Do you want to feel old? When Marie-Louise Mogensen began designing lingerie for women’s clothing brand Baserange, which she co-founded with Blandine de Verdelhan in 2012, underwire bras had become the norm. “For us it’s important to remove the wires because, to some extent, they dictate a more ‘correct’ shape or stereotype,” said Morgensen, who lives in Denmark. “And breasts are beautiful from the start.”
From the start, the goal was to design a line of earthy-colored bras and underwear, as well as T-shirts and jumpsuits, that were comfortable, made from recycled natural fabrics like bamboo, and feminine without appealing to the male gaze. Basically, the opposite of Victoria’s Secret. A pair of high-waisted underwear, for example, is designed to support “our bodies and how they change over the days, weeks, or years,” Morgenson says. The brand’s photos are unretouched.
More than a decade later, Baserange has evolved to offer a wider selection of ready-to-wear items that stay true to its original mission. In August, the company launched its first dedicated menswear collection, and this month it launched home goods, including organic cotton and more sustainable Ecovero viscose towels, tablecloths and bedding, as well as bags filled with fabric scraps and leftover Baserange socks pillows.
The brand’s products are sold in more than 40 countries around the world, including five independent stores in Copenhagen, Tokyo, Kyoto, Melbourne and Seoul. In many ways, Morgensen and de Wilderhan’s approach was ahead of its time. But rather than “move fast and break things,” as the popular Silicon Valley saying goes, they found that success grew slowly and deliberately without fanfare — a rarity in the industry. “Our goal has always been to make the product sustainable and as low-impact as possible,” said de Verdelhan, who lives in France.
It’s an admirable mission, but it’s not exactly an easy business model to sustain. In fact, that’s far from the case, as Mara Hoffman said in an open letter announcing the end of her eponymous business after 20 years. “Ultimately, [the fashion industry’s] structures are outdated and were never built to prioritize the planet and its inhabitants,” she wrote. “As we all know, its ‘success’ will still lead to many forms of harm, unchecked growth, and extraction.”
“In the beginning, the challenge was to get organic fabrics,” says de Verdelhan. “There were very few options, so we had to make a small range of collections.” Techniques such as natural dyeing also made it difficult to scale the business. The designers began working with suppliers in Turkey and Portugal, “but we couldn’t find really sustainable quality,” de Verdelhan adds. “For example, like knitwear, there’s always synthetics mixed in. Always. It’s the same with socks. There’s a lot of polyamide.
However, De Wilderhan was undaunted. Instead, she began looking for smaller suppliers in France, specifically outside of Toulouse, where the brand is headquartered, so she could actually see Baserange products developed from the ground up. “When I started in the fashion industry, there was almost no [clothing production] here,” she said. “But since COVID it has grown very, very quickly and most suppliers have a range of sustainable options for us to choose from.”
While touring the French countryside with de Verdelhan this summer, we visited Virgocoop, a cooperative founded in 2018 that works with local farmers to grow hemp and turn it into yarn, and Filatures du Parc, a knitwear company recycling factory that was acquired by Chanel in 2020. Misegal is a family-run knitwear factory specializing in the production of natural fiber textile products. We also visited L’Atelier des Bleus Pastel d’Occitanie, another family business dedicated to reviving dyeing in the region. Founder Denis Lambert and his small team recently worked on transforming 1,000 Basrange pieces into a beautiful natural blue. “There are so many initiatives, so it’s nice to get involved and create a local network,” de Verdelhan said.
Baserange’s new unisex menswear range is made from organic cotton and natural dyes. “It was a long process – it took us three years to find our way,” said Morgensen. “We started with navy, black and brown and different sizes.” “Balance, uncertainty and softness.” Possessing these qualities can lead a person to success. In a way, it’s also a neat metaphor for their business model.
“If Brandin and I were to create a lingerie brand today, I think we would only use materials that are stained or have been used before,” Morgenson said. “Acknowledging life’s stains and imperfections — from machines, spilled coffee, dirt, or sun spots — is the most beautiful and intimate way to express that we have enough and that we should protect and nurture our resources.”
