Natascha von Hirschhausen

Production locations

• Design & prototypes: Berlin-Mitte, Germany
• Assembly: Berlin-Weißensee and near Cottbus, Germany

Working conditions & wages

The brand states that all components across the entire supply chain are independently audited each year against high social and environmental standards. 

For the organic cotton, there is a Fair for Life agreement, intended to give producers greater predictability and social security.

Final production takes place in small workshops in and around Berlin. On its website, the brand communicates that it produces exclusively under fair and transparent conditions.

The brand names its partner workshops and maintains a close, personal relationship with its producers.

Materials

• Organic cotton, according to the brand grown from GMO-free, chemically untreated seed, cultivated without chemical pesticides and hand-picked without chemical defoliants. Certifications: IVN Best, Fair for Life.
• Organic wool (merino), from a cooperative in Uruguay with certified organic animal husbandry. According to the brand, the wool is processed into boiled wool in Austria using only mountain spring water and heat, entirely without chemicals or softeners.
• Elastic band: 50% organic cotton, 50% natural rubber. According to the brand, the rubber comes from fair trade in Malaysia and is tested food-safe. Production takes place in a family-run Austrian business with its own hydroelectric plant.
• Sewing thread: organic cotton, according to the brand potentially biodegradable.
• Buttons: 100% mother-of-pearl, horn or tagua nut.
• Fastenings: metal.
• Care label: organic cotton.

Packaging

According to the brand, shipping relies exclusively on recycled paper and reused cardboard boxes. The packaging is therefore entirely plastic-free.

Water use & chemicals

The brand states that it avoids chemical pesticides and defoliants in cotton cultivation. This protects the soil, the water and the health of workers. 
The wool, according to the brand, is treated exclusively with spring water and heat.

For the zero-waste trouser suit, the brand gives concrete figures: freshwater use is said to fall by more than 97% compared with conventional production, CO₂ emissions by over 60% and land use by over 87%. According to the brand, these values were calculated independently by Made2Flow in 2021. They relate to this one product and not to the entire collection.

Because no synthetic fibres are used, there is no risk of microplastic shedding.

Circular product design

The heart of the brand is its zero-waste cutting design: the pattern pieces interlock like a puzzle, so that less than 1% of fabric is wasted. 
By comparison, in conventional production around 20% of fabric is lost during cutting. The offcuts are documented for each design and made visible in small pouches. Waste avoidance is a deliberate design decision at Natascha von Hirschhausen.

Most products are made from mono-materials and from natural fibres only (including the care label). This makes later recycling easier. The sewing thread, according to the brand, is potentially biodegradable.

Circular business model

The brand produces made to order and in small batches. This means there is no overproduction and no unsold stock. For fittings and questions, customers can contact the studio directly.

Natascha von Hirschhausen was awarded the prestigious Bundespreis Ecodesign in the Product category in 2017.

The brand offers a repair service.

Distance & complexity of the supply chain

• Raw materials: Uganda, Kyrgyzstan (cotton), Uruguay (wool), Malaysia (natural rubber), Indonesia (mother-of-pearl)
• Processing: Turkey (spinning), Czech Republic (weaving), Germany (finishing, printing), Austria (wool, elastic band)
• Final production: Berlin and surroundings, Germany
• Headquarters: Berlin, Germany

Transport

• The brand ships with DHL GoGreen.
• The raw materials sometimes travel long distances, but from the finished fabric onwards everything stays local: design, cutting and assembly all take place in and around Berlin. This keeps the final transport routes short and the supply chain manageable.

• Organic wool (merino): from Uruguay, from a cooperative with certified organic animal husbandry. According to the brand, the sheep live in small flocks, can roam freely, are fed a purely organic diet and are sheared gently.
• Mother-of-pearl and horn buttons: from Indonesia.

Product design

Natascha von Hirschhausen designs timeless, versatile pieces that are deliberately not tied to seasons or trends. According to the designer, the body is the starting point and the measure of every cut. The brand states that it questions common conventions around sizing and gender. The focus is on fit, quality and durability, because a garment is only truly worn for a long time when it is worn often and gladly.

Made-on-demand pieces are available on request.

Slow-fashion processes

The brand deliberately resists the pace of the fashion industry: no seasonal collections, no trend pressure, no overproduction. 
Production is made to order and in limited small batches. 

In addition, the team shares its knowledge in workshops on the zero-waste technique for students, companies and design teams.

Product transparency

On its website, the brand describes each individual component of its garments: from the cotton and the elastic band to the care label, each with its country of origin and certification. The offcuts of each design are documented as well.

Process transparency

The brand names its partner workshops in and around Berlin and describes the processing steps for each material. For the trouser suit, externally calculated environmental data from Made2Flow (2021) is available.