Design Berlin

Design Berlin is a German pipe manufacturer whose origins date to 1948, when Hubert Hartmann founded Pfeifenstudio Hartmann in Berlin. The company employed craftsmen from the established pipe-making region of Thuringia and subsequently developed from a producer of simple everyday pipes into a maker of higher-quality briar pipes, special models and freehands.

Pipe maker and designer Lothar Schirwitz, who joined the company in 1954, played an important role in this development. His influence introduced more contemporary, Danish-inspired forms and improved production standards, with the Design Berlin name being adopted around 1975.

The range became particularly associated with briar construction, 9mm filter systems, varied series and distinctive shapes. In 1993 Design Berlin also acquired the former HOWAL works in Schweina, Thuringia, connecting the company with a pipe-making site whose history stretches back to C.S. Reich in 1887.

Design Berlin pipes offer an appealing combination of established German pipe-making practice and more expressive European design, with styles ranging from familiar classics to unusual freehand-inspired pieces.