Meet Franz Bittmann | Founder & CEO, namuk outdoor clothing for kids

We had the good fortune of connecting with Franz Bittmann and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Franz, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
100% dedication to children’s needs. Kids should spend as much time as they want outside in nature and experience it with all of their senses – no matter the weather. But to do that, they need the right clothes.

I have worked for big brands as consultant, brand manager, production lead and designer. When we became parents, we couldn’t find any durable, innovative and sustainable outdoor clothing that‘s developed to meet children‘s needs – and look good too. Our son loved to play and was, either sleeping, digging a hole somewhere in the garden or swinging the shovel somewhere else, no matter what the weather was. We had to buy two sets of each, because the products were not waterproof or did not withstand him. He destroyed everything!

Faced with this, we found that brands would shrink to children’s sizes instead of being intentional about design for longevity and quality specific to kids. We felt that the best-known outdoor labels were skimping on production for precisely those customers who put clothes through the most wear and tear: kids. This led to the foundation of namuk: the sustainable premium outdoor brand for kids.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?

We focus 100% on kids clothing by adding all necessary features and implementing innovations that are necessary for a day outside, no matter what the weather looks like that day.

In our research, we found that most brands are using popular adult items and just sizing down for kids. As the margin is not that great on kids products, companies tend to remove everything they can and use the cheapest fabric. With this in mind, we try to do it differently. From experience, we see that kids use clothes even heavier than adults so we use the best available material and add thoughtful features to make the lives of kids and parents alike, as easy as possible to be comfortable and feel safe playing outside all day long. Some of these innovations include the “drop seat zipper,” hidden suspenders, magnetic easy entry gloves, hidden dummy holder, and name tags inside the apparel.

What you are most proud of or excited about?
That we can make many kids and parents happy by providing gear that ensures they can go out as long as they want and no matter the weather all while thinking of the environment. We are one of the only brand that offers biodegradable polyester fleece items, we have biodegradable insulation in our snow items using Primaloft Bio™(https://www.primaloft.com/bio/) fibers.

We are developing our clothes so that they last as long as possible. This starts from developing innovative and really durable, but soft fabrics using Cordura and other ultra strong fibers. Our products also feature a product design with smart placed seams and reinforcements (mostly not visible) to make sure that if an item was produced by namuk, it will last as long as possible and can be passed on to siblings/friends/other kids.

How did you get to where you are today business-wise. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?
It is important for us to keep the focus on durable and quality kids clothing as we grow. After we developed a strong foundation, we have had to, slowly but surely, add passionate people to our team and dial in our focus on quality and durable, sustainable kids clothing.
I have been working in the textile/outdoor industry for 20 years..It has been crucial to scale our team and production partners with thoughtful intention by ensuring quality every step of the way.

A good Team is key. Hire good people. The most important thing I learned in my career is to say “no” to opportunities and focus on the things that make an impact and matter.

What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
We want kids to discover and enjoy nature today and tomorrow. Today by equipping them with innovative, durable, and fashionable clothing to withstand any force of nature. Tomorrow by striving to become the most sustainable outdoor brand for kids.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Our office is located 15 min outside Zurich by car. 5 Minutes by foot to the next lake and 1h drive to some great mountains. No chance to do a week long trip at the moment, we are too busy at namuk right now, so let’s go for a solid day trip: I would pick him up in Zurich, grab a coffee and some croissants/Sandwiches at John Baker (https://www.johnbaker.ch) drive to the mountains with the car. Do an easy multi-pitch route at Bockmattli (https://www.thecrag.com/de/klettern/switzerland/bockmattli), drink a cold beer at the Bockmattli Hut (https://www.bockmattli.ch / https://www.sac-cas.ch/de/huetten-und-touren/sac-tourenportal/bockmattlihuette-2147000037/berg-und-alpinwandern/) go down, drive back to Zurich, relax on the lake Zurich and go out for dinner at one of the fancies restaurants in Zurich, such as https://www.sangennarozurigo.ch for Pizza…and if there is another day left (haha) I would grab the mountain bikes and go for one day to the beautiful Engadin or Lenzerheide!….Daydreaming….

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My wife and my team. Without them, I wouldn’t be there where I am today. Business-wise, but also from a personal perspective.

PersonalFranzBittmann__Fran

Website: www.namuk.us

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/namuk_kids_outdoor_clothing/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/franz-bittmann-67b04424/