Martin Niklas Wieser

We talked to designer Martin Niklas Wieser about his nomadic existence, relaunching his brand and its latest sustainable collections.

Born in Italy’s mountainous region of South Tyrol, 36-year-old designer Martin Niklas Wieser has lived quite the nomadic life. After finishing secondary school in Ireland, he moved to Germany to study Fashion Design at Weissensee Art Academy.

Although Wieser chose to make Berlin his home for 12 years, he frequently floated between Paris, London and Mexico City. Eventually uprooting himself again, he enrolled as a PhD student exploring Generative AI at London’s Royal College of Art in the pursuit of becoming ‘more academically enriched’.

During his studies, Wieser took a sabbatical from his namesake brand, Martin Niklas Wieser (MNW). The brand’s motto: ‘Always in flux. Never still. Always questioning’, which aligns very well with his roaming ways. Since relaunching the brand last year, Wieser has worked tirelessly to turn out new garments, namely the Commerce collection featured in this article and at London Fashion Week earlier this year.

Now based in Vienna, the designer still deems Berlin as the city that formed his identity the most and is excited to return this month for an exclusive pop-up store appearance on 23 April. MNW’s latest biodegradable, zero-waste knitwear pieces will be available at Soho House on 23 April (12-6 PM) in honour of Earth Day.

Œ: Welcome back! It was great seeing MNW return to the fashion sphere last year. Has your ethos changed since your sabbatical?

Wieser: Growing up in the Italian countryside, looking for escapism and self-expression, I saw fashion as a gateway – it seemed like a good tool to challenge social norms. I have a working-class background, which continues to form my design identity today. The long-term goal for me as a designer and for the brand is to build a powerful platform to challenge class notions, gender norms and expression of sexuality.

My brand, Martin Niklas Wieser (MNW), was relaunched in 2022 following an academic and artistic development break. The team now consists of me, my partner, four freelance creatives and production sites. All MNW garments are designed in-house and produced in Italy. But the beginnings of the brand date back to my university years in Berlin, where the initial idea was born.


Œ: You’ve prescribed MNW with the motto: ‘Always in flux. Never still. Always questioning.’ What other philosophies do you live by?

Wieser: The times we live in are constantly changing, which provides us with daily challenges. It seems like we have to rise to those challenges, which means becoming comfortable with constant change. This greatly impacts the artistic output of the brand.

Œ: Who or what inspires you the most?

Wieser: I draw inspiration from fashion history and theory, my working-class roots and everyday life. The vulnerability of the human body and mind is also a big influence.



Œ: This article features your recent collection, Commerce, which you presented at London Fashion Week in February. What’s with the office theme?

Wieser: I wanted to explore the normality and mundane reality of the working class and the corporate landscape with this collection. The collection consists of ready-to-wear luxury garments combining crisp tailoring, power suits with deconstructed and draped details, twisted shoulders, soft shirting and undergarments.

Œ: You’ve been churning out collections since the relaunch. What’s your current design formula?

Wieser: I design roughly two menswear collections per year, which are presented during Paris Fashion Week. The brand strategy is also to create a collection that builds on archival pieces over time.



Œ: Where would you like to see MNW in the next few years?

Wieser: We are working on building a transparent supply chain. We plan to expand our distribution and continue our work of perfecting the product.