It all started with Julianna Mühlbauer, who opened a hat manufactory with a shop in Floridsdorf, a suburb of Vienna, in 1903. Mühlbauer in Vienna became known for hats of the highest quality through the efforts of her eldest son, Robert. In 2001, Klaus Mühlbauer, a fourth generation hat enthusiast, joined the company. Aside from returning the production to its roots and relying on hand processing of the best, sometimes traditional, materials, he is also responsible for internationalising the label and its products.

The Mühlbauer hat is synonymous with everyday fashion, fun and contemporary. It is for this reason that Mühlbauer pays great attention to design development, sometimes in collaboration with other well-known designer labels such as Kenzo, Junya Watanabe/Comme des Garçons, Akris, Vanessa Bruno, to name a few. The creations can also be made to measure in the Vienna shops. Incidentally, a real Mühlbauer can be recognised by the curved M which is on every item that leaves the workshop.