Please introduce yourself briefly
I am Daniel, the founder and owner of WASNI, an inclusive hoodie manufacturer in Esslingen. WASNI stands for our company motto, "When Being Different is Normal" (in German: Wenn anders sein normal ist). As a company in the mainstream job market, we employ people with and without disabilities in equal parts. With our unique configurator, our customers can design sweatshirts, hoodies, or jackets individually. The colors of all elements can be freely chosen. Additionally, we can customize the measurements for our customers upon request—at no extra cost, our company motto applies here as well.
How long has your brand been around, and since when have you been working with Lebenskleidung?
We are now entering our 10th year of existence. We started in 2015 with three people; in the meantime, we have 12 employees and sew about 7,000 hoodies per year. From the very beginning, we have been working closely with Lebenskleidung.
How do you purchase from Lebenskleidung, and why does this model make sense for you?
We purchase our fabrics (sweat, rib, plush, and jersey) exclusively from Lebenskleidung and use two different ordering methods. On the one hand, we source our fabrics classically as needed from the Lebenskleidung warehouse. This applies to colors that are not bestsellers for us. For colors and fabrics that perform better for us, the model looks as follows: we place the order with Lebenskleidung in Berlin, and the order processing with the manufacturer takes place there. However, the goods are delivered directly from the manufacturer to us. In turn, the invoicing is done through Lebenskleidung. We practice this model for colors that are in the Lebenskleidung range as well as for colors produced exclusively for us. Meanwhile, about 80% of our fabric quantities come directly from Portugal.
What advantages do you gain from this?
We are simply too small to order directly from the manufacturer. Moreover, we neither have the know-how nor the capacity for tasks like supplier selection, quality control, or on-site visits. We have been working closely and trustingly with Lebenskleidung from the beginning and have had very good experiences. We see this more as a partnership rather than a classic (outdated...) supplier-customer relationship. By having direct deliveries from the manufacturer to us, we also enjoy financial advantages because intermediate storage at Lebenskleidung is eliminated.
What transformations has your brand undergone, and how can we support you even better in this process?
The core of our business idea is inclusive work. We demonstrate that it is possible to employ people with and without disabilities (social insurance-covered) in equal parts and be economically successful. This way, we inspire other entrepreneurs to follow us on this path.
Sustainability in production is a matter of course for us, and we want to bring this more into focus in the future to contribute to a more environmentally friendly fashion industry. From Lebenskleidung, I hope that they continue to follow this path—alongside their core task of sourcing fabrics—by tracking trends and innovations in this area or through classic "lobby work" in associations.
