THE HERITAGE GERMAN TEE THAT’S QUIETLY BECOME A MODERN MENSWEAR ICON
It was the T-shirt that launched ten thousand internet searches. A simple white tee, but as any menswear fan knows, theperfect T-shirt is anything but simple. When it hits just right, there's a subtle power that makes it outperform all others in your wardrobe. There's a reason why so many leading men are wearing one. Think of James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause, Marlon Brando's Streetcarscene or Brad Pitt in Fight Club. Of course, in our modern streaming era, there's a new addition to this list: Jeremy Allen White in The Bear. As the sexy, flawed chef Carmen Berzatto, his bicep-hugging, waist-grazing tee suddenly made everyone aware of Merz b. Schwanen.
Sure, the tee looked amazing, but it turns out the brand and our plucky protagonist Carmy align on mission perfectly. The family-run, Berlin-based business tells us that they're “driven by steadfast values of heritage, integrity and sustainability. And, of course, the often-unsung heroes, patience and simplicity.”
The brand was founded back in 1911 by Balthasar Merz and manufactured loop-wheeled cotton workwear, from durable Henleys to underwear. But, as such high-quality garments gave way to more industrialized clothing, the brand languished for decades under dust and eventually ceased operations around the turn of the century. That is, until a husband-and-wife team, Gitta and Peter Plotnicki, discovered a 90-year-old Merz b. Schwanen Henley shirt at a Berlin flea market in 2011. The designers instantly recognized the Henley's quality as unique and markedly rare. In fact, the impeccably preserved piece was an authentic workers shirt and one of the first that Merz b. Schwanen sold.
Inspecting the care label that carried the brand's name, the two traced the shirt's provenance to a picturesque village in the Swabian Alps. Once a thriving hub of textile manufacturing, the region's factories fell quiet decades ago with the twentieth-century race towards mass-production and automation. In a disused factory, rows of towering, authentic loop wheelers stood gathering dust. With origins spanning from 1889 to the 1960s, the stunningly analog circular knitting machines were some of the only surviving loop wheelers in Germany (and the world).
There in the sleepy factory, the idea to revive the loop wheelers was born, and the seeds of a new business were planted. With the blessing of Balthasar Merz's family, Merz b. Schwanen was relaunched after a painstaking year restoring the loop-wheeling machines and perfecting the organic cotton fabric for the perfect, reliable and timeless T-shirt.
Dubbed the 215, each one is made with care and intention. The knitting process alone takes around 30 minutes, producing a seamless, mid-weight 7.2-ounce jersey from 100% GOTS-certified organic cotton. It's a smooth fabric that's both incredibly soft and exceptionally durable. As you slip on the tee, you'll notice little details that really set it apart. The classic fit has a slightly wider proportion, which drapes along the body without constricting and the structured crew neck is designed to hold its shape over time. The slightly longer sleeves perfectly hit the midpoint of your bicep. Reinforced baseball stitching at the sleeves and hem add strength and a sense of old world craftsmanship. Underarm gussets provide increased ventilation and ease of movement—this was a detail carried over from the brand's original workwear designs.
Each garment is finished by hand, reflecting the brand's dedication to craftsmanship and slow manufacturing. Of course, this can get tricky when your T-shirt is suddenly blessed with online hype. When thousands of men pulled out their phones to look for that beautiful, crisp white T-shirt from The Bear, they were met with the harsh reality that Merz b. Schwanen was only sold (at the time) at a few select retailers. And many of them had already sold out of the shirt. At $110, the tee isn't cheap, but anyone who's tried one on knows it's worth the cost. And plenty of people were willing to give it a go based on Carmy's fit alone.
Thankfully, a few years later, as we settle in for season four of The Bear, the brand has managed to beef up its production without sacrificing quality. And the once elusive label is now easier than ever to find. Merz b. Schwanen's own site is stocked (and ships free, should you buy more than one tee), while other go-to retailers, from Nordstrom and Huckberry to SSENSE sell a range of options, too. What's more, once you own one, you'll notice that the shirt seems to mold to your body over time, aging beautifully, and can be worn just as easily under a blazer as it can with ripped jeans or beat-up work pants. Like a great chef's knife or a well-seasoned cast iron skillet, it's not flashy—but it's perfect. And once you've worn one, it's hard to go back to anything else.
