KOTO over time
On June 19, 1947, the company KOTEKS was founded, the predecessor of today’s KOTO Company. The company’s rich history testifies to its continuous search for new business opportunities, ensuring its development and survival even during the most turbulent periods.
Our Beginnings
The company KOTEKS began its export activity of finished products and pig leather in 1947, with pig leather being its main export product. In 1952, the company expanded its activities to include the collection of slaughterhouse waste, and two years later, an export-import company named Tobus was established to promote the leather industry’s exports. At the end of 1961, both companies merged into one, forming Koteks Tobus.
In 1966, a facility for processing animal by-products was built in Zalog, and a year later, the first boutique in the country, offering high-quality fashion leather products, was opened in the center of Ljubljana. The boutique was considered one of the most prestigious in Ljubljana and was even visited by Jovanka Broz. Koteks Tobus was well-known at that time for its high-quality leather products, which were successfully exported abroad. Consequently, in 1974, we became one of the largest Slovenian exporters.
In the 1970s, a legendary commercial “Koža je za KOTO” (“Leather is for KOTO”) was also broadcasted on television, and many still remember it today.