Novel natural windbreaker shows power of collaboration
Armedangels has eschewed fossil-based fabrics for what it describes as the first natural jacket of its kind. Sportstextiles spoke with the German brand’s product director, as well as to Lenzing and Montebelo, to hear about the work involved in creating its ‘most difficult product yet’
Expansion into performance and outerwear categories is often a natural step for a fast-growing clothing brand, but when the core company ethos is “nature over oil”, this can present some serious challenges. Almost all performance outerwear is made from polyester, nylon or other synthetic fabrics, which, combined with chemical-based coatings and finishings, enables the garments to offer comfort, weather resistance – and generally do their job. German brand Armedangels set itself a mission of creating the world’s first all-natural windbreaker, staying true to its slogan, ‘made to make a difference’.
“We know our customer wants outerwear from us, but what we were trying to achieve was something different and disruptive,” product director Elaine Stolworthy tells Sportstextiles. “We do cotton and recycled wool outerwear, but we were trying to challenge specifically the performance side. Nearly all of this is made from polyester, but even recycled polyester comes from closed-loop recycling systems, creating a higher grade of polyester than we need for textiles, and doesn't address issues like microplastic release or toxic coatings.”
Guided by the company’s principles of prioritising quality and durability, the team met with textiles consultancy Montebelo to leverage its expertise and partnerships in the supply chain. Johannes Fürst, managing director at the Spanish agency, felt there was a good solution with a new fabric made with Lenzing’s Tencel lyocell. The Austrian company sources its raw material from sustainably managed forests, dissolves the wood in an organic solvent, spins it into fibres, and recovers almost all the solvent and process water for continuous reuse. The lyocell fibres can be tuned to a variety of applications, and offer characteristics such as wicking, odour control, softness and biodegradability.
Taiwanese mill HerMin Textile used its expertise in shirting fabrics to weave very fine yarns into a ripstop fabric, heat pressed to achieve a windproof level of 97%, while offering the breathability associated with natural fabrics. “Fibre demand is growing, but the amount of cotton is unlikely to increase because more land will be needed for food. The gap could be filled with cellulosics,” says Manuela Gesslbauer, Lenzing’s head of brand partnerships. “We wanted to look at how we can we innovate in a segment like performance wear. And if you want to innovate, you have to work together.”
Compliant components
The partners embarked on a year-long project to test the fabric and source the other components. But finding natural alternatives to the standard polymer-based options was not simple, and meant some elements had to be bespoke. Every trim and detail was considered. The cuffs, hem and hood feature a natural rubber. The care label is organic cotton, the zip is cotton with metal teeth.
To avoid unnecessary tags, labels and holes in the garment, the care instructions and brand are printed. But even finding a water-based dye was tricky – they eventually found only one reference that had the reflective quality needed to offer functionality for night-time running or cycling. “These trims are more expensive, but you can't worry about cost and margin when you're doing this kind of innovation,” says Stolworthy. “We didn’t have all of the expertise, but Montebello are really well-connected across industry and helped find the right suppliers.”
The design was made using CLO 3D technology, saving on physical prototypes and helping communication with the suppliers. A unisex style was chosen to enable one design and limit overproduction. The garments were constructed in Romania, in keeping with its policy of sourcing as close to home as possible. “We also have strict social compliance regulations, and a lot of parts of Asia, where 95% of outerwear is produced, are ‘red’ countries for us.”
Strict policies
Treating workers well is a founding principle for the brand, something CEO Martin Huffler sought to address when he set up Armedangels with a former business partner in 2007. It follows OECD and UN guidelines, has Fair Wear Foundation leader status and invested €57,000 in a living wage pilot scheme in 2025.
It recently published its second Impact Roadmap, covering 2025, showing it made progress across its five pillars. It launched its design principles for circularity, with 58% of product already conforming. Last autumn, it committed to using Spinnova’s wood-based fibres, and was the first brand to commercially launch product with SaXcell, a lyocell derived from textile waste, blended with 57% organic cotton in jeans. “We call our target customer the new conscious middle class,” explains Stolworthy. “We know they’re really switched on. But at the same time, we want to be them to be able trust that we've done the leg work. Our goal is to make product that is modern, desirable, trend relevant, and also happens to be in the most responsible choices that we can make.”
The Impact Roadmap was presented last month at the Paris-based Challenge the Fabric event, which brings together the manmade cellulosic fibre supply chain and was attended by Sportstextiles. Armedangels’ impact and innovation director, Julia Aruni Kirschner, told attendees the brand is intent on increasing the percentage of preferred materials in its products, with synthetics representing less than 3% of its fibre mix in 2025. “This is not an accident, this is a rule,” she says. “We have made good progress this year, hitting 60% of our targets on or ahead of time.”
These rules also mean it will not blend more than 5% synthetic materials into fabrics, with an eye on the end of a garment’s life. Two years ago, its stretch denim contained 5% recycled polyester and 2% elastane, so it worked with its mill to reengineer and relaunch it with a total of 5% or less, to enable it to work in recycling systems. “This is a really big goal for us,” says Stolworthy. “We're phasing out any old materials that don't meet that standard, but it requires development with mills to replace them and get them to the point where we're happy and the customers will be happy.”
Winter evolution
For the windbreaker, the company came in just shy of its target: the jacket is 99.9% plastic-free because they could not source a zip without a tiny piece of plastic at the end. “We tried so hard. In my 30-year career, this is the hardest garment that I’ve created,” says Stolworthy.
The concept will now be adapted for puffer and quilted jackets, using the same shell with a slightly different weave construction. These garments have a lining, a fill and external fabrics, so the challenge to avoid synthetics is greater, but Armedangels is aiming to launch these products this autumn.
The brand is expanding – reporting a double-digit revenue rise last year, and opening its first store, in Cologne. Around 80% of the customer base is in Germany but it also sells in the Netherlands, Austria, Belgium and France. Half its sales are online, including through Zalando, giving it scope to expand in international markets. When it launched in March, the windbreaker was promoted in the UK, where it seeks to increase brand awareness and is thought to be influential when it comes to style direction.
Like other brands, the challenge will be decoupling its growth in sales from a growth in carbon footprint. But it is clear it can walk the talk when it comes to its targets. “We're not interested in just bringing things in for the story,” concludes Stolworthy. “We're testing innovation we think we can scale, either for us or to benefit the industry. We are also open to collaborating with other brands to share this information.”
