HOW OUR IDEA FOR MUNTAGNARD CAME ABOUT

It all started in 2016, when we, Dario and Dario, were far from home in Grisons and travelled through the Yukon Territory - a Canadian territory that is about twelve times the size of Switzerland but only counts roughly 36,000 inhabitants. We were in the fourth day of our seven-day canoe trip down the Yukon River. Far away from civilization, without electricity, mobile phone reception or anything remotely distracting us from just experiencing nature from its purest side - "into the wild" - equipped only with a canoe, tent, food and a few good bottles of wine.

It was this trip that we spontaneously planned in order to switch off from an instructive but also very intensive time in the consulting business. And the switch-off worked well, almost too well one might argue. With 20 hours of sunlight we spent most of the time on the river. We didn’t have much else to do but enjoy the incredible and unspoiled nature, come to rest and listen to Credence Clearwater Revival on repeat coming from our small portable speakers run by a tiny solar charger. In this time of calm and serenity, conversations started again and again about where we wanted to go personally and professionally. Far away from the daily routine, into which one falls only too quickly and is difficult to breakt free again, thoughts arose that within these seven days even solidified into a resolution. We wanted to make something we could be proud of, something we build from scratch that makes a difference, in whatever shape or form. From that point on, there was no turning back anymore. Within a year, Dario G. quit his job in sustainability consulting and Dario P. in strategic consulting - completely independently of each other and not agreed upon, but both just going off into the blue. Good professions with good prospects and amazing teams, but the urge to create something for oneself simply became too strong. With no concrete idea of where we're headed, but with the confidence that something exciting is bound to happen.

So there we were, sitting in front of a white sheet of paper, which was filled with innumerable business ideas within a very short time - from obvious consulting services to partly utopian product developments, everything was there. The core of it should always be to combine business and sustainability in order to develop sustainable solutions that are economically and ecologically viable. It was only by chance that we began to take a closer look at the textile industry. After numerous discussions with experts and many visits to trade fairs, the passion for the industry grew stronger and stronger, to take up the challenge and create a holistically well thought-out garment according to the highest sustainability criteria. The idea for MUNTAGNARD was born.

In the next posts we will write in more detail about how it all started. The development of Muntagnard, from the initial idea to the present day, with greater reference to what we have learned in the meantime. In particular, posts will follow on our thoughts on sustainability, material and market research. At the same time, we know there is so much more that has to be learned and experience, because we’re only at the beginning of our journey. So if you have any suggestions or are interested in sharing your knowledge - please get in touch with. We love nothing more than developing ourselves further to ensure that MUNTAGNARD is always heading in the right direction.

For the moment, however, we are again devoting ourselves to our central mission: to produce clothing for all those who want to wear sustainable products but do not want to sacrifice comfort, style or quality. With this in mind, we started with the essential everyday clothes and expanded our collection step by step. Until we present our flagship project, the MUNTAGNARD jacket with the self-developed fabric made of Swiss wool, we will be fully dedicated to the development of T-shirts, sweaters and other products. Thus, you will be able to expect a wider range of garments from us soon.

We will of course keep you up to date and look forward to the next steps.

Dario & Dario

---