Knowledge Cotton Apparel: A portrait of the Danish clothing brand

Everything seemed possible in 1969. Change was in the air, and people truly believed that the world could be transformed. Apollo 11 landed on the moon, the hippies made their pilgrimage to Woodstock and the environmental movement was born. 22-year-old Jørgen Mørup also felt the spirit of change. The fact that he started his own little revolution in Herning in the heart of Denmark wasn’t planned, it was more of an accident. Many coincidences came together – ones that aligned with his clear vision.

Jørgen was a pioneer in the textile manufacturing world who broke away from commonplace market behaviour and didn’t want to build his business by exploiting humans and nature. He became a pioneer for a second time when, decades later, he founded his own clothing brand with his son Mads, which was to follow the same values: ‘KnowledgeCotton Apparel’, or ‘Knowledge’ for short.

Fire station meets knitting machine

‘My father comes from a family of bakers,’ explains Mads about the development of the family business. ‘He went to Sweden to train as a confectioner and experienced the student spirit and the spirit of optimism there at the time. This probably made him much more conscious of the fact that things can be changed.’ On his return, Jørgen stumbled upon an abandoned fire station in his hometown of Herning. He didn’t know what to do with it yet, but somehow knew he needed to have it. His uncle, on the other hand, owned an old knitting machine that he urgently needed to store somewhere ...

And so one thing led to another, and Jørgen found new vocation. It turned out that he had a knack for business and for fabric development. But something else soon became clear: Jørgen did not want to partake in the way the textile industry operated. ‘He quickly recognised the conditions in the industry,’ explains Mads. ‘And my father didn’t want to be a part of it. He was convinced that it can and must operate differently.’

Looking back, things always seem obvious – including how far ahead of his time Jørgen Mørup was. In the 1970s, he established his own supply chain, and when organic cotton appeared on the scene in the 1980s, he was one of the first buyers. Since 1994, the Mørups use only organic cotton. Jørgen manufactured fabric for big names in the fashion world who value craftsmanship and artistry. But times were changing. Over the years, fast fashion became more popular, and more and more brands are moved towards Asia.

Going against the trend

‘We talked about it a lot at home as a family, and my father also had the idea of opposing it and setting up his own brand,’ says Mads. It was supposed to take a few more years, but in the end it was Mads who approached his father in 2008 and asked him if it was time to make the idea reality. And so J. Mørup Stof became Knowledge Cotton Apparel, a clothing brand that wants to show that there is another way. A clothing brand that isn’t driven by rapid growth, but one that is fair, considerate and sustainable.

Knowledge, with its minimalist style and expertise in natural products, has grown into a hidden gem in its home country and neighbouring Scandinavian countries. It took a bit of time, but in the end the small family business from Denmark appeared on the radar of the outdoor world.

‘It was hard at the start. We had to fight for it,’ recalls Mads. ‘But we also always had people who believed in us and our mission. Without this community, we wouldn’t have made it.’ But the 49-year-old is also convinced that ‘We’re getting more and more attention. There are more and more of us. Many are turning away from cheap mass-produced goods and materials that harm us and nature.’

But Mads doesn’t just have a pioneering spirit in his genes. As a Scandinavian, elegant purism runs through his veins. The Knowledge design is clean, timeless – ‘and therefore sustainable. We don’t want to create clothing that you’ve had enough of after a season or that is difficult to mix and match.’ The brand’s products are also extremely versatile. For this, among other things, they received a Scandinavian sustainability award in 2025. Knowledge Cotton Apparel became a favourite of the jury thanks to its comfort.

The Knowledge cut is classic with refined, mostly hidden details. The colour scheme is characterised by natural tones. A playful element occasionally creeps in here and there – often in the form of an owl. It’s perfectly fitting for a brand that has the word ‘knowledge‘ in its name: the Knowledge logo represents the animal of wisdom. Mads explains: ‘The owl stands for curiosity and honesty and, of course, for knowledge that is deeply rooted in nature. And all of these were the reasons behind founding the brand and setting it up. We have always been thirsty for knowledge and still are today. We want to learn, make things better. And nature is the biggest source of inspiration. The greatest technologies can be found in natural materials.’

Completely plastic-free by 2030

The soft, lightweight and breathable linen made by the Danes makes the shirts, trousers and t-shirts both look good and feel good. The extra-long Supima cotton fibre, which the Vent Ripstop 90 Lightweight shorts and jacket are made from is particularly high quality. It’s robust, rip-resistant and pleasantly soft – and thanks to its DWR waterproofing, it’s also water-repellent and fast-drying.

In the meantime, the Knowledge Cotton Apparel team has set itself a new, very ambitious goal. The aim is for the entire collection (including packaging) to be plastic-free by 2030.

A lot has happened since Jørgen’s first forays in the 1970s and since the founding of Knowledge 2008. Back then, both father and son invested a lot of time and energy in the search for partners, from producers to end customers. Things are different today. ‘Maybe I’m a little naive,’ says Mads, ‘but I really think I sense a collective spirit that finally wants change.’