Interview
Swiss start-up Finally. covers fashion and sustainable products for a period we don't like to think about: hospital stays, chronic illness, a person’s final days. These are fragile times, as the community-oriented design studio and research lab calls them. All products are created after careful consideration and planning, often in collaboration with those affected, namely patients, relatives and nursing staff.
“Care often takes place in a sober, functional atmosphere. There is little room for the personal needs of those affected and their environment. Finally. wants to change this: with care aids and accompanying products that aesthetically and functionally support people in fragile phases of life – and thus also destigmatise and de-taboo society's approach to fragility, illness and death.”
Finally. recently appeared at the Yes!Con cancer trade fair in Berlin. German fashion professor and founder of the brand, Bitten Stetter, shared her impressions and answered some of FashionUnited's questions regarding challenges, favourite products and more.
How did the idea for Finally. come about?
The concern arose from a very personal experience. As a designer, when I accompanied a close person during her cancer illness for several years until the end of her life, I became painfully aware of how few meaningful products accompanying illness there are in clinical everyday life. Much is only functional, sometimes benefiting the specialists more than those affected. Much is free of warmth, sensuality or dignity. That was the impetus to look deeper into the subject. I took further training courses, began to work as a researcher on a ward for several years and then began to design.
What were some of the challenges that had to be overcome before the first items came onto the market?
Many of our products originate in everyday care; they were basically invented by carers. They were improvisations that were designed ad hoc in moments of crisis. I translated them, tested them and constantly adapted them during the testing phases.
The challenge was to develop marketable products from these individual pieces: with the right feel, within the appropriate price range and in a quality that touches. It must be taken into account that care products must be useful for everyone, not only for the care-takers but also for the care-givers, privately and institutionally. Thanks to the support of the Migros-Pionierfonds, we were able to find suitable production partners and bring our first collection to series production.
How was the label received at Yes!Con in Berlin?
We were overwhelmed – by the response, the encounters, the stories. It was touching to experience how much people long for such products that not only work, but holistically perceive people in their fragility.
There were so many people there who looked at us with wide eyes and said, ‘yes, that's exactly what's missing, I would have needed something like that’. They told us about their therapy experiences and gave us further tips for other products. It struck a chord in them and us.
It is particularly important to note that our new Care Collection was created together with a woman with cancer who approached us and incorporated her experiences into the design process. The visitors noticed that. Design is not created ‘top down’ but with the people. That takes time, but it's worth it.
Were there any particular products that were particularly in demand?
Yes, in addition to our new Care Collection, the “Turnarounder” was also very well received. This was also ordered a lot online after the trade fair. We see this part as a travel companion, on the journey through phases of health but also in phases in which we are fragile and have to go to hospital.
The Turnarounder is a mixture of kimono, dressing gown and feel-good textile. People can wear it in good times, but when they have to go to hospital, the textile accompanies us and has all the functions of a care shirt, which is important when people are dependent on the help of others.
The Turnarounder can accompany you from birth and become a loyal companion for fragile moments. It also unfolds its effect when we receive therapies and do not always want to fully expose ourselves.
All our care products are designed in such a way that they combine textile care with functional design; they create meaning beyond pure expediency. It's about closeness and dignity, but also about the fact that we don't have to give up our identity just because we are sick or vulnerable. As one nurse said to me: “When people put on the Turnarounder, they immediately feel much better and we in care are also happy that some colour comes into our everyday life.” Such reactions are motivating.
Where are the garments made and from what materials?
Our textiles are mostly made in Europe. We use skin-friendly, sustainable materials such as organic cotton, bamboo fibre or wool-cashmere blends – carefully selected for sensitive skin and a soft feel. It is important to us that when we stand up for care, we produce the products under fair conditions.
What would you like people to know about people in fragile phases of life?
We want fragile times to no longer be hidden, but to be seen and accepted as human. Because they are part of life – for each and every one of us. Our goal is to give shape to these very moments, phases or times.
I would also like us to create a language in word, image and material that allows us to find an open approach to absent health. It's not just about being strong and powerful, it's not always about fighting, it's also about recognition and acceptance, because that's the only way we can define quality of life very individually.
Are there any plans to participate in further trade fairs?
Yes, definitely. We were recently at the “Leben und Tod” trade fair in Bremen – an intensive, very suitable place for Finally. In Switzerland, we will be represented for the first time this year at the Ornaris [trade fair for trends, inspiration and design, editor's note]. Another participation in the “Leben und Tod” trade fair will follow in the autumn – again in Bremen and we would also like to be at Yes!Con.
Of course, we are also invited to design trade fairs and museums etc. We are currently still pioneers with our research and design approach. Anyone who knows of another trade fair or a place where Finally. should present itself should definitely get in touch. We are happy to take our concerns out into the world.
In addition to garments such as the Turnarounder, the bed shirt, the blanket cape, T-shirts and more, there are also other products such as bed linen, organisational aids, a canopy that creates some privacy at the hospital bed, a practical hanger for the mobile phone, a fragrance lantern, greeting cards and more.
Finally. has a shop in Ankerstrasse 27 in Zurich, Switzerland, which is called Care Atelier, and also sells online.
The interview was conducted in written form.
This article was translated to English using an AI tool.
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