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ÜBER MUNTHE
It has always been core to the MUNTHE brand to be conscious and constantly reflect on how we are in the world. Being a fashion brand, by nature we are not in a sustainable industry but I believe that by using our brand as a powerful platform and we can initiate small changes that will accumulate into bigger ones over time.
We believe that we are on a never-ending journey where we constantly need to explore and evaluate how to best invest in progress. We constantly need to take an honest look at all aspects of our production from choosing better materials to creating better working conditions for our suppliers and employees. Finally, it is a journey towards unleashing the power and potential of women - an issue that has always been very close to my heart.
Our first responsibility report was published in 2024. You can find it at the bottom of the list next to this paragraph. Here you can also read more about our 6 sustainability commitments. I hope you will enjoy and be a part of our conscious journey.
Naja Munthe
Inequality between genders is still holding many girls and women back. Women are paid less, carry a bigger burden of unpaid domestic and care work and face less financial security. As a consequence, their ability to determine their own choices and their right to influence social change is weakened.
At MUNTHE, we genuinely believe that by realizing the potential of women we can positively change the way we live! That is why we relentlessly continue to use our brand as a platform to support girls and women so together we can foster a more respectful, prosperous and appreciative world.
Our initiatives are:
Naja Munthe founded the brand back in 1994. After finished the Danish Design School, she wanted to find a way to express her love for creativity, art, fashion and her entrepreneurial mindset. Creating MUNTHE fulfilled this passion – and today, Naja is the sole owner and Creative Director of MUNTHE. MUNTHE caters to women who are confident in their own style and have become a favorite for plenty of women all over the world.
The truth is that women have never been treated equally in the art world, and today they remain dramatically underrepresented and undervalued in museums, galleries, and auction houses. 51 percent of all visual artists today are women. But according to the National Museum of Women in the Arts, 78 per cent of the galleries represent more men than women. (source).
At MUNTHE, we find it crucial put a focus on the female narratives in the Art-scene. Highlighting the talented women, while drawing attention to the gender imbalance which unfortunately still exists in this industry. Each Monday we present an artist with an interview through our Art Monday program.
Every year, in relation to The International Women’s Day, MUNTHE design a t-shirt in support of the Danish Women’s Society. The shirt is in 100% organic cotton, designed with an oversize fit and has a beautiful print, both on the front and the back. The t-shirt costs DKK 499, whereof DKK 150 goes to The Danish Women’s Society. The Danish Women’s Society is an NGO, whose aim is to secure that gender equality is constantly on the politically agenda – and works across partisan views and considerations.
Buy the T-shirtDiversity is central to our way of doing business. Diversity in skills, age, gender, and cultural background, which is an asset at all levels of the MUNTHE organization. We understand and are proud of being a Scandinavian heritage brand, and we would like to adhere to a diverse audience and future employees with a more inclusive recruitment process. At MUNTHE, we strive to have women represented on all levels. In the middle of 2023, our employees-group consisted of 90% women.
We believe that beauty should be a source of confidence and not anxiety. MUNTHE wants to inspire women to look like the best version of themselves, and we believe that clothing should embrace as many people as possible. Therefore, we feature women of different ages, sizes and ethnicities in our campaigns and in our fashion shows.
Every year MUNTHE go wholeheartedly into helping girls who for some reason are either placed in foster care, in an institution or at a place of residence. In connection with their confirmation, they receive a gift card worth DKK 900 to one of MUNTHE's stores. The distribution will take place through the Danish non-profit aid organization The Child Welfare Day (Børnehjælpsdagen), which is working as a business fund. The Child Welfare Day purpose is to strengthen the personal and social competencies of placed children and vulnerable young people in Denmark. The aim is to make our young people more resilient and give them a better chance at mastering their own lives.
Many placed young people come from families where it can be financially difficult to keep up with the parties and the ‘gift rain’ that confirmands from more traditional families experience. Confirmation clothes, the party, expenses for “Blue Monday” are all something that runs up the bill - and can be incredibly difficult to live up to if you do not have the resources.
Transparency is a fundamental component in the transition towards a more responsible future. At MUNTHE, we aspire to become more transparent. To do so requires a meticulous documentation practice that we are only now establishing internally and with our suppliers. We are taking small steps but learn as we go.
Our initiatives are:
SPRING SUMMER ‘23 | PRE FALL
‘23 | HIGH SUMMER 23 | FALL 23 | THE SIMPLE STUDIO |
---|---|---|---|---|
55% | 47% | 59% | 64% | 68% |
MUNTHE MORE RESPONSIBLE are styles made from min. 50% certified recycled or organic materials.
We appreciate your support when buying our MUNTHE MORE RESPONSIBLE styles, as this is our continuous stride towards prioritizing certified materials.
Our Code of Conduct describes and sets out the ethical principles of the business carried out and conducted with MUNTHE. Our Code of Conduct is made to make sure that there are clear processes in place with our suppliers for preventing and addressing adverse impacts on human and labor rights, the environment, including climate, anti-corruption, and chemical restrictions.
We use this Code of Conduct to support us in selecting and retaining business partners who share our commitment to a more responsible production as defined by internationally agreed conventions, standards, and guidelines. All our suppliers and their subcontractors must sign and comply and a copy must be translated into the national language by the supplier and read aloud for the workers and placed so that they can easily access it.
Percentage breakdown on MUNTHE supplier factories of 2023, by country:
China | Turkey | India | Bulgaria | Portugal | Vietnam |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
62,19% | 24,52% | 10,84% | 0,17% | 1,19% | 1,08% |
By nature, fashion is not a sustainable industry. Today’s consumerism results in a massive over-production of clothes, and a stunning 5.8 million tonnes of textiles are discarded on a yearly basis in Europe alone. (Source)
At MUNTHE, we are working hard towards no waste. By integrating a meticulous approach to our design, the materials we use and the way we produce each collection, we are working to become the most responsible version of ourselves.
Our initiatives are:
We want to make sure that all our clothes find a home and we try to sell as much as possible through our stores and retailers. Therefore, we only produce as many pieces as there is ordered, every season. We want to respect every piece of clothing, also the items with flaws, which are sold at our beautiful MUNTHE MARKET. They are never thrown away or burnt!
MUNTHE MARKET: a realm where fashion meets continuity and responsibility. At MUNTHE, we embrace the notion that a garment's story doesn't end with a collection's close; it's a timeless expression that thrives beyond its debut. Our reduced prices in a respectfully beautiful setting, we try to minimize waste to encourage a respect for every piece of clothing we have made. Join us at the MUNTHE MARKET, where every piece tells a story, and your choices resonate with the rhythm of thoughtful consumption and timeless design.
Meet The Simple Studio, born from Naja Munthe's unwavering dedication to fashion. We embody a conscious lifestyle, valuing lasting quality and infusing designs with boundless creativity. Our collection features timeless styles that withstand seasons, emphasizing longevity and superior material quality.
Besides annual donations from Naja Munthe to the Red Cross, MUNTHE donates clothes to RED CROSS’ annual Christmas sale, with all proceeds supporting their charities. We wish to engage in continued support of charities, while always being conscious of avoiding our donations ending up in unnecessary landfill.
We encourage investing in well-made styles in good-quality fabrics. Our styles are timeless and made of lasting materials and a long-term solution for your wardrobe.
Wear your clothes more than once, repair the holes and imperfections if needed, and wear them with care.
You can find the wash instructions specified in the care labels inside each style. Follow the instructions accordingly in order to keep your clothes in good shape.
Try to wash at low temperature if you use machine or wash by hand for delicate fabrics. By washing the correct way, you can prolong the life of your MUNTHE styles.
With slimline hangers, wool and cotton will stretch when hung, so it’s always best to fold your sweaters and jerseys to keep their shape. Hanging a wet wool sweater to dry not only invariably leads to the garment stretching in length but can cause distortions to appear in the form of mounds on the shoulders of the garment. Always flat dry wool sweaters or other knitwear if possible.
Alpaca-, merino-, cashmere- & regular wool are self-cleaning fibers due to their lanolin content. Airing your styles gives a great alternative to cleaning, can provide you with fresh and longer lasting clothes. Most of the time, this will be enough for your styles to stay fresh. Spot clean when necessary.
With our care guide, we hope to prolong the life of your MUNTHE styles and help to reduce waste.
If you have any questions, please contact us at shop@munthe.com
We use as little packaging materials as possible, and all of our webshop packaging is made from recycled materials. (FSC & Pre- & postconsumer recycled plastics). In our MUNTHE stores we only use paper bags or reusable cotton tote bags. We care about the environment, and we think our customers do too.
We only use FSC-certified produced boxes and recycled paper when shipping from our storage in Denmark. FSC is a global not-for-profit organization that sets an internationally recognized standard for responsibly managed forests. Even our hangtags are made from recycled FSC certified paper, recycled plastic tag with our logo and polyester thread. We wish to protect our products before they are with you, which is why they are in clear plastic packing bags, manufactured from recycled or recyclable material. As a receiver of MUNTHE clothes you can help by sorting the packaging correctly when discarding them, following your local recycling guides.
When organizing a photoshoot or hosting a fashion show, we only bring props which are or can be reused. We only eat, drink and serve organic food and drinks. We only use recycled plastic bottles, which are sent to recycling after use. No printed invites.
Sadly, the fashion industry is not renowned for its good working environments. At MUNTHE, we believe that our most valuable resource is the individual people that we work with on a daily basis. We also believe that it is an on-going task to challenge the existing conditions, supporting our suppliers and the people we work with in creating a better working environment.
Our initiatives are
We have developed a Code of Conduct rooted in the UN Global Compact Goals 1-10 and developed across multiple Danish fashion companies and organizations to ensure a baseline for the ethical and environmental aspects of our collaborations. We believe that this is a strong tool to implement and so we use the Code of Conduct to monitor ourselves and our suppliers’ actions and progressions towards a more responsible future in the fashion industry.
We or third-party auditors visit our Tier 1 suppliers once a year to develop new collections, understanding how to collaborate more responsibly and to follow up on our mutual goals. We have independent inspectors making unannounced and semi-announced visits to our suppliers, making sure that they comply with either the international SMEETA or BCSI regulations.
Our employees and our suppliers are undoubtedly our strongest assets when it comes to achieving our ambitious goals. Therefore, we dedicate time and resources to educating both on our initiatives, purpose and promises that lies behind. By investing our efforts in setting strong goals, in the core of our business, we will be able to attract ambitious people who will help us move forward on our conscious journey.
As the world is increasingly affected by climate change, we need to find better and more responsible ways of making clothes. We are focused on taking a pragmatic approach to the use of materials, transport and an active purchase policy. As this is the starting point of our conscious journey, we hope to find tools to not waste resources in the process of making long lasting clothes.
We believe that by continuously striving to achieve a little more, by using a little less we will be able to see tangible results.
Our initiatives are:
We work with all our suppliers to sustainably source the best materials for every MUNTHE style in terms of aesthetic, long life, comfort and performance.
View our Preferred Materials List to explore and learn more about the materials we love, and why we have chosen them.
Recommended | Good | Discouraged |
---|---|---|
Organic cotton | Silk | Conventional cotton |
Recycled cotton | Lenzing viscose | Non-traceable wool |
RWS wool | Lenzing modal | Lyocell |
Tencel | Conventional linen | Modal |
Ecovero | Conventional hemp | Rayon |
Recycled polyester | Viscose | |
Organic linen | Cupro | |
Peace silk | Virgin polyester | |
Organic silk | Virgin polyamide | |
Reycled wool | Acrylic | |
Organic wool | Elastane | |
Recycled polyamide |
The main challenge in the fashion industry is the huge number of resources that are being used several times a year when a new collection is launched. It is not only the production of actual material but also the water and chemicals that are being used in the production of new fabrics. To target water waste, we have chosen to work with ECOVERO textiles, as they have a lower usage than conventional cotton.
At MUNTHE, we have the goal that 50% of every collection measured across styles consist of either certified organic or recycled materials. To guide us, we have identified a list of good materials and certifications.
We aim to manage the distribution of deliveries to customers in the most environmentally efficient way. This means that we strive to have full loads of trains, trucks and ships as well as look into geographical delivery to create the most effective routes. We primarily use transport services from logistics and transportation suppliers who actively work with their ESG activities and environmental impact.
We constantly strive to optimize the transportation efficiency of our products with the aim of decreasing CO2 emissions.
We work to reduce carbon emissions by consolidating the transport of our goods and selecting less carbon intense modes of transport. Therefore, we actively plan around substituting as much air transport as possible for land and sea.
Our goal is to run a business that is more responsible in the long term. Consequently, we instruct new employees in environmentally conscious behavior, such as sorting waste and considering the use of paper. Our HQ is powered by 100% renewable energy while all of our light has been changed to LED, which contribute to approximately 50-70% reduction in energy compared to conventional light. (source) Around 90% of the food our staff and guests consume, as well as all cleaning products etc. are organic.
While we are continuously expanding our horizons, we also have to acknowledge the impact we have on a larger scale. Local events can have a global effect, which is why we take our social responsibility seriously.
At MUNTHE, it has always been our core to care for others. We believe that all kinds of acts matter and we truly feel obligated to work with individuals and organizations to benefit the national and international communities that we are a part of.
Sale of Naja Munthes private wardrobe – every year – in support of Christmas help for vulnerable children in Denmark.
MUNTHE is Currently supporting two children with monthly donations. “Because I am a Girl” – jacket made in collaboration with ELLE back in 2013 for the benefit of empowering young Indian seamstresses to become self-sufficient and become an integral part of their work organization – with health insurance, health checks, pensions, scholarships etc.
T-shirt sold in support of and in connection with the International Women’s Day every year.
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