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The Spanish footwear brand Callaghan is winning over new markets every day with its high-technology shoes. The Hergar group, its parent company, is also the owner of the children’s footwear brand Gorila and Miss Callaghan brand for women, and currently exports 30% of its production.

Basilio García, the group’s chairman, reveals the secrets behind Callaghan’s success and its strong expansion in Europe and in Asian markets such as South Korea.

When was the Hergar group set up?
My father created it with his brother and a partner in 1968. In the first few years their efforts were centred on production and distribution, and it wasn’t until the 1970s when concerns arose about ‘brand building’. In 1977 we created Tanke, and in 1987 we launched Callaghan, a name with which we wanted to evoke the strong style of typical American boots. It was like starting from zero, with the good fortune that from the first season the brand enjoyed an excellent reception. The Gorila brand was created in 1942 and was a market leader for children’s footwear when we acquired it, in 1991.

Is the Hergar group a family company?
Completely. My two brothers and I, who make up the second generation, are at the head of the company. Today we employ approximately 120 people and our head office in Arnedo, La Rioja,continues to be the same as in 1968, after many extensions and modifications. We have two additional sites for manufacturing and distribution.

Do you manufacture all your collections in Arnedo?
Yes, from the concept of the idea on paper and the prototype to the development of new technologies, the design of the last and the advertising campaigns and production. We have a 14-strong design team – headed by my brother Ivan – that deals entirely with design, research and development and marketing.

What materials do you usually use in your collections?
For men, the majority of the leathers that we use are calf leather. For the classic shoe we look for leathers that have a very soft and pleasant feel. For women, over the last few seasons we used crocodile, patent leather and shiny leathers in general.

“The Adaptaction technology is based on a flexible structure that adapts itself to the difference in foot size that occurs when walking”

Tell us about your first brand, Tanke, a complete success in terms of sales.
It was a type of shoe that was very tough as well as being comfortable, made from six-millimetre thick natural leather tanned with whale oil in Galicia. It was so successful in the market that it became a standard. Tanke and Callaghan are quite different in terms of design but not so as regards philosophy. Tanke was the first venture by the company to create a brand when we had neither the resources nor the tools that we have today. We were looking for a product with important added value and a distinct personality. Due to a registration problem we had to abandon the brand and we created Callaghan, maximising the efforts of the design department. Now we are working on an update of the Tanke model, with the aim of incorporating it in our range for autumn/winter 2009/2010.