This is case study on a swiss company known as Freitag which is a Sustainable brand which has given the world-what it means to give 2nd life to a product after its considered a waste.

1. "Make the best out of nothing"

2. CASE STUDY
THE VENTURE FREITAG: FROM RECYCLED BAGS TO SUSTAINABLE FASHION
BRIEF ANALYSIS OF THE CASE STUDY
Freitag is a Swiss fashion brand which was founded by 2
brothers namely Daniel and Markus Freitag in Zurich the year
1993.The history of Freitag goes back in the year of 1990 when
both of the brother who studied graphic designing and visual
communication in Zurich thought of developing a functional,
water-repellent and robust bag to hold their creative work which
they had to take to their to school.
According to the co-founder Daniel Freitag, It was much more
of a personal need of making water proof bags for them to carry
the art designs dry while riding their bicycles in the rain storm
weather of Zurich.
This led both of them into a number of intense brainstorming
sessions on cracking a solution of this problem which was being
faced by not only them but a lot of other people too.
The inspiration came one day when they were glazing out from
the window of their flat at the multicolored heavy traffic that
rumbled through the Zurich transit intersection.

3. The solution, they found, was humming past in front of their flat
every day were nothing but the flatbed trucks with the colorful
tarpaulin which closed the sides of the vehicle.
In no time, they had converted their flat into a makeshift studio
and they started producing messenger bags using recycled
materials, truck tarp, second hand car seatbelts as shoulder
straps and old bicycle inner tubes provided the edging of the
bag.
This is how the first FREITAG prototype bag took shape in the
living room of their shared apartment, all the bags were
recycled, unique, made from materials that would have more
than likely been thrown away as waste and ended up in landfill.

4. The first prototype of the messenger bag of 1993: hand stitched
in a small flat in Zurich made out of used truck tarps, used car
seat belts and bicycle inner tubes.
This is the first messenger bag F13 TOP CAT.

5. Presently, the products are available in 26 FREITAG Stores as well
as at over 300 resellers around the world. In the FREITAG Online
Store there’s an extensive choice of over 4000 unique products.
The first F13 TOP CAT messenger bag has as much as 90 different
versions for all your carrying needs: from phone and laptop sleeves
via backpacks and on to handbags, shoppers and travel bags, Haute
Maroquinerie styles which means high end leather which has caused
a sense of fear in the minds of luxury brand which use snake and
crocodile skin in their products.
This is the flag ship store of Freitag made of 17 rusted shipping
containers from the port of Hamburg. Its all about recycling in the
hearts and minds of the people who work in the organization.

6. It was launched at the Geroldstrasse in Zurich in the year 2006.

7. FACTS & FIGURES
Headquarters: FREITAG lab. ag / Gewerbehaus Nœrd, Zürich-
Oerlikon
Year founded: 1993
Proprietors: Markus and Daniel Freitag
Number of staff: around 250
Production: around 700,000 bags and accessories per year
Number of stores: 26 FREITAG Stores – 6 in Switzerland, 6 in
Germany, 4 in Japan, 2 in South Korea, 2 in Thailand and one each
in Vienna, Milan, Rotterdam, Shanghai, Taipei and Melbourne
300 retail partners in 25 countries and one Online Store based in
Zurich-Oerlikon.
Materials used: 800 tons of truck tarpaulins, 150,000 car seatbelts
and 11,000 bicycle inner tubes per year.
Products: around 50 bags, around 40 accessories and FREITAG F-
ABRIC work wear.
In the year 2014, Freitag developed a new raw material : F-ABRIC.
Based on bast (fibers produced from flax or hemp) fibers that are
produced using a minimum of resources. They are durable and
completely biodegradable.
F-ABRIC thus more than lives up to the FREITAG philosophy: We
think and act in cycles.

8. DEFINE THE CENTRAL ISSUE IN THE CASE
The company gradually expanded its reach to the world by selling
their famous messenger bags and other accessories from its
initiation in 1993.But In order to grow more in the domestic market
as well as the international market, Frietag had to expand its market
reach by selling new product.It was as simple as that.
The company developed a brand new development process of
manufacturing sustainable clothing which meant nothing short of
stepping out of their territory into something which was completely
new to them which was Sustainable Fashion Industry.
Already being a famous and successful sustainable business venture,
Freitag had to make core strategic investment decisions which
would had a straight on impact on the production,innovation and
branding activites of the firm.
The challange was to come up with a profitable clothing collection
which would not only meet the venture’s high sustainability critieria
but also its aspiration to produce functional and stylish fashion and
make a reputable name into the sustainable fashion industry.
However, the ultimatum for the Freitag brothers was to decide
which customer segment they should primarily target with their new
product offering which were broadly classified into 3 types-
The design- and lifestyle-oriented customers
The socio-ecologically conscious customers
The mainstream customers

9. The design- and lifestyle-oriented customers
This customer segment can be said as Freitag’s most important type.
Customers from this segment were part of a design and lifestyle oriented
avant-garde with a mindset which valued the Freitag bag mainly because
of its unique design and functionality. An extra add on for them was the
sustainable production of the bag. In the context of sustainable fashion,
these customers would pay particular attention to the style and quality of
the product.
The socio-ecologically conscious customers
This customer type was well-aware of Freitag’s sustainability
commitment. Customers from this segment made a purchase decision
based wholey and solely on the sustainable practices and values of
Freitag. As a result, these customers mainly bought a Freitag bag
because of its recycled origin material. For them, carrying a Freitag bag
was a conscious and public statement of sustainable consumption. In the
context of sustainable fashion, these customers would accordingly value
the ecological and social performance of the product.
The mainstream customers:
This customer segment was comprised of people who didn’t give
attention to either design or sustainability related product features. They
would be much more appealed to the brand value of the Freitag.

10. The Freitag brothers knew the consequences that they had to face if
their new plan didn’t work out when they realized that their fashion
venture skim which was targeted at young, urban, affluent creatives
had to cease to operate within 2 years of its initiation.
However, while focussing on a specific set of customer segment was
necessary in order to bundle resources.
Daniel also knew that it in the end it would be key to find a carefully
balanced product positioning which would simultaneously take
account of Freitag’s identity as a design-driven AND sustainability-
oriented business venture.
Afterall the mission statement of the company itself stated that
“We believe in the next life of things,that Is why we think and act in
cycles and cycle.”

11.  DEFINE THE FIRMS GOALS
Goals are used to help a business grow and achieve its objectives.
They can be used to foster teamwork and help the business describe
what it wants to accomplish. Setting goals is an important part of
any business plan.
Similarly Daniel and Markus visualized certain goals when they
started Freitag.
The basic idea was to make something useful from waste. Then they
started looking into truck tarpaulins because they didn’t know of
any other material that was as tough as the tarps in the aspect of
durability and rigidness. It was a mixture of intent and coincidence.
The recycling idea is very important to the organization. But also
they want to offer functional, robust and stylish products - a bag that
is fun to use in everyday life. The recycling gives it its unique
character.
FREITAG is committed to the intelligent and sustainable use of
materials. For more than 20 years, they have been taking used truck
tarps and reincarnating them as bags. In other words, FREITAG is
rooted in the belief that everything deserves a second chance at life,
even something that is usually viewed as garbage.
They have inherited the whole concept of sustainability into all of
the activities of the firm. They utilize the scarce resources available
in an optimum manner to avoid causing harm to the environment.

12. Since, FREITAG is a production company. Many of the 160
employees are occupied with making bags day in and day out. They
need tough, comfortable and well-fitting clothing that ideally can
also be worn when they go out to have a beer after work!
This made the Freitag brothers think to accomplish this goal to
produce a line of comfortable clothing.
But they couldn’t find anything for the F-Crew on the market that
met the requirements in terms of durability and social & ecological
production methods. So eventually they set off on an odyssey and
returned with the new materiality, F-ABRIC.
Based on this principle, it has always been clear that if a new
material were developed at FREITAG, the cycle would be given
center stage. Consequently, they have developed a material that is
completely biodegradable.
F-ABRIC will biodegrade completely within around a couple of
months if you throw it on the compost.

13. In recent years, shoppers have put a lot of importance on the
sustainable and ecologically based products, what kind of impact the
product will have after its life on the environment. These factors are
nothing but an add on competitive advantage for Freitag against its
rivals in this new industry.
Since, Freitag pioneered the idea of recycling in the market of
functional and fashionable bags for the past 20 years, now it was
about to enter the entirely new market of sustainable fashion and its
primary goal was to become a leading brand in this sector by
offering the public with products which were stylish, appealing
attractive as well as ecologically sustainable in nature.
In the words of Markus Freitag,the future goals of the company
would be –
“To develop a second product on which the Freitag logo looks a
good as on our bags. Or it could even be a specific service. Because
our brand represents a certain attitude, good quality, good look and
sustainability.”

14. Another goal of company is recycle as much as it can. That goes on
parallelly with the basic concept/vision of the company which is
every waste has 2nd
life.
From truck tarps to cycle tubes to seatbelt straps. Freitag has made
it absolute measure to keep recycling these materials and give them
2nd
life in form of bags, belts, wallet and etc.
Daniel and Markus grew up in a societal and family context which
took the idea of recycling very seriously. Especially during the
1980s, Switzerland was at the European frontline in implementing
recycling regulations. Therefore, the brothers argued that using
recycled materials in order to produce bags out of it,was rather
normal and natural for us.
“The way we think about waste, actually we tried to eliminate this word “waste”
we just tried to think of a resource in the wrong place”-Freitag brothers

15.  IDENTIFY THE CONSTRAINTS TO THE PROBLEM.
The major issues that are going to rise is the lack of general
skills and capabilities required from the management of Freitag.
Since its had been an entrepreneurial set up by the Freitag
brothers, innovation was the key to success for them. Daniel
and markus were educated in this field but new employees who
they would hire may not have the necessary skill set in order to
contemplate of new creative ideas, coordinate with each other
and maintain an efficient and effective workplace to increase
the productivity of the organization.
They also had a very big challenge which posed as a mountain
in front of them which was the production process. They needed
people who knew this business well. Hands and minds which
were experienced in cutting the tarps precisely, stitching the
products, working without making mistake, positive attitude
towards their job and etc.
Freitag brothers had already suffered huge loss when their
previous attempt to enter the fashion industry in 1998 with their
clothing line called SKIM which was not able to plough back
profits and gain momentum in the market was ceased to operate
in 2001.

16. They were not able to attract much from the masses to buy
products and create a community just like of what they did with
the messenger bags but it thus turned out to be a financial
disaster.
Also the Freitag faces an immense challange of making a
strategic decision on which customer segment to choose
amongst the 3-
 The design- and lifestyle-oriented customers
 The socio-ecologically conscious customers
 The mainstream customers
for selling their new sustainable fashion products.
As they cant risk it all like earlier in the case of skim, they have
to be decisive in order to make this core decision making.
If they want to grow more, they have to target the right set of
customer segment so that eventually expand their business.
A lot of various factors will rise up which will effect the
decision of the firm such as the design of the product,
uniqueness, catchy at first look, durability, quality, price.
Freitag may also face issues in procurement of the essential raw
material which Truck Tarp and also other materials because they
need to produce in mass quantity in order to sell more of the
products.

17.  IDENTIFY ALL THE RELEVANT ALTERNATIVES
 In order to tackle the issues, Freitag can start a skill
development program which is going to educate the people who
want to work in Freitag about their respective job requirements.
 Freitag can outsource the business part of certain aspect of
production process which can be procurement of raw materials
which are tarpaulin, seatbelts, tubes, etc. They can hire a
company who will deliver them the material in abundance
whenever required.
 Now in order to understand the taste/preference of the
public, Freitag can conduct seminars, distribute questionnaires,
pamphlets amongst the people and in return they can get to
know a lot of information which is first hand from the public
itself. They would be able to know the societal mindset of
people towards fashion products, their likes dislikes, etc.
The most important and relevant alternate right now viewing the
current position of Freitag is that they need to understand the
mindset of the people. Until and Unless they know what the
public demands, they wont be able to grab a big chunk of
customers.
By doing a critical analysis of the information that they will
receive from the surveys conducted, they can know a lot of vital

18. factors such as purchasing power of the customer, like dislike,
target cost of product, designs which are in trend right now
amongst the youth, materials which are the most comfortable to
wear, etc.
 DEVELOP AN IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
Since, Freitag will be jumping into an ocean filled with other
rival brands who are already there since a time period. It has to
prepare a proper implementation plan to analyze the market at
its best.
Things to note
“Freitag is already a master in producing sustainable products
which are very popular amongst the customers.
Its not that Freitag is an unknown brand so it already has a
brand value and a big set of following.
Since the people are tending to more cautious towards the
environment by using bio degradable ecological sustainable
products, its going to be an added advantage for Freitag to gain
the momentum at a rapid rate”

19. This market analysis will determine the following things-
 Who are the potential customers?
 What are the customers shopping and buying habits?
 How large is the target market?
 How much are potential customers willing to pay?
 Who is the competition in the market?
 What are the competitors’ strengths and weaknesses?
This Market analysis can make or break Freitags startup into this
diverse segement. Analyzing market will help the company to
reduce risks because they can better understand customers and
market conditions.
The analysis also help Freitag to clarify what makes them
different from the competition. That way, they may know what
makes them stand apart from the crowd/Or what needs to be
done to be unique.
This way a market research will enhance the chances of Freitag
in succeeding in the market and climb upto the next level.
Freitag can implement a plan by conducting a thorough market
research which can be done with the following steps
 Purpose of the research
Freitag can use the research to assess business risks (e.g.,
threats), reduce issues, or create opportunities.
It can take a look at the past mistakes and learn from them
and try not to make them again to decrease future risk and

20. also analyze the past success and to see what they need to
continue in order maintain it.
Freitag can do a both internal (employee motivation, perks,
working environment) and external analysis(cost of
product, getting in touch with lenders and suppliers who are
willing to do business at a fair rate, meeting investors)
research
 Industry Outlook
By the industry outlook, it means current state of the
fashion industry, where the industry is heading, size,
trends, and projected growth.
This would be a very crucial step for Freitag to gain the
trust of lenders and the investors and will determine if its
worth of their time and money.
 Spot target customers
Its very obvious that Freitag cant accumulate all the
customer base. There will be people who wont like the
products of them. So, that’s why they have to pinpoint
those potential customers by analyzing the market
effectively. This is called target market analysis.
Freitag has to look for things like
 age
 income
 gender
 geographical location
 occupation
 education level
 family status(single, married)

21. So Once freitag narrows down who their customers are, next
further step will be to find out their needs, interests,
personalities, and demographics.
Freitag can also categorize into different parts such as-
 Potential customer
 new customer
 discount customer
 impulsive customer
 loyal customer
Each of these customer are unique in taste and preference
and by knowing their interest, frietag can attract them to
buy their products.
As the business grows, the potential customers may evolve or
change. Therefore the brand got to revisit the target market from
time to time to ensure they still fit in their business.
 Comparing competition
Frietag need to further analyze the market by knowing
about the rivals in the market. The main thing to do is to
look out for what others are doing. So Freitag got to focus
at things like your competition’s offerings, location,
targeted customers, and disadvantages in the market.
How can it be done?
 First thing is to make list of all the rivals!
 Do SWOT analysis on each one of them!
 What does their business have that you don’t!
 Why are customers buying their products!

22.  Once you determine your competitors’ strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities, and threats, rank them from most to least threatening.
Then, determine your business advantages and marketing position.
 After the previous steps are implemented correctly,
additional data should be collected as it wont do any harm.
The data should be factual, unbiased and relevant.
Hence, on the basis of the information collected core
decisions can be carried out by the board of directors.
There are many credible sources through which legit
information can be collected-
 local commerce websites
 Trade journal articles
 Competitors’ strengths and weaknesses
 Target market surveys or questionnaires
 Information from interviews or focus groups within your
target market
 The last and final step is ANALYZE AND PUT IT INTO
COURSE OF ACTION which is implementation of all the
steps.

23. CONCLUSION
As Freitag did with their products, aiming to create an
environment for workers to implement this motto.
Its their unwavering commitment to a mission, the
consistency with which they manifest this mission and the
deep reach and attention to detail of all the way through the
manufacturing process of its various products to the
sourcing of the raw materials needed.
The whole concept of making a world a better place can
been seen in the day to day activities of Freitag. Its one of
the few brands in the world who genuinely cares about the
environment and is using good measures to produce
products which wont be harmful for earth.

24. Its very easy for famous brands like these to earn tons of
money from the public. They can replicate ideas and sell
products which other luxury brands like Hermes or LV is
selling right now by killing animals and using their body
parts to produce fine products which are worth crore of
rupees. But all thanks to Daniel and Markus Freitag that
they are contributing to this environment in a positive way
by using sustainable and ecological methods to produce
products which is so much better than those expensive ones
for their fellow customers
This brand teaches us the art of giving products a 2nd
life.
It’s a living example of Green living.
Throughout the case study, I have gained a lot of valuable
information and lessons that are going to benefit me for my
entire life. It has taught me the importance of sustainable
recycling.
Freitag will continue to think and act in cycles as long as
there will be truck tarps, there will be Freitag bag the
ultimate goal is to produce equipment that is not only
upcycled but recycled as well.
Freitag works in a holocratic system so every dime Freitag
makes is reinvested in innovative research
Freitag remains to be at the top of sustainable fashion and
keep innovating and growing under the leadership of
Daniel and Markus.

25. While ascertaining information on this case study on Freitag, I
was able to communicate with one of F gurus, Gurus are not
FREITAG employees but well informed FREITAG F-ans who
will assist you with their knowledge and personal experience.

27. This gave me a real time idea of how things go on in that
organization daily.From that I can come to the conclusion that
Freitag will never quit from its roots which is sustainable
development of products.
QUESTIONS
 What are the positioning strategies the company has to
follow for its sustainable product?
The essence of sustainable marketing is that you position
your brand as an active figure in an environmental or
societal issue. It can humanize your brand messages and
create another reason why customers should choose your
brand over the competition. Now days, the customer have
become very focused on choosing a product which is
ecologically beneficial for them as well as the
environment.
This simply means, in order to gain customers heart,
produce something which is eco friendy.
Strategies such as these should be in mind
for a brand-
 System-wide brand influence.
 Net-positive products and services.
 Purpose beyond profit.

28.  Regenerative operations (recyclable materials and
sustainable processes).
 Transparent and proactive governance.
 recycling campaigns
Many brands such as Freitag, IKEA, Dell, Apple, coco-
cola, have cultivated an image of sustainable brands in their
own ways and are very successful in their respective
industry.
 What are the challenges the emerging companies have to
overcome to create a market for its eco-friendly products?
It’s Not Easy Being Green. Its very true that a green
company needs to sacrifice a lot in order to maintain their
decorum of a sustainable brand in the eyes of the customer.
Its as simple as that help the environment and hurt your
business because there is not scope of high profits for green
brands in their starting phase tho eventually they grow but a
slow rate. But recently, the viewpoint has changed
drastically in this 21st
century due to the environmental
concerns that are going across the globe and this has
significantly build the roots of green companies strong.

29. The concept of GREEN is still a new concept in India.
Indian literate and urban consumer is getting more
aware about the merits of Green products. THE
children have being taught the importance of sustainable
development since a very young age. However, it is still a
new concept for the masses, for the people who are
uneducated, The consumer needs to be educated and made
aware of the environmental threats. The new green
movements need to reach the masses and that will take
a lot of time and effort by the companies to launch
initiatives in the rural areas to create awareness of this
aspect of life.
 What do you think will be the future of
Sustainable fashion brands?
The fashion industry around the world generates more than a
trillion dollars annually which is very huge. It is a well-known
fact that textile industry is one of the most polluted industries
in the world. Therefore, by making the right choice in the
methods of production and sales and what one prefers to wear,
we can enormously impact the society and the environment in a
favorable way. The future of fashion calls for sustainability.
“As sustainability continues to weave its way into the fabric of
society, fashion brands have taken notice and have shifted their
collection”

30. “In 2015, Nielsen published a sustainability report that showed
66% of consumers will pay more for a sustainably made
product. This trend has been on the rise and only growing.”
The future of Sustainable fashion looks pretty bright
ahead. The fashion world is changing so fast and so
fashion habits.
Brands, retailers, shoppers, and consumers - everyone is
taking fashion seriously than ever before. Smart
shoppers know what they should shop and they are
making sustainability a choice. And smart consumers
are continuously learning new and better ways to
consumer-owned clothes. Moreover,shoppers are in
favor of brands making sustainability their number 1
priority.
Eco-friendly fashion is what everyone wants:
Consumers are only looking for eco-friendly clothing.
There is a myth that eco-fashion is expensive. But
actually, fashion is expensive only if its not eco-
friendly. Hence, consumers are consuming it more than
past.
With increasing number of consumers becoming eco-
friendly day by day, fashion designers and clothing
brands taking responsibility of saving the environment
and advancement on the technology front, all together is
contributing towards making fashion sustainable.

31. The fashion industry depends heavily on natural
resources. Its requirement of natural resources for fibre
production is around 132 million tons of coal and
around 6-9 trillion ltr of water every year. These
scenarios push everyone in the fashion and textile
industry to look beyond the short term goals and
collectively work to build a sustainable future.
The current innovations in the textile and fashion
industry assure a bright future for sustainable fashion.
one of them which is very famous is-
Air dyeing developed in California has become an
outstanding feature in designing for the designers. This
is a one step process which saves 7-75 gallons of water
in dyeing a pound of fabric. It uses 85% less energy
compared to the traditional dyeing methods and most
importantly does not release harmful waste. Similarly,
in digital printing, the prints are directly applied to the
fabric.

32. This reduces water consumption by 95% and energy by
75%, with minimal textile waste. Many designers
around the world have already adopted digital method
of printing. Also, recycled synthetics are giving new
dimensions to the fashion industry. It can be made from
almost everything; from plastic bags to beer bottles.
Fibers are made from these materials just like bamboo is
transformed into thread.
In addition, introduction of water-less jeans has
revolutionized jeans finishing process. Such innovations
conserve a large amount of water.
With new production processes being discovered every
day and pressure from the consumer building on brands,
change is inevitable. The industry will only continue to
become more eco-friendly as much as we want it to and we
want it to be huge!

33. Some Indian Sustainable Fashion brands which are
changing the landscape of brimming fashion industry of our
country-
 Doodlage by Kriti Tula
 Upasana
 No Nasties
 Ka-sha
 11:11
These brands are one of the top selling bio- degradable fashion
clothing in India. These brands can be found on Instagram and
their respective websites.

34. A Case Study Analysis by Anirudh Kumar
12171371001
BBA ma 3rd