. However, they also supply millinery suppliers and wholesalers. “We have noticed in the past few years a growing demand for wool felt,” says
Tonak logo stamp for leather headbands
much for wet,
CEO Ji í Tourek. “Wool is a good replacement in dry environments, but not so
rainy weather.
Then you need fur felt. We see a revival of fur felt as people are looking for soft and high-quality materials – there is even more demand for beaver felt. Besides that, it is in line with the current demand for sustainability as they are natural products that last for a long time. Every now and then we get a request from
Dyeing baths Shaping the capeline
people who want to have an old felt hat restored or repaired. And they are still worth the effort. “But fur hats are sustainable in more
ways. We are among the few companies that precure the skins and prepare the fur ourselves. As the legacy name here in central and eastern Europe, we have close links with the farmers that produce rabbit meat. We buy their by-product, the rabbit skins, from them directly. This way, we know which farmer has which quality of skins and how their animals are treated. We have a collection point here at the factory. In a periphery of about 90 km, people will bring us their skins themselves. In addition, we have two vans permanently touring through the rest of the country to collect the skins from our core suppliers, the small farmers.” At the end of the production process,
Tonak processes the waste – the residues of the skins but also the unused offcuts of the hats – and turns it into a fertiliser. “My father used to keep rabbits and
I remember from my own childhood that the skins that were not sold to collectors or the industry were put into the ground at the end of the season. We are basically doing what the farmers have known for a long time already, that the skin is rich in certain nutrients and so is useful for the agriculture industry.” Most hat bodies Tonak produces
are fur felt. About 30 per cent of the hat bodies are made of wool. For the production of woollen hat bodies, the company uses different types of combed wool which are sourced from suppliers. “Some customers require ethical wool certificates for their hat bodies. We can offer that as well. These hoods are more expensive as the wool is not obtained by shearing the sheep but by gathering it by hand from fences. We have yak products as well. The wool that comes from those animals is always animal-friendly and ecological because it is only picked from the hairs they lost and not from shaving the animals. They are so hairy that they lose a lot of hair during their life. But
Finished capelines
50 | the hat magazine #95
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102