The Slow-Burn Fashion of mfpen turns 10
I’m poking around mfpen’s site to prepare for my interview with founder Sigurd Bank when I land on the brand’s Clasp Jacket. A cropped, structured piece cut from washed denim, its main feature is a sharp fastening produced by an Italian manufacturer that typically makes closures for firefighter uniforms.
It’s incredibly cool. But of course, it’s already sold out. Completely gone, no restock coming.
Naturally, I mentioned the jacket to Bank. “We had quite a lot of stock on that one because we could see there was a lot of interest,” he says with typical Danish dryness. “And it sold out within two hours.” Bank’s unfazed tone makes the mfpen playbook clear. There will be no scrambling to ride a wave of virality. “We decided not to produce it again,” he says. “There’s nothing wrong with the jacket, but it’s maybe a trend thing.”
mfpen has always existed just a little outside of fashion’s usual rhythm. Founded in Copenhagen in 2015, the label’s approach is rooted in restraint. It makes what it wants to make on its own terms, which in turn makes it magnetic.
Even as the brand grows — and make no mistake, it is growing — it’s doing so with caution, even resistance. “We believe in growing slowly,” Bank says. “And it’s not about a trend of ‘slow fashion.’ It’s just like, why do we have to be the biggest brand?” No grand expansion plans or corners cut in the name of scale. Just good clothes made thoughtfully.
Long before mpfen’s runway debut at Copenhagen Fashion Week 2024, Bank’s studio above a local Irish pub was quietly churning out shirting, suiting, and denim that spoke to a specific kind of taste: restrained, thoughtful, and sustainable. He started the brand 10 years ago as a passion project born from his sharp eye for materials. mfpen leans heavily on deadstock fabrics, organic cotton, and post-consumer recycled wool. “If it’s poly-something, we won’t touch it,” Bank says.
With no paid marketing, influencer deals, or hype tactics, he built a slow-burning cult following. The brand’s early days included self-funded presentations with street-cast models, the kind of lo-fi honesty that only sharpened its credibility.
Even as its profile has risen, attracting global stockists like Mr Porter and Dover Street Market and a flagship store in its home city, mfpen has stayed committed to a slow fashion ethos, putting out collections that feel personal rather than seasonal. Each one bleeds into the next like one long, uninterrupted thought. “Everything we do is more or less one constant collection that’s moving,” Bank explains. “It’s rare we sit down and go, ‘Okay, this collection, this theme.’”
mfpen’s DNA is rooted in European tailoring — oversized Italian suiting à la early Armani, mixed with utilitarian touches borrowed from Danish military archives and ‘90s silhouettes. “There’s nothing futuristic in our products,” Bank says. “We always look to the past. And then we contextualize it.”
mfpen doesn’t ignore the classic Scandinavian principles, but it does bring them into the present, subtly updating familiar garments with exaggerated proportions or unexpected textures. Boxy padded-shoulder blazers, relaxed straight-leg trousers, and slightly off-kilter shirting in washed poplin or wool blends are always part of mfpen collections, creating pieces that stack rather than replace each other.
But even for a brand that’s intentionally anti-hype, it’s nice to be acknowledged. I ask Bank about the growing buzz around mfpen, especially after it became a semi-finalist for the 2025 LVMH Prize. “I’m a bit biased,” he says carefully. “It was nice that we could do stuff which is very wearable and not noisy and still be low-key and still get recognition from a design prize, where usually it’s about the opposite.”
mfpen didn’t make it to the finals, but according to Bank, several of the LVMH Prize judges showed up to the semifinal event wearing his clothes. “That’s recognition,” he says, a half-smile in his voice. “Our stuff is meant to be worn. When you see people wearing it, styling it well, that’s the validation. None of them came in stuff from the other brands.”
Which brings us back to the Clasp Jacket. The one everyone wanted but couldn’t have. “We could probably produce a thousand more and sell them out,” Bank says. “But we decided not to. We made it. It’s fine. Let’s move on.”
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