In October 2022, the Hultafors Group acquired Martinez Tool Co, a USA brand best known for their customizable titanium hammers.
Hultafors has a number of tool brands in their corporate portfolio, such as Johnson Level and CLC. The Hultafors Group is owned by an investment company, Investment AB Latour, that is based in Sweden.
The President of the Hultafors Group North America says:
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Our intention is to build on this strong heritage and continue to operate Martinez Tool Co as a separate brand in our existing portfolio.
The company has explained their reasoning for the acquisition:
The acquisition is part of Hultafors Group’s strategy to broaden our product portfolio with innovative brands for professional end users and has high strategic importance as it can help us to further penetrate the US market with an attractive Made in the USA premium brand.
Also:
Martinez Tool Co had $6 million in revenue 2021 with high double-digit growth and a profitability above Hultafors Group.
Mark Martinez, the owner and face of the tool brand, provided a statement via press materials:
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I see Hultafors Group as the perfect long-term owner for Martinez Tool Co as they share my passion for innovation, superior quality and customer service. We already have many exciting projects planned and look forward to starting this journey together.
Discussion
To be frank, I do not have the highest opinion of the Hultafors Group’s tool brands these days.
As far as I can tell, CLC still makes decent high-value tool bags, but it seems Johnson Level has gradually slipped out of relevancy over the years. When is the last time they innovated in their space?
For instance, Johnson Level looks to have a new seemingly rebranded contour gauge at Lowe’s, but that doesn’t count, as there are countless look-a-likes on Amazon. They launched a value-priced 2-pack of rafter squares last year (made in China), but nothing similar appeared at Lowe’s for the 2022 holiday season.
Speaking specifically of this acquisition, I deeply trust the word of Mark Martinez. His name’s on the brand, and his mission has been to produce better products for carpenters and other discerning tool users.
Read Also: 3 Things to Know About Martinez Tools
Customers have always been Martinez’s top priority, and it doesn’t look like that has changed or will change, as long as he’s involved. Knowing his history with other tool brands, I am confident that Martinez made his involvement and continued direction an ironclad part of the acquisition.
Maybe future Martinez Tool products can also bring some life back to Hultafor’s Johnson Level and CLC tool and gear brands.
Nathan
Interesting and I’m glad you explained a bit more on who hultafors was as I was going to have to go look that up.
I have dubious thoughts on this but I’m not surprised.
Jim Felt
Yes. Shouldn’t we all? Until proven otherwise…
Nestor
Busco un contacto para una garantía ya que no tuve respuesta con un correo gracias si pueden contactarme
Stuart
Which company are you having difficulty contacting?
Stuart
My understanding is that Martinez essentially came out out of retirement to build his new brand, not out of necessity but the desire to build a better product and fill what he saw was a growing need.
Mark’s quote about Hultafors being “the perfect long-term owner” means he has ensured the survival of his legacy.
Munklepunk
I have a hultafors construction pencil, it’s quite nice
Big Richard
Their axes are outstanding. On par with Granfors, imo.
Jared
I was going to say that Hultafors knives, chisels and axes are all pretty decent stuff as far as I’m concerned. Not to say that should assuage Stuart’s feelings about their treatment of brands under their ownership.
Norse
I have very mixed feelings on this. Martinez was a top tier brand. I own one of their hammers with both a smooth and waffle head. The quality and functionality are top notch. On the other hand Johnson levels are not highly regarded in my world of high end residential construction. Stabila rules that roost. I had a set of CLC nail bags when I was apprenticing as a carpenter 20 years ago. They fit my budget. As soon as I could afford a set of Occidental tool bags, I upgraded and have enjoyed the same set for the past 18 years. Another top tier American brand. I really fear that we just lost another great American tool company to a corporate conglomeration that will only care about making money. I am sure that Mark Martinez did well in the deal, and I cannot blame him. A guy has to retire sometime. I will certainly miss having his daughter answer my customer emails. I guess that I can count myself fortunate to have gotten to enjoy a good thing while it lasted.
Jason
I could be off base here, but it seems like Mark started Stiletto built it up and then sold it to Milwaukee. After his non compete ran out he started Martinez to compete with his old company. If I was Hultafors I would be making sure that non compete is a couple decades long. Never swung a Martinez but having used stiletto – switching to titanium is life changing if you’re a regular swinging hammers.
Nathan
I was thinking something like that but wasn’t sure.
fred
Some years back, I was gifted a Hultafors tape measure:
https://www.amazon.com/Hultafors-Talmeter-Marking-Measure-Tape/dp/B0041YQFY6/
It’s sort of oddball design intrigued me – but I’ve never reached for it after the first trial uses.
Jared
That’s an interesting one.
What’s the tail for – does it add a fixed amount to the length for inside measurements? e.g read the tape, add 6″ or whatever?
The rest of it makes sense, to one degree or another. I imagine it’s the sort of thing you’d have to practice with for it to add any useful speed or utility over any decent tape measure.
Marking the measurement seems handy – but then I wonder if that’s as accurate and repeatable as just putting a pencil/knife mark right were it lines up with your tape.
fred
Before tape measures even existed. woodworkers would use wooden bar gauges to transfer inside measurements. In their simplest form a bar gauge is just 2 sticks with pointed ends that can be used to transfer the inside measurement from one object (like a drawer) to another. The Veritas bar gauge heads web page gives you some idea about this:
https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/tools/hand-tools/marking-and-measuring/32585-veritas-bar-gauge-heads?item=05N3101
Carpenters also used extension rules to take inside measurements:
https://www.amazon.com/US-Tape-55160-Fiberglass-extension/dp/B0017JW80I
You might accomplish the same thing with a tape measure using the side of the case (usually the size of this is shown along the side) and a locked tape. I guess that Hultafors felt that the short tailpiece and a locked main tape – provides a bit more precision.
JoeM
Mark Martinez himself is still running the company as far as innovation and manufacturing. He’s on Instagram at least once a week with updates, and such.
He has also said, as far as the aquisition goes, it just means someone else is handling the business end, while he goes back to the machine work, and the designs of new tools. He gets to innovate, and revolutionize Martinez Tools to his heart’s content, and the new company provides the resources to allow him to do it.
So Mark, as long as he is alive, is dedicated to expanding everything that “His” company does, details oriented the way he wants them, and he gets to do both prototyping, as well as production control. the past… 4? Posts on Instagram have been about this large Framing Square that, according to him, he wasn’t happy about from Johnson. So he remade their design in Titanium, to His standards, and has done several demos in conjunction with already-existing Martinez products, demonstrating why Martinez makes it better than Johnson. Which, if you’re smart, means that Martinez may start making other Hultafors tools under Mark’s supervision,In the USA. And using a significant amount more Titanium in the lineups.
I’ve been following the situation since Mark announced it on Instagram. He’s not retiring from anything. He’s letting someone else do the business, while he gets to play his favourite game: Invent your way out of every problem that tools have.
Maybe Hultafors companies willl get a bottom-up boost from Mark Martinez taking swings at their tools?
Jeremiah
According to a former Martinez Tools supervisor and former sales representative; there is the public version of what is being said and what isn’t being mentioned. I’ve known this sales rep for decades and you don’t last in this industry this long without knowing the in’s and out’s. Not my place to share intimate details; but what isn’t being said is it’s become increasingly expensive with a great deal of frustration to run a domestic manufacturing business in California. High taxes, nightmarish time finding people willing to work and so much red tape; I personally don’t blame Mark for getting out while the getting is good.
That supervisor told me point blank, there is a an absolute shortage of workers; yet there is a wide open demand for work. Yet, especially with the millennials and young people; they don’t want to work. Instead they want to play on social media. My kids and grand kids aren’t this way; I made it so they learned the value of hard work and importance of a good education.
Back in my day and I am 65; there was a pride in working and especially pride in factory where you made a contribution to a product made in your state and country. Bluntly put I don’t blame Mark; I retired two years ago as I had enough. Believe me, I tried to be a good mentor to millennials and young people in general; yet with very, very few exceptions far too many want handouts and lack discipline.
Wesley Penn
Mark sold his company for his reasons. We as tool buyer’s and users are right to hope that the quality will remain but also right to be concerned about the future of the company.
That being said blaming this on the idea that “No one wants to work anymore”. Is complete and utter BS. It was a lie in 1894 just as much as it is a lie today. (And in case you don’t know what I am referring to here is a link to Snopes explaining. https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/nobody-wants-to-work-anymore/). What was Mark paying his employees? What were the benefits? How were the workers treated? Apparently we can’t ask that or rather don’t need too because “No one wants to work anymore!”
And California. It’s always the fault of California. Which I get it you mean those “@&^% Democrats and their slightly left of center ideas, ruining this nation!” That must have been what destroyed Malco’s Eagle Grips right? Oh, no wait they were in Iowa.
And yes, of course in your day..pride, manufacturing, factories. But, remember we stopped making things in the US in the 80’s. It’s all made in China now. So what factory jobs are there for these kids to get and take pride in? Malco? Oh right people complained that they didn’t want to spend 50 bucks on pliers when they could get something good enough from Harbor Freight for like 5 bucks.
Also, you know Millennials are entering their 40’s now right? But you were so fed up with your rapidly-approaching-middle-age coworkers that you retired….when you were eligible for retirement benefits.
Ryan
Wesley, in California until 2021 for roughly 40+ years I owned a small yet successful construction business. Myself, my son, brother, grandson and for 30 years my Father ran this business paying a great wage, benefits and we treated everyone as if they were family. Then the shutdowns/lockdowns happened I was fined several hundreds of dollars for making it so my employees could feed their families and keeping their benefits. In addition to paying high taxes. These fines continued and despite all I did is give my community a place to earn an honest living. These lockdowns and fines forced me to sell my business that my family created.
Most of my then workers were in their 50’s and try as I might I couldn’t get younger people to work. As what was mentioned; it’s mostly social media that is the issue.
Potato
Complains about nobody wanting to work anymore
Talks about retiring after having enough
Complains about social media
Made lengthy diatribe on online on
I’m sure you were a great mentor and absolutely not out of touch at all.
Franco
I can relate to this at my company.
They were very big on hiring young people, under 30, early 20’s. We are in I.T. sales of the top name hardware, software and various IT services. And we are a 12 billion/year company.
I saw so many of these young people come and go…very high turnover. Some of these “kids” were good at sales and in their 2nd year would be making $80-$120K. Then all of a sudden leave. Not for more money at a competitor, but “I don’t know, maybe try something different” or some other whimsical idea.
I knew one of the trainers very well and would often ask why they always hired so many young people and his answer was that is what the company wanted.
I always told him you need to hire mid 30’s and up, married with kids and a mortgage. These people won’t leave a 6 figure salary because they feel like trying something else.
And this was before the pandemic and when millennials were just hitting the job market. Now, not looking good.
“May you live in interesting times” is supposedly a Chinese curse. I think it has caught up to us.
Harrold
Likewise I can also relate as for more than 50+ years I owned a small construction business founded by my grandfather. Myself, my Dad, Grandfather treated our employees far better than most as we remained competitive in the market with terrific benefits and pay. Never once did we force our employees to do anything I myself wouldn’t do myself and believe me after 50 years in the industry very few can say that with a straight face.
My guess is Mark and I don’t know the guy from Adam realized like me; finding quality help these days is very challenging, the markets for the “little guys” is being crunched so badly it’s pushing out all but the giant corporations that were allowed to be open at full capacity and either could withstand fines or weren’t fined at all. Let alone weren’t ever shut down or threatened to be shut down.
Not all, but the majority of the younger people I employed within the last decade constantly left on their own, stopped showing up to work and or after much patience I was forced to fire due to either very poor attendance or performance. Yet as Franco said the mid 30’s and older employees tended to be terrific and many of them stayed with my company until the end. Largely they had families, mortgages and bills that needed to be paid.
Trust me; I wanted to continue to provide valuable contributions with my company to my local community. Yet I the choices I was forced to make was to sell my business or end up completely bankrupt. This wasn’t voluntarily and being that I roughly Mark’s age if not a little older; starting over isn’t an option as I no longer have the physical or at this point in my life mental capability to do so.
Wish more people; especially the younger generations would realize these shutdowns/lockdowns/forced closures caused many small businesses such as myself that gladly would and did hire so many people out of business. Most will never return and this will forever leave a void where once there was a vibrant community.
Wesley Penn
While Johnson has certaiy gone down hill I have to vehemently disagree with you about Hultafors. To my mind they currently make some of the best “builders” tools on the planet. By this I mean they are high quality, but safe for a job site.
Chisels: I have a complete set of the HDC chisels (had to order some from the company) and to me, they are the ideal carpenters chisel: easy to sharpen, designed to be used in rough situations, hold a good edge, brush off most mistreatment, and are full tang. Would I use them for percise joinery? No, but I also won’t have a heart attack If I drop one unlike a Blue Spruce or Veritas. Check them out at: https://www.hultafors.com/products/chisels/H0294-chisel-hdc/80510
Saws: As I was Learning carpentry from my father, he empasized devoping skills with both hand and power tools. So, I got to know the quality of his Diston hand-saws quite well. Then I stumbled across a Sandvik #277 on closeout at a local hardware store, and learned just how good tools not made in America could be as it blew the Distons out of the water. The 3 Hultafors saws I have bought (crosscut, tennon saw, and tool box) are even better than the Sandvik and again, seem to be built to take the typical jobsite beating in stride. (https://www.hultafors.com/products/saws)
I’ve also picked up a few of their hammers, and a chisel knife and find all to be of very good quality to great quality.
Now, do I know if Martinez Tools will stay as high quality as they have been? No. And yeah I can imagine the holding company over all of this cutting corners and quality for profit. But seriously Hultafors tools themselves are outstanding and I would encourage anyone to give them a try.
Joe H
I’m familiar with Hultafor’s axes which are excellent and I prefer them to Gransfors Bruk.
Grande Gonzalez
Johnson products suck most of their stuff is junk bought two adjustable squares 12″they both busted at the adjustable pin garbage will never buy their products again and let my fellow tradesmen to not waste their money spend a little more buy American