Hercules Sägemann

Hercules Sägemann is a German manufacturer of combs, brushes and hairstyling tools, based in Lüneburg in northern Germany. Its roots reach back to 1856, when Heinrich Adorf Meyer and Heinrich Wilhelm Maurien established Harburger Gummi-Kamm AG to make combs from hard rubber [2]. The company is best known for combs cut from ebonite — vulcanised natural rubber — and positions itself as a professional tool brand, using the tagline "No.1 by Professionals."

The business remains active. It manufactures in Lüneburg, employs roughly 140 people, and operates as part of New-York Hamburger Gummi-Waaren Compagnie AG (NYH AG), the parent company under which the Hercules Sägemann name sits today [4].

The brand grew out of the early German rubber industry. In 1851 Heinrich Adorf Meyer secured European production rights to the hard-rubber process developed from Charles Goodyear's vulcanization patent, and five years later he and Heinrich Wilhelm Maurien founded Harburger Gummi-Kamm AG to put that material to use in combs. Vulcanization — heating natural rubber with sulphur to make it firm and stable — yielded ebonite, a hard rubber well suited to fine-toothed combs.

A second strand of the story begins in 1871, when Conrad Poppenhusen and Heinrich Wilhelm Maurien founded the New-York Hamburger Gummi-Waaren Compagnie AG (NYH) in the Barmbek district of Hamburg [2]. German Wikipedia dates that founding to 1870 rather than 1871 [7]; the company's own history gives 1871 [2]. Maurien thus links both founding firms, which would later be brought together under one roof.

The two names Hercules and Sägemann were merged in 1930, when NYH acquired Harburger Gummi-Kamm and combined the brands into Hercules Sägemann [2]. German Wikipedia records this acquisition as taking place in 1929 [7], a year earlier than the company's own account. The brands Hercules, Sägemann and Matador all sat within the NYH portfolio.

Production moved with the company over the following decades. The original Barmbek factory relocated to Hamburg's Harburg district in 1952, and in 2009 the operation moved to modern premises in Lüneburg, about 35 kilometres south of Hamburg. In 2000 the company took over the hard-rubber comb production line of the Austrian competitor Semperit. A subsidiary, Hercules Sägemann GmbH, was established in 2010, and in 2017 the company adopted the name Hercules Sägemann AG.

According to German Wikipedia, NYH halted hard-rubber comb production in June 2009 for purely economic reasons, then resumed manufacturing within months in response to demand.

Hercules Sägemann operates under New-York Hamburger Gummi-Waaren Compagnie AG, described on the parent's own site as one of the oldest German joint-stock companies [8]. Alongside the comb and hair-tool line, NYH AG manufactures hard-rubber, soft-rubber and plastic moulded parts for sectors including automotive, aviation and mechanical engineering, and maintains formal investor-relations reporting. The Matador comb brand is also part of the NYH portfolio [7].

The company frames itself around handcrafted German quality, summed up in the recurring claim "Handmade – Best Quality – Made in Germany" and the three values it lists as "Quality, Sustainability and Avantgarde." Its stated mission is to draw attention to first-class products made in Germany and, in its own words, to make combs "must-haves" again. Hercules Sägemann describes the character of its products as carrying "a unique feeling of luxury," and presents combs not only as functional tools but as styling accessories.

The brand is aimed primarily at professional hairdressers and barbers, while also serving consumers seeking premium grooming tools.

The core range covers handcrafted combs, brushes and accessories. Signature combs include the Premium Comb Hard Rubber, the Best for Barbers hard-rubber comb, the Carbon Comb and the Triumph Master, while brushes include the Magic Scalp Brush and a copper-handled collection. A more recent addition is Esthecin, a hair-growth serum that broadens the line beyond tools.

The making of the premium combs is the brand's central claim to distinction. According to the company, each premium comb is produced from 100% vulcanised natural rubber and passes through more than 40 manual work steps — hand-sawing, hand-cutting, hand-polishing and grinding — finished with gold-foil embossing of the brand name [5]. NYH AG's corporate site gives a slightly different figure, describing a "35-stage, predominantly manual" process [8]. The company says continuous monitoring ensures that only combs with "perfectly rounded burr-free teeth" leave the factory, which it links to protecting the hair's cuticle; it also describes the material as anti-static and chemical-resistant.

The retailer Pomadeshop reports annual production of more than 3.2 million combs and export to over 60 countries [9], and cites the brand's claim that "the best combs in the world come from Hamburg."

The company sources rubber from rubber trees, presenting the natural rubber in its premium combs as a renewable raw material. It says the separating foils used during production contain over 96% recycled material, and that its packaging uses BIO PET — described as a naturally derived polyester resin made from 30% renewable raw materials and fully recyclable [6]. By its own account the firm holds no formal environmental certifications such as ISO or B-Corp, instead emphasising "Made in Germany" handcrafted production.

The brand reports winning a Hair Awards prize and a Friseur Intern product test, both in 2019 [5].

Hercules Sägemann remains an operating heritage brand. It manufactures in Lüneburg with around 140 staff, exports internationally, launches new products such as the Esthecin serum, and maintains an active social-media presence, while its parent NYH AG continues to publish investor-relations information. The company frames its longevity around more than 160 years of comb-making since 1856.