Case study — Eurowings
Eurowings put a Christmas sweater on every seat
Eurowings, one of Europe's largest low-cost airlines and part of the Lufthansa Group, ordered 2,000 custom knitted Christmas sweaters from Roody in 2023. Their own creative agency designed the sweater; we made it manufacturable, matched their brand colours in recycled acrylic yarn, and shipped the full order in 122 numbered boxes. What they did with them is the reason this page exists.
- Client
- Eurowings Aviation GmbH Cologne, Germany
- Sector
- Aviation Lufthansa Group
- Order
- 2,000custom knitted Christmas sweaters
- Designed by
- Eurowings' own creative agency
- Trees planted
- 2,000
One flight, every seat
On one December flight, there was a sweater waiting on every single seat.
The crew wore them too
The cabin crew wore them. The pilots wore them — the same sweater as the one waiting on every passenger seat, worn front of house for the whole flight.
That is the difference between branded clothing that gets handed out and branded clothing that becomes part of an event. The people representing the airline were wearing the same thing as the people flying with it.
Crew, pilots and passengers in the same sweater, on a scheduled flight.
The best flight of the year
Passengers boarded an ordinary scheduled flight and found themselves on the best one of the year — a full aircraft, crew and travellers alike, in the same Christmas sweater.
Nobody had been told. The sweaters were waiting on the seats before boarding, and the flight ran to its normal schedule.
The merch everyone else wanted
This is the part worth paying attention to if you're the one signing off a merch budget.
Most branded clothing gets handed out and forgotten. These didn't. They went out as a surprise on a flight nobody knew was happening, worn by the crew, and photographed all the way. Everyone who wasn't on that flight wanted one.
Two things made that possible. The garment was one people would choose to wear — a real knitted sweater in the brand's own colours, not a printed T-shirt with a logo on it. And it was released as a moment rather than distributed as stock, on a date, in a place, with a camera present.
That doesn't come from spending more. It comes from making something people actually want to wear, and then giving it a moment worth photographing.
How it got made
Eurowings' creative agency designed the sweater. Our job was to make it real.
We reviewed the agency's drafts and marked up which elements would translate into knitted fabric and which needed rethinking, then gave them a production layout to work to. We matched Eurowings' brand colours in yarn and sent physical samples for sign-off before knitting anything, because brand colours behave differently in wool than they do on screen. On materials, we recommended a recycled acrylic yarn, and the finished sweaters carry an internal label identifying the fabric.
If you already have an agency or an in-house design team, this is how we prefer to work. You keep creative control. We take responsibility for it being manufacturable.
2,000 sweaters,
2,000 trees
The full order shipped in 122 numbered and labelled boxes into the warehouse of Eurowings' inflight logistics partner, with a packing list for every box, inside the deadline they set at the start.
And we plant a tree for every item we make. This order planted 2,000. Roody is a certified B Corporation.
Questions buyers ask us
Can you produce a sweater our own agency has designed?
Yes. Eurowings' creative agency designed this sweater and we made it manufacturable. We review the design, mark up which elements translate into knitted fabric and which need rethinking, and hand back a production layout for the agency to work to. You keep creative control.
Can you match our brand colours in knitted yarn?
Yes. We match brand colours in yarn and send physical samples for sign-off before anything goes into production, because brand colours behave differently in wool than they do on screen.
What quantities can you produce?
This order was 2,000 custom knitted Christmas sweaters for a European airline. Tell us your quantity and your deadline and we will confirm both in writing.
What are the sweaters made from?
For this order we recommended a recycled acrylic yarn, and the finished sweaters carry an internal label identifying the fabric.
How do large orders arrive?
Sorted and documented. The Eurowings order shipped in 122 numbered and labelled boxes into their inflight logistics partner's warehouse, with a packing list for every box, inside the deadline set at the start.
What does Roody do about sustainability?
We plant a tree for every item we make — this order planted 2,000 — and Roody is a certified B Corporation.
Planning something your team will actually want to wear?
Tell us how many, when you need them, and what you want on them. We'll send you a mockup.