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The idea and the Story
Gerlinde Hofer grew up on her parents' farm in the idyllic village of Niederbrunnern (Sierning, Upper Austria). In 1982, at a young age, Gerlinde Hofer discovered her love and talent for floral art: she harvested flowers, dried grain and collected natural products in the rural environment. From those things she made bouquets and sold them in various regional markets.
In 1986 Gerlinde and Josef Hofer got married. The family was completed with their four children Florian, Elisabeth, Josef and Peter. In 1987 and 1989 the parents' farm bussiness was changed from pig and cattle farming to sheep farming. In addition to sheep farming and cheese production, the cultivation and processing of dried flowers was intensified. Gerlinde Hofer was one of the first seminar farmers to be recognized. For decades she was active as a course instructor with floral work and her bread baking courses.
Over time, the Hofer couple have not only redesigned the farm with a lot of love, extraordinary ideas and their joy for their work, but also created countless things that lighten up our lives.
In 1994 the first exhibition took place at the farm. 1995 was the first trade fair appearance for specialist dealers at the Creativ Salzburg - at that time still with grain and flower arrangements as well as hay design. At the same time the company Gerlinde Hofer - Florex GmbH was founded.
In 1998 the idea for the original Florex sheep milk soap finally followed, which was presented with great success at the Salzburg Exhibition Center in September. The sheep milk assortment was presented for the first time at the Trendset Munich trade fair two years later. In 2001, the Hofer family hosted a major event with 18,000 visitors: the first soap boiler festival “Fall at the farm”.
At that time, the Hofer family had already won several awards: Austrian agricultural marketing award winner in 1998 under the motto "where sheep's milk flows and grain sprouts" and start up business award winner from the state of Upper Austria.
In 2001 Gerlinde Hofer started another project - Choco-Lina chocolate made from sheep milk. The following year the company H&H Chocolademanufactur was founded and the first sheep milk chocolate was produced. A few years later, the idea was expanded and the sheep milk chocolate was made lactose-free for the first time. At the same time, organic goat milk chocolate came onto the market, which was awarded the DLG Golden Prize.
In 2010 our sheep "Lina" was presented as a plush sheep under the brand name LINA & LINA at the Nürnberg Toy Fair.
Cooking and baking is and always has been Gerlinde Hofer's great passion. In summer 2014, our baking and spice mixtures were presented for the first time at the Trendset trade fair. Another great success for H&H Chocolademanufaktur.
The range under the name "Favorite Products" is constantly being expanded with great joy and commitment.
In the course of time, the farm was expanded with great attention to detail with additions from the shipping and storage hall, as well as conversion of the hayloft to an office space. The family business with around 40 committed employees makes us a strong team!
Gerlinde Hofer – Florex GmbH
A success story with a future!