Company
About Us
You may already be familiar with our products and services. But what about the people and values behind them? Find out here what convictions guide us – and why we are a reliable partner at your side.
What we stand for
Expertise
SETTING STANDARDS WITH EXCELLENCE AND EXPERTISE.
MARTOR is the leading international partner for safe cutting solutions. As a family-owned company based in Solingen, Germany, we have been combining quality with innovation for over 80 years to manufacture premium cutting tools for industrial and professional use.
Safety
PROTECTING PEOPLE AND GOODS.
Safety is our top priority – for the people who work with our products and for the goods they process every day. Our cutting solutions minimise the risk of injury while helping to prevent damage to packaging contents. This is how we protect what matters – in every application.
Responsibility
SHAPING THE WORLD OF TOMORROW IN A RESOURCE-EFFICIENT WAY.
We understand responsibility in a comprehensive sense – ecologically, economically and socially. We develop products that conserve resources, are durable and ensure safe working conditions. At the same time, we take responsibility for people: for our employees and their families, for the region in which we are rooted, and for our partners worldwide. Together, we are shaping a working world that secures the future – for people, the environment and society.
partnership
INSPIRE ENTHUSIASM AND MAKE PEOPLE FEEL GOOD.
Our customers are our focus. With innovative products, well-designed services, and a commitment to partnership, we accompany them on their journey toward greater safety, efficiency, and ergonomics. But our enthusiasm doesn't stop with our customers: we also want to impress our suppliers, sales partners, and employees—and turn them into true MARTOR fans. Because that's what drives us: working together to make the working day more enjoyable with MARTOR—in short: a good day, for sure.
Martor in figures
The management
SOLINGEN
WISCONSIN
GUNDERSHOFFEN
HERTFORDSHIRESOLINGENWISCONSINGUNDERSHOFFENHERTFORDSHIRE
We are family
MARTOR is a genuine family business. Even as a child, I often visited the office and tried to actively support my grandparents and parents. Today, as a representative of the third generation, I bear sole responsibility as the sole shareholder: for MARTOR as an employer, ensuring that it provides our wonderful employees with a reliable professional home. And for sustainable growth. From our headquarters in Solingen, we want to consolidate our position in a secure working environment and further expand our market leadership. However, I am also committed to ensuring that this is done in line with our ecological, economic and social sustainability goals."
SONJA HENDRICKS
SHAREHOLDER
Why MARTOR?
Our company founder, E. Helmut Beermann, was looking for a short, memorable and unique name that would also work internationally – and came up with: MARTOR. He was inspired by the marten, with its razor-sharp teeth. This is understandable at a time when E. Helmut Beermann mainly traded in razor blades. But the name is also fitting today. In addition to the sharpness of its teeth, the marten is characterised by its extremely strong bite force in relation to its body size. If you try one of our safety knives, you may also think: it's impressive how much power and cutting performance is packed into such a compact handle.
FAQ About the Company
MARTOR is an internationally active family-owned company based in Solingen. The company develops and manufactures professional cutting tools, particularly safety knives for industry, logistics, retail, and other professional applications. As a leader in quality and innovation, MARTOR continually sets new standards for safe and efficient cutting.
The history of MARTOR began in 1940. E. Helmut Beermann, who was just shy of 20 at the time, registered a commission business for razor blades in Gevelsberg, thereby laying the foundation for today’s company.
Yes. MARTOR is now in its third generation of family ownership. Sole shareholder Sonja Hendricks is the granddaughter of the company’s founder and is responsible for the company’s long-term and sustainable development.
MARTOR describes its corporate values using the four terms: expertise, safety, responsibility, and partnership. These values are reflected both in its cutting solutions and in its interactions with customers, employees, suppliers, and distribution partners.
MARTOR aims to protect both the people doing the cutting and the packaged goods. That is why its cutting solutions are designed to reduce the risk of injury while also preventing damage to the contents of the packaging.
MARTOR views responsibility from an environmental, economic, and social perspective. This includes durable and resource-efficient products, safe working conditions, a reliable professional environment, and a commitment to the region and international partners.
MARTOR aims not only to supply customers with products, but also to support them over the long term on their journey toward greater safety, ergonomics, and efficiency. This commitment to partnership extends equally to suppliers, dealers, and employees.
Daniel Otto and Dr. Gregor Langer serve as the company's executives. Their work focuses on safe cutting solutions, sustainable growth, and MARTOR as a reliable employer.
The name comes from the marten. Company founder E. Helmut Beermann was inspired by the marten’s sharp teeth and powerful bite—qualities that also symbolize high-performance cutting tools.
It all began with razor blades from Solingen. The first blade marketed by E. Helmut Beermann was called NUR DIE; later, other tools were added, and eventually knives with replaceable blades were introduced.
In 1958, MARTOR became a manufacturer specializing in knives with replaceable Blades. Even the early UNIVERSAL and SPEZIAL models were designed to meet a variety of cutting needs.
In 1976, MARTOR introduced the PROFI, the world’s first TÜV-certified safety knife. The aluminum knife featured a patented automatic blade retraction mechanism and represented a major advance in workplace safety.
One of the early MARTOR knives with a concealed blade was the RUCKZUCK from the 1970s, which proved particularly effective for cutting plastic film and strapping. The securely shielded blade remains the foundation of the SECUMAX product family to this day.
In 1995, MARTOR developed the fully automatic blade retraction system, which is even safer than the automatic blade retraction system. With this system, the blade retracts into the handle as soon as it leaves the material being cut—even if the user continues to operate the blade trigger.
In 2005, MARTOR introduced its MDP safety knives for sensitive industries. The metal detectable plastic helps food and pharmaceutical companies, in particular, to detect potential foreign objects in the production process. In addition, the MDP metal handles are stainless and uncoated, and the blades are also stainless.
The company is headquartered in Solingen, the historic center of the German cutlery industry. There, MARTOR develops and manufactures its professional cutting tools for the domestic and international markets.
The MARTOR Group includes MARTOR KG in Germany, as well as MARTOR SARL in France, MARTOR USA, and MARTOR UK. The four locations serve customers in their respective regions with products, Consulting service, and other services.
In addition to its headquarters in Solingen, MARTOR has locations in Green Bay, Wisconsin; Gundershoffen in northeastern France; and Kings Langley, near London. From these locations, the company serves North America, France, North Africa, the United Kingdom, and Ireland, among other regions.
MARTOR operates in more than 80 countries across all five continents. In addition to its own subsidiaries, the company collaborates with international technical and sales partners.
MARTOR has about 200 employees and a product line of more than 550 items. Its product range includes safety knives, high-quality blades, safety scissors, and Accessories.
Due to its international growth, MARTOR began expanding its headquarters in 2019. Among other things, a new administrative building and a new manufacturing facility were constructed, and the existing areas were modernized.
MARTOR WORLD is the showroom that opened in 2023 at the company’s headquarters in Solingen. There, visitors can experience the brand, the various professional tools, and safe and efficient cutting firsthand. The space also serves as a training and event venue. Since its opening, the showroom has won many major design awards—from the Red Dot Award BEST OF BEST to the iF Design Award and the BrandEx Award in Gold.
MARTOR has established sustainable growth as a strategic guideline. This includes, among other things, its own sustainability strategy and regular, standardized reports in accordance with the German Sustainability Code. Two examples of the company’s commitment to sustainability are the increased use of recycled plastic and the installation of a photovoltaic system at the company’s headquarters.
MARTOR uses the “ECO by MARTOR” label to identify all products made entirely or partially from recycled plastic. These include new products as well as redesigned safety knives that were previously made from conventional plastic. The use of recycled plastic results in CO2 savings of up to 77% per product. The plastic is typically glass fibre reinforced to increase its strength and durability.
The percentage of recycled plastic in the handle or handle housing is as high as 98%. This is the case with the SECUMAX 350 SE from MARTOR, an all-purpose knife with an interchangeable blade head. Since it is plastic-coated, this blade head also consists of 62% recycled plastic. The SECUNORM 175 cardboard knife also has a recycled content of 98%. The highest recycled content among disposable knives is 82%, which applies to the SECUMAX 148 and SECUMAX 150. No ECO by MARTOR product has a recycled content of less than 60% in the handle or handle housing.
As part of its sustainability goals, MARTOR places great emphasis on regional sourcing. Approximately 85% of components come from the EU, and approximately 75% from Germany. MARTOR sources about two-thirds of all parts from within a radius of just 250 km. Short transport distances and reliable supply chains contribute to MARTOR’s high delivery quality.
At MARTOR, more than 90% of the individual and outer cartons are made from recycled material, and 100% are recyclable. No plastic film or plastic is used.
In addition, MARTOR is increasingly packaging its products in FSC-certified cardboard boxes—starting with its safety knives made from Recycled plastic.