Hüllhorst - Anyone who regularly goes to the gym will eventually notice that a piece of clothing just doesn't fit well anymore. For example, the favorite shirt may be tight around the upper arms. While this is a sign that the training is finally paying off, it presents a major problem. Simply buying one or two sizes larger doesn’t work if you care about the perfect fit.
René Ruschmeier and Thomas Bohnenkamp were often made aware by friends and acquaintances of the issue that there is hardly any suitable clothing for muscular upper bodies. Especially elegant shirts, whether for business or private occasions, were hard to come by for many strength athletes. The more one trains and defines their body, the more complicated shopping trips became. In 2019, the duo took the plunge into self-employment and founded "Wiehenstahl," a brand dedicated to creating clothing for bodybuilders.
Beginnings of the Perfect Bodybuilder Clothing
First, the two men from Hüllhorst in North Rhine-Westphalia traveled across Germany to measure various types of strength athletes for bodybuilding clothing. “Just that alone took over a year,” recalls company founder Bohnenkamp. However, the constant measuring and adjusting paid off, and a shirt for strength athletes was developed from the collected information. What’s unique here is the special cut of the shirt, tailored to the needs of bodybuilders. “Some athletes didn’t want to take off our sample shirts and would have preferred to buy them right away,” remembers Ruschmeier.
Online Shop Established
But it took several months to find a production facility and warehouse for the bodybuilding clothing. Suppliers for fabrics and packaging also had to be found—right in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. “That was a hectic time,” recalls Bohnenkamp. In April 2021, the online shop could finally be launched. “We can now proudly say that we are the first in Germany to offer shirts specifically for bodybuilders,” says Bohnenkamp. The fashion brand can be found at www.wiehenstahl.com as well as on Instagram @wiehenstahl.
Sustainability in Focus
The bodybuilding clothing brand “Wiehenstahl” also sees itself as a pioneer in environmental protection. All processes, from manufacturing to shipping, are regularly reviewed. Initial successes have already been achieved. For example, “Wiehenstahl” already pays the recycling costs for packaging materials, including design packaging and shipping boxes, to the “Green Dot” in advance. All orders of clothing for bodybuilders are shipped climate-neutral, and “Wiehenstahl” consciously avoids plastic, using recyclable cardboard instead.
