In 1982, Hartmut Ortlieb founded today’s ORTLIEB Sportartikel GmbH in Nürnberg. In 1997 the firm relocated to the franconian town of Heilsbronn, not far from Nuremberg. In 2007, ORTLIEB has celebrated its 25th anniversary.

The first products were made in pure personal need for waterproof equipment – it wasn’t available at the time!
ORTLIEB’s first products were created in a backyard garage in preparation of his first long bicycle and climbing tours: they were hand-made on his mother’s sewing machine: dry bags and bicycle panniers made of truck tarps.

What started very simple has developed into a leading high tech enterprise with 100 employees. ORTLIEB’s collection has grown to include over 300 individual products. Even today, everything is located under one roof: from development to engineering, production, sales and marketing, and shipment.

ORTLIEB products are characterized by tightly sealed closure systems: for example roll closures, waterproof zippers, velcro, or sliding seal closures. Many of the design features are patented and serve as the benchmark in the bike and outdoor market.