interview Ahmet Mercan, The customer will increasingly demand that fashion can do more!

©Alphatauri

Ahmet Mercan: "The name of our brand is named after the brightest and most energetic star in the constellation Taurus."

"The placement of the star is in line with

how we see ourselves as a brand."

AlphaTauri is currently the only fashion brand in the world to be the namesake of an F1 racing team, Scuderia AlphaTauri, by the late Dietrich Mateschitz, the founder of Red Bull. The name is named after the brightest and most energetic star in the constellation Taurus/Taurus, at the centre of which is the Alpha Tauri star, also known as Aldebaran. AlphaTauri positions itself as a specialist for outerwear. The brand naturally stages itself with Scuderia AlphaTauri drivers, including Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda, who visited the design studio on the occasion of the SS22 collection entitled "Organic Modernism". They claim to have redefined the negative term "fast fashion" with a new type of knitting machine, Wholegarnment®, which can knit a garment without seams in just one hour, reducing waste by 30% as there is no waste. The brand is also characterised by exceptionally simple elegant design, all linked of course to the association with adrenaline-fuelled racing. This and other technical fashion innovations such as the textile technology Taurobran®, which is waterproof, as well as stowage systems for the outerwear

It is a long road for a fashion brand to establish itself in the trade and in the hearts of consumers. AlphaTauri was founded in 2016 and is already available in retail with 3 boutiques in Austria, soon a boutique in London as well as in Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Benelux and France. AlphaTauri has also found a new way to communicate with its customers through the AlphaTauri Mobile Innovation Lab, a vehicle converted into a showroom where customers can experience fashion and its technologies. It has already toured several countries and will probably be on display at PITTI Uomo in Florence. The demands on luxury brands have become clearly defined, with requirements including cultural wokeness and carbon neutrality. Ahmet Mercan, CEO of AlphaTauri, talks about the role the fashion brand wants to play in this and also about sustainability in racing.

April 26, 2022

Interview Directory

FASHION

Name: Ahmet Mercan

Occupation: CEO of AlphaTauri

How did you decide to get involved in F1 as a fashion brand with your own F1 team?

The F1 world is more than just racing - it's a lifestyle event. AlphaTauri is currently the only fashion brand to be a namesake for an F1 racing team. With our fashion and our innovative approach within the fashion industry, we bring a new perspective to the Formula 1 world. We are proud to even be the official premium fashion supplier of Formula 1 from this season and we have a lot of plans.

I am excited about your name AlphaTauri. Can you tell me something about it?

The name of our brand is named after the brightest and most energetic star in the constellation Taurus. The Alpha Tauri star is located directly on the bull's eye. The placement of the star is in line with how we see ourselves as a brand. We always strive for perfection and precision.

Where does AlphaTauri stand in the international fashion market? What is your target group?

In addition to our own e-commerce and retail stores in Vienna, Salzburg and Graz, and soon London, we are expanding our retail presence in parallel: today, in 2022, we have almost 130 retail partners in countries such as Italy, Spain, Benelux and France, in addition to Germany, Austria and Switzerland. With AlphaTauri, we appeal to a creative and progress-loving community that places a lot of value on high quality and is enthusiastic about innovation. Regardless of age or gender, our fashion suits a sophisticated active lifestyle.

"For us, fashion can do more."

What role does fashion play today and what role does AlphaTauri fashion play in it?

For us, fashion can do more. We show this in our design and the high-quality materials in combination with smart innovation. AlphaTauri combines fashion with function and offers stylish premium styles with a certain longevity. In fashion, there will also increasingly be a development away from the push towards the pull. The customer will increasingly demand that fashion can do more!

What are AlphaTauri's innovations and what style statement do you want to make with them?

One of our key competences is outerwear. In this category, functionality, innovation and technology come into play very strongly. For example, our self-developed textile technology TAUROBRAN®. We often integrate TAUROBRAN® in parkas and jackets, but also in blazers, sweatshirts and trousers. The material makes garments waterproof, breathable and yet very comfortable to wear. With our collection, we want to create garments that last beyond the season and can also be worn trans-seasonally by our customers. Another innovative core competence of AlphaTauri are the 3D Knits. These are made with a special seamless knitting technology using the zero-waste process. The result is highly comfortable knitted styles in cashmere mix, merino or performance yarn.

Can you tell us about the next route of the Mobile Innovation Lab?

We will be ringing in the new season again this year in Florence at the PITTI - one of the most renowned fashion fairs - and will hopefully have a prominent presence there again with our Mobile Innovation Lab.

"One of the biggest challenges for the industry will be to merge offline and online. There is no "either-or" between offline and online, but only a "both-as-well"."

What do you think the future holds for the fashion industry?

One of the biggest challenges for the industry will be to merge offline and online. There is no "either-or" between offline and online, but only a "both-as-well". AlphaTauri aims to provide customers with a convenient shopping and lifestyle experience that seamlessly combines offline & online. The Mobile Innovation Lab and the DSA-01 are two exemplary solutions with which we succeed in linking physical and digital fashion retail.

AlphaTauri London Opening - David Coulthard, Ahmet Mercan, Christian Horner, Geri Horner ©AlphaTauri Continue reading on Alethea Mag

On the marketing side: Which stars do you cooperate with?

AlphaTauri has had a very large community from sports to fashion and music since the beginning. And with the Formula 1 team "Scuderia AlphaTauri" and a partnership with F1, AlphaTauri has a network with a lot of power and visibility.

Is racing compatible with sustainability? Is circularity an issue at AlphaTauri?

By 2030, F1 wants to leave a neutral footprint. Our mindsets converge on the point where innovation brings about change. F1's innovations go beyond the race track to provide sustainable solutions to 'real life' challenges such as fuel efficiency and electric motors.

Who is your chief designer or do you have a design team?

The AlphaTauri collections are all developed in-house by our design team.

Together, the team always manages to reflect the balance between fashion and function in the design language from collection to collection.