Company Portrait

Our company Philosophy

Graf is a small Swiss company located in Sulgen, Switzerland. We are young, innovative professionals that enjoy working together in a small business environment. We are committed to the quality of our product, the care of our customers, and environmentally responsible manufacturing.

Locals Timbers

Ninety-eight percent of the wood we use in our sleds is native timber. Our wood buyer personally selects standing Ash trees in the one of Switzerland’s managed forests. This practice gives us complete control from the moment the tree is felled until it leaves our shop in the form of a finished product. (Details can be found here.)

Ecology

Nothing is wasted. We use scrap wood in a high-efficiency boiler to run our steam generators used for bending the sled’s runners, heating the factory and the adjacent houses.

Our History

In March of 1930, Graf founder Ernst Graf started a business in the northern part of Switzerland. As a trained cartwright, Mr. Graf specialized in building and repair of wagons, carriages and agriculture implements for the local farming community.

In 1937, Mr. Garf purchased a wood bending apparatus. This new piece of equipment gave the company a newfound capability- one that would sustain and grow the company well into the next century.

In April 1964, brothers Herbert and Ernst Graf acquired the company from their father. In the early 1970’s the company produced a number of steam bent products including hockey sticks, curved chair backs and other furniture components. Over the years, Graf has become an industry leader in the art of steam bending wood.

The allure of winter sports captured the brother’s attention and in 1978 Graf began designing and manufacturing sleds. Since then, the company has produced over 70,000 sleds- all hand made in Switzerland proudly bearing the Graf name.

© GRAF Sleds and Luges