Maximilian Engel (right) and a colleague with part of their collection. © Pangu
Maxi Engel from Markt Schwaben has discovered a gap in the market: clothes for long guys; and produced sustainably.
Markt Schwaben – "In the meantime, half of my graduating class buys from me," laughs Maximilian Engel. Apparently a great vintage, in the truest sun of the word. Maximilian Engel specialises in the sale of sustainably produced T-shirts, shirts and the like for tall people, among others. His label: Pangu – created in the children's room in Ottenhofen.
Either tent or belly-bare: Maximilian Engel always had the same problem when he wanted to buy a T-shirt. As a wiry basketball player with a height of 1.93 meters, the models in size L were either cut far too wide or much too short for him. So he discovered the niche early on, which he later entered with his own company.
In retrospect, his path seems to be mapped out, because even during his dual training as a commercial specialist at the leisure and outdoor clothing company Eddie Bauer, he thought about working independently one day. "I wanted to be creative again and do my own thing," explains Maximilian, who likes to paint and became South German champion in a painting competition as a primary school student. When his friends finally convinced him to paint and sell his graphic artwork on T-shirts, he developed a business idea.
"I wanted to do my own thing"
But the native of Markt Schwaben wouldn't be himself if he didn't want to secure his future with additional knowledge: Parallel to his job as a manager at Eddie Bauer, he enrolled in the bachelor's degree program "Business Administration" at the FOM University of Applied Sciences in Munich. What he learned in the lecture hall on topics such as finance, marketing and business law, he was able to apply directly to the founding of his company, which produces durable and sustainable essentials such as T-shirts and hoodies made of organic cotton in Europe.
At the end of 2020, Maximilian Engel quit his job at Eddie Bauer because things were going so well with the start-up. In Istanbul, he had found the ideal supplier with his co-founder, a friend from his basketball days. He spins the yarn from organic cotton in the basement of a 13-storey high-rise building and the finished product comes out on the top floor: a "Pangu" shirt of the best quality, certified according to the highest organic standards. Slow fashion in new German.
"Slow fashion" is now the name of the game
The name "Pangu" comes from his company's brand ambassador, a penguin. What does the black and white sea creature have to do with sustainable clothing? "The penguin suits us because it is an animal threatened by natural disasters, perceived as graceful, sweet and loyal. To fetch food, he goes away from his origin, but always returns. Like us. We are rooted here, in Munich and Markt Schwaben, but we see ourselves as an international brand that operates globally," says the company founder.
For him, global action also means supporting social and ecological projects worldwide. For every shirt sold, his company plants a mangrove tree in Madagascar. In May 2023, there were already 2900 new mangroves. And 196 kilograms of plastic fished out of the North Sea, as well as more than 6000 euros, donated to social projects. On the occasion of its fifth anniversary, the young company is going one step further: With every fifth item sold, one day of school in Tanzania is donated. In keeping with the founding motto: "If we can do it, then we want to give something back to society."
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In the evenings, he is often on the road at networking events and on weekends direct business is booming. The number of business customers ordering personalized team clothing alone has doubled from 40 to 80 since the Corona pandemic.
"With the purchase of our own embroidery machine, we have taken the next step towards sustainability and CO2 savings. This allows us to embroider on demand," says Engel, pleased with the success with companies that rely on his company's clothing.
And there, too, he always comes back to the district of Ebersberg. The company sponsors the basketball department of SG Poing, organizes joint events with a yoga club in Markt Schwaben; or equips employees of various breweries with clothing. sh/ms
You can read even more news from the Ebersberg region here. By the way: Everything from the region can also be found in our regular Ebersberg newsletter
