Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey is a Swiss cartographic publisher producing road maps, hiking maps, cycling maps, travel guides, and digital outdoor navigation tools, selling to consumers, Swiss retailers, and a 20+ country distributor network as a MairDumont Group subsidiary.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2002
- HeadquartersSchönbühl, Switzerland
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey does
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey AG is a Swiss cartographic publishing house headquartered in Schönbühl, Switzerland, producing and selling road maps, regional maps, city maps, hiking maps, cycling maps, travel guides, atlases, and panoramic maps under the Swisstravelcenter commercial brand. The company was formed in 2002 through the merger of two predecessor Swiss publishers — Hallwag AG (founded 1912, an early publisher of automotive road maps) and Kümmerly+Frey (founded 1852 as a lithographic printing works in Bern) — and has operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the MairDumont Group since 2016. The current organization is intentionally lean at approximately 15 employees spanning cartography, sales, marketing, product management, and field sales.
The product portfolio spans printed cartography at multiple scales (1:35,000 outdoor to 1:80,000 international coverage) and a growing digital layer that includes the HKF Outdoor mobile app (offline hiking and cycling maps, GPS navigation, live tracking), the web-based Online Tourenplaner for GPX track creation, and downloadable GPX data services. Sub-brands include the 35-volume Erlebnis Schweiz leisure series, GuideMe international travel guides, Grand Tour of Switzerland touring products, and the "Raus und…" image hiking series. Beyond its own titles, the firm holds exclusive Swiss distribution rights for international travel brands (Baedeker, Marco Polo, Dumont, Vis-à-Vis, Lonely Planet, promobil, Caravanning, Kunth Verlag) and for KOMPASS hiking maps.
Revenue is generated through three channels: one-time unit sales of physical maps and guides (priced CHF 16.90–29.90), an annual Hallwag Premium membership for enhanced digital features, and B2B wholesale/licensing income from third-party travel-brand distribution. Go-to-market combines direct-to-consumer e-commerce via swisstravelcenter.ch, regional field sales consultants covering Swiss cantons, Swiss retail bookstores and specialty outdoor stores, and an authorized distributor network spanning more than 20 countries. Primary customer segments are individual travelers and outdoor enthusiasts (B2C, fragmented long-tail demand), Swiss retail partners, and international distributors — supported by an official partnership with Switzerland Tourism.
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey
- Legal name
- Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey AG
- Website
- https://swisstravelcenter.ch
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2002
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey is a Swiss cartographic publisher producing road maps, hiking maps, cycling maps, travel guides, and digital outdoor navigation tools, selling to consumers, Swiss retailers, and a 20+ country distributor network as a MairDumont Group subsidiary.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cartographic Publishing and Travel Guides
- NAICS
- Book, Periodical, and Newspaper Merchant Wholesalers (424920)
- SIC
- Retail-Catalog & Mail-Order Houses (5961)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Review-Led Travel Discovery & Booking Platforms (THAKAAAN)
Keywords
Where Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Schönbühl
- HQ country
- Switzerland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others
Revenue model
- Paper Maps and Atlases: Physical map products including road maps, regional maps, hiking maps, cycling maps, city maps, panoramic maps, and wall maps. Products are sold through distributors, retailers, and directly via e-commerce.
- Travel and Leisure Guides: Printed travel guides, hiking guides, cycling guides, and leisure books including the Erlebnis Schweiz series and GuideMe travel books
- Digital Products and Premium Membership: Online tour planner, offline maps via app, and Hallwag Premium membership for enhanced digital features including saved tours, certified hiking routes, and map updates
- B2B Distribution Rights: Revenue from exclusive Swiss distribution rights for third-party travel guide brands (Baedeker, Marco Polo, Dumont, Lonely Planet, etc.) and KOMPASS hiking maps
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Outdoor Maps (1:35,000-1:80,000 scale) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Swiss Cycling Maps (1:60,000) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Swiss Hiking Maps (1:40,000-1:60,000) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Travel Guides (GuideMe, Erlebnis Schweiz) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Grand Tour Products |
| Subscription | Annual | Hallwag Premium Membership |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey is a Swiss publishing house that produces and sells printed cartographic products (road maps, city maps, hiking maps, cycling maps, panoramic and world maps, atlases) and travel guidebooks, alongside digital navigation and tour-planning tools (HKF Outdoor App, Online Tourenplaner, GPX data). It also holds exclusive Swiss distribution rights for KOMPASS hiking maps and major international travel guide brands such as Baedeker, Marco Polo, Dumont, Lonely Planet, promobil, Caravanning, and Kunth Verlag.
Product overview
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey is a Swiss publishing house offering a comprehensive portfolio of maps and travel guides. The core offering consists of physical products: road maps, city maps, hiking maps, cycling maps, and travel guides. These are complemented by digital products including the HKF Outdoor App (with GPS tracking, live tracking, and offline maps) and the Online Tourenplaner (web-based tour planning tool). The company operates under sub-brands including Erlebnis Schweiz (35-volume Swiss leisure series), Guide Me (international travel guides), and the Grand Tour of Switzerland series. Additional offerings include KOMPASS hiking maps (exclusively distributed), panoramic maps, world maps, thematic maps, GPX data services, and exclusive Swiss distribution of Baedeker, Marco Polo, Dumont, and Lonely Planet guide series. The company has a global distribution network and is part of the MairDumont Group.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Erlebnis Schweiz: Sports and leisure guide series covering 35 volumes of active leisure activities in Switzerland
- HKF Outdoor App
- GuideMe
- Grand Tour of Switzerland
- Raus und...
Products and services
- Strassenkarten (Road Maps)
Quantifiable outcome
- Leader in Swiss tourism publishing
Companies that use Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, primary, minor and secondary.
- Switzerland TourismcoreOfficial partner of Switzerland Tourism, the national tourism marketing organization. This partnership provides a solid presence in the Swiss tourism environment both domestically and abroad.
- MAIRDUMONTprimaryExclusive distributor for Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey products in Germany and Austria. Located in Ostfildern (Kemnat), Germany.
- Hema MapsprimaryDistributor for Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey products in Australia and New Zealand. Hema Maps Pty Ltd. based in Brisbane, Australia.
- GuideMeminorPartnership with GuideMe travel guide brand. GuideMe is featured as a product line and collaboration partner on the Swisstravelcenter platform.
- Baedeker, Marco Polo, Dumont, Vis-à-Vis, Lonely Planet, promobil, Caravanning, Kunth VerlagprimaryExclusive Swiss distributor for these internationally recognized travel guide brands, complementing the company's own tourism product portfolio.
- KOMPASSsecondaryDistribution partner for KOMPASS hiking maps and nature guides, which complement Hallwag's leisure and outdoor product range.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- KOMPASS: KOMPASS is a major DACH hiking and cycling map publisher whose products HKF distributes exclusively in Switzerland. Their content overlap (outdoor hiking/cycling guides, GPX data) makes KOMPASS a close category comparable, and they increasingly compete via their own digital platform (kompass.de).
- Hema Maps: Hema Maps is the dominant outdoor and touring map publisher in Australia and New Zealand, and HKF's exclusive distributor in those markets. Direct comparable in product format (outdoor touring, road atlases) and similar channel strategy (field sales + retail distribution + e-commerce).
- AA Publishing: AA Publishing produces UK road maps, atlases, and travel guides; comparable in the UK's tourism-mapping niche as HKF is in Switzerland's. Similar business model with maps + travel-guides, retail distribution, and growing digital tour/information products through AA Travel.
- Freytag & Berndt: Freytag & Berndt is a long-established Austrian publisher of maps, atlases, and travel guides covering Europe. Comparable in product mix (road maps, hiking maps, atlases, city maps) and B2B/distributor model, though they focus on the Austrian/European-wide market versus HKF's Swiss focus.
- Falk Verlag: Falk is the leading road and city map publisher in Germany, owned by MairDumont. It is HKF's most direct competitor in product format - road maps, city plans, and outdoor maps - though oriented to the German rather than Swiss market. Their shared ownership means both co-exist in MairDumont's portfolio.
Broad incumbents
- Michelin Travel Publications: Michelin publishes the Michelin Guide, Green Guide travel guides, and road maps (including folded maps). A broadly comparable incumbent in travel-guide and map publishing, with a much larger global footprint, especially stronger in road/route planning tourism content.
- Marco Polo Travel: Marco Polo (part of MairDumont) is a major German travel guide brand that HKF distributes in Switzerland. Direct overlap on travel-guide product format, with HKF's GuideMe brand closely modeled on Marco Polo positioning for city and destination guides.
- Lonely Planet: Lonely Planet is the world's largest travel guide publisher; HKF holds exclusive Swiss distribution rights for its print guides. While their core is city/destination travel guides versus HKF's mapping focus, both target the same end customer - independent travelers - and increasingly compete in digital destination content.
- National Geographic Maps: National Geographic publishes maps, atlases, and adventure travel guides with global brand reach. Comparable in high-quality outdoor and travel cartography at international scale, with stronger digital and licensing presence but weaker Switzerland-specific coverage.
- MairDumont GmbH & Co. KG: MairDumont is HKF's parent company and the largest travel publisher in the German-speaking world (Marco Polo, Baedeker, Dumont, Falk, Bruckmann). It is highly comparable as it operates the same publishing model at larger scale in DACH, with overlapping map brands (Falk road maps) and guide brands that HKF distributes in Switzerland.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey
What does Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey do?
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey is a Swiss publishing house that produces and sells printed cartographic products (road maps, city maps, hiking maps, cycling maps, panoramic and world maps, atlases) and travel guidebooks, alongside digital navigation and tour-planning tools (HKF Outdoor App, Online Tourenplaner, GPX data). It also holds exclusive Swiss distribution rights for KOMPASS hiking maps and major international travel guide brands such as Baedeker, Marco Polo, Dumont, Lonely Planet, promobil, Caravanning, and Kunth Verlag.
Is Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey a public or private company?
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey founded?
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey was founded in 2002. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey based?
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey is headquartered in Schönbühl, Switzerland, in the Europe region.
How does Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Paper Maps and Atlases are the primary driver. The others are travel and Leisure Guides, digital Products and Premium Membership and B2B Distribution Rights.
Who are Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are KOMPASS, Hema Maps, AA Publishing, Freytag & Berndt and Falk Verlag. Broad incumbents are Michelin Travel Publications, Marco Polo Travel, Lonely Planet, National Geographic Maps and MairDumont GmbH & Co. KG.
Does Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey have an API?
No public API is recorded for Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey.
What industry is Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey in?
Hallwag Kümmerly+Frey's product category is Cartographic Publishing and Travel Guides. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAKAAAN, Review-Led Travel Discovery & Booking Platforms. Its NAICS code is 424920 and its SIC code is 5961.