Our Story
Historic Origins, Modern Amenities
We have a rich history here in Lititz, and we want to share it with you. From shirts to shows, Lititz Shirt Factory is rich in history and culture.
1916
The Lititz Shirt Factory began making men’s shirts in 1916 as the Tauber Ryttenberg and Company Shirt Factory. For decades, the humming of sewing machines could be heard from the 3-story brick warehouse. Eventually, competition from cheaper labor overseas caused the company to shut its doors. Through the years, the building played many roles in retail but often sat empty and finally fell into disrepair.
2016-2020
Then in 2016, Lititz native Jim Hoffer bought the building with the dream of restoring it into a special gathering place for the community.
Four years of painstaking restoration work by the Tono Group of Lancaster has breathed new life into this old brick structure. It is now home to Collusion Tap Works, serving artisan beers and tasty food. And upstairs, in a unique loft-style space, The Lititz Shirt Factory hosts musicians from around the nation while providing private rental space for nearly any special occasion. Come join the fun at Lititz’s newest gathering place.
Meet Jim
Jim is the founder of Lititz Shirt Factory as we know it today. Here's a bit about his story:
Rundown. Ramshackle. Those are the words Jim uses to describe 5 Juniper Lane, Lititz, when he got the idea to buy the building that would become Lititz Shirt Factory. The old factory started making men’s shirts in 1916 as the Tauber Ryttenberg and Company Shirt Factory. The hum of sewing machines filled the warehouse for decades and the building saw many uses over the years. Recently, for several years, the building sat empty. One hundred years after Tauber Ryttenberg and Company, Jim decided to make it a “shirt factory” once again.
“The building wasn’t for sale, and I just remember running by the old brick warehouse and noticing it was empty. It just kind of spoke to me,” Jim notes. “Here’s this big brick building one block from the square and it’s empty. How’s this possible? I knew I could work as an investigative journalist until I dropped dead, but I wanted to retire. I needed to find out if I could do something else in my life.”
Jim Ultimately persuaded the owner to part with the building. At age 59, Jim left a successful career behind him and followed a path of circumstance and serendipity. He admits he did not really have a plan for the building when he bought it in 2016. He was still living in New York at the time and hopping back and forth between the Big Apple and Lititz on the weekends. Teaming up with TONO Group architects – the same firm that adapted the building in which LUCA is located – Jim transformed the space into something that encompasses two of his life’s passions: beer and live music.
“I thought, ‘Let’s bring these two things that I love together,” says Jim, who started searching for the right brewer to bring into the space. “I wanted to really like their beer if they were going to be my tenant in the building.”
