Kombinat Hemp Clothing from Poland
From seed to sweater on the Baltic coast — the Polish pioneer bringing hemp back into everyday fashion
We set ourselves the crazy goal of bringing hemp materials back into the textile mainstream — going against the current.
Hemp grown in Poland • Yarn spun with Greek cotton • Sewn in Gronowo Elbląskie • Visit Kombinat →
| Price | Sustainability | Availability |
|---|---|---|
| €€ | ★★★★★ | Online only |
(€ = budget | €€ = mid | €€€ = premium | €€€€ = luxe) (★★★★★ = heirloom + zero-waste preorder |
Hemp grew across Europe for centuries — then the textile industry forgot it existed. Maciej Kowalski did not. Starting with hemp activism and ending up growing his own fields in northern Poland, he built one of Europe’s most complete farm-to-garment operations entirely within EU borders. Kombinat is not a fashion brand borrowing hemp’s sustainability credentials — it is a hemp company that also makes clothes.
Brand Intro
Kombinat was founded in 2019 by Maciej Kowalski, based in Gronowo Elbląskie near the Baltic Sea in northern Poland. Kowalski spent over a decade in hemp activism before becoming the first entrepreneur in Poland to obtain a permit for industrial hemp cultivation under the new legal framework. The brand operates a vertically integrated model: Kombinat grows hemp in Polish fields, harvests and processes the stalks, spins the fibre into yarn together with Greek cotton, and produces finished garments — all within the EU. Their range covers everyday clothing (sweaters, beanies, caps, hoodies) as well as home textiles and raw hemp-cotton fabric for sale to makers and artisans.
Inspiring Story
In November 2020, Kombinat launched a crowdfunding campaign on the Polish platform Crowdway.pl. They set a modest target — what they got was anything but: €950,000 raised in just 38 minutes, shattering the Polish crowdfunding record, backed by more than 900 individual investors. It was a clear signal that the market was ready — people were actively looking for a brand that could prove hemp clothing can be practical, European, and everyday-wearable.
Kowalski’s path to that moment was unusual. He started publishing a hemp newspaper called Spliff, became spokesperson for the Free Hemp Association between 2011 and 2014, and eventually secured the first legal industrial hemp cultivation permit in modern Poland. The stalk — long treated as agricultural waste — became the foundation of his textile business. “I’ve been working with hemp flower for more than 10 years. Hemp stalk has always been an enemy. So I decided to try to work with it, not against it.”
Who is this for?
You are tired of buying clothes made from oil-derived synthetics or cotton grown with chemicals on the other side of the world. You want natural fibres that actually perform — breathe in summer, insulate in winter, and don’t pill after three washes. You appreciate knowing where a product comes from, field included. You are not chasing trends; you want a beanie or sweater that will still look right in ten years. And you are quietly pleased when the brand behind your clothes started as an act of defiance.
| Made in Europe | ✅ 100% Poland |
| Ownership | ✅ Private · Majority-owned by founder Maciej Kowalski · 17% minority via crowdfunding investors |
| Company size | Small (10–49 employees) |
| Durability | Hemp fibre is naturally stronger than cotton · Thermoregulating structure · Designed for longevity, not seasonal replacement |
DISCLAIMER Sustainability score is subjective. InEurope.eu finds this crucial, but conducts no audits. Assessment based on publicly available information and brand feedback
The information on this blog has been presented to the brand but not yet been verified.
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