Merz b. Schwanen is a German clothing company known to produce on original loop-wheelers with organic materials in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

History

Originally, Merz b. Schwanen was founded by Balthasar Merz as "Balthasar Merz beim Schwanen" on the Swabian Alps in 1911 and remained a family owned business until 2008. Globalization processes dominated the following decades of the 20th century, which caused a decline of the German textile industry because of both, foreign companies and domestic companies, that outsourced parts of their value chain to low-wage countries. Eventually Balthasar Merz beim Schwanen could not keep up with those companies and was forced to close its gates in 2008 due to a lack of orders.

Relaunch

After finding an original Balthasar Merz beim Schwanen Henley shirt at a flea market in Berlin, menswear designer Peter Plotnicki and his wife Gitta teamed up with one of the last remaining textile factories in Albstadt, a small town on the

Swabian Jura The Swabian Jura (german: Schwäbische Alb , more rarely ), sometimes also named Swabian Alps in English, is a mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, extending from southwest to northeast and in width. It is named after the region of ...

. After reevaluating the traditional way of production by using the same old loopwheelers and receiving the rights to utilize the name "Merz b. Schwanen" from descendants of Balthasar Merz, the brand made was relaunched in 2011. The first Menswear collection was shown at the

Bread and Butter tradeshow Bread&Butter was an annual Berlin-based event and a year-round online shopping hub by Zalando. Access to pre-launches and rare items, with a particular focus on streetwear and sneakers, is part of Bread&&Butter’s DNA. Brands such as Vans, adidas ...

in January 2011 in Berlin. All products are designed by Peter and Gitta Plotnicki in Berlin, where the company´s headquarter is based. The production is still located in Albstadt. Since its release, Merz b. Schwanen is sold in more than 35 countries. The brand has been collaborating with brands and designers like Nigel Cabourn,

Junya Watanabe Junya Watanabe (born 1961) is a Japanese fashion designer, a protégé of Comme des Garçons designer Rei Kawakubo. He continues to work for Comme des Garcons: His atelier is located on the second floor of its Tokyo headquarters, and he produces f ...

Rowing Blazers Rowing Blazers is an American clothing and accessories brand founded by Jack Carlson. The brand is known for its blazers, rugby shirts, and other apparel, as well as its colorful, slightly subversive take on "preppy" style, its celebrity cliente ...

and

Monocle A monocle is a type of corrective lens used to correct or enhance the visual perception in only one eye. It consists of a circular lens, generally with a wire ring around the circumference that can be attached to a string or wire. The other ...

Products

The company produces

T-shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt), or tee, is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a ''crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shirts are general ...

Henley shirt A Henley shirt is a collarless pullover shirt, characterized by a round neckline and a placket about long and usually having 2–5 buttons. It essentially is a collarless polo shirt. The sleeves may be either short or long, and it can be made i ...

sweatshirts A sweatshirt is a long-sleeved pullover shirt fashioned out of thick, usually cotton cloth material. Sweatshirts are almost exclusively casual attire and hence not as dressy as some sweaters. Sweatshirts may or may not have a hood. A sweatshirt w ...

sweatpants Sweatpants are a casual variety of soft trousers intended for comfort or athletic purposes, although they are now worn in many different situations. In the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa they are known as ...

undergarment Undergarments, underclothing, or underwear are items of clothing worn beneath outer clothes, usually in direct contact with the skin, although they may comprise more than a single layer. They serve to keep outer garments from being soiled o ...

s and socks for men and women with styles referencing vintage workwear and sportswear to contemporary garments. The shirts have been praised by fashion insiders such as Nick Carvell from

British GQ ''GQ'' (formerly ''Gentlemen's Quarterly'' and ''Apparel Arts'') is an American international monthly men's magazine based in New York City and founded in 1931. The publication focuses on fashion, style, and culture for men, though articles on ...

as one of the most comfortable, as well as best-looking shirts, one will own. Most garments are made of 100% organic cotton from Greece without chemical finishings, with different thicknesses or alternatively of cotton blends with

Viscose Rayon is a semi-synthetic fiber, made from natural sources of regenerated cellulose, such as wood and related agricultural products. It has the same molecular structure as cellulose. It is also called viscose. Many types and grades of viscose ...

Merino wool The Merino is a breed or group of breeds of domestic sheep, characterised by very fine soft wool. It was established in Spain near the end of the Middle Ages, and was for several centuries kept as a strict Spanish monopoly; exports of the breed ...

. Another characteristic of Merz b. Schwanen garments is the woven label which is manufactured with a hand-made punch cards on historical looms from the 19th century.

References

External links

Official WebsiteBridesmaid Dresses
{{DEFAULTSORT:Merz b. Schwanen Clothing brands of Germany Underwear brands Companies based in Baden-Württemberg German brands Clothing companies of Germany