The longevity of clothing makes an important contribution to the conservation of resources  and environmental protection. Proper care plays a decisive role in washing results and garment durability. To increase the life of OLYMP products, we have compiled detailed instructions for their care.

Washing not only consumes water, energy and detergent. Frequent washing also shortens the lifespan of clothing products. The more often a garment is worn before it needs to be washed, the more long-lasting and sustainable it is. Particularly for shirts that – depending on the occasion – don’t usually get too dirty, airing them out well and not wearing them for at least one day is often completely sufficient. This is especially true if you don’t wear your OLYMP shirts directly on your skin, but over an undershirt – for example, an OLYMP undershirt T-Shirt.

As a general rule: always wash whites, darks and colours separately to prevent discolouration. Turn your shirts inside out, fasten the button placket completely and then tuck the collar and cuffs inside the shirt to protect the edges and buttons – as they’re susceptible to knocks during the washing cycle.
If your shirt has removable collar stays, as many models in our premium OLYMP SIGNATURE line do, remove them during the wash cycle and only put them back in the collar stay pockets for drying.
Please observe the care instructions on the label. Our intensive testing has shown that you will achieve the best results in terms of smoothness with a maximum of six OLYMP shirts per wash cycle.
Although a fully loaded machine is more energy- and water-efficient, heightened wrinkling – and the extra ironing required as a result – can largely cancel out these savings. Modern washing machines often offer special shirt washing programmes. 

To preserve colour brightness, we recommend using a colour or mild detergent for coloured laundry. Special detergents for black-coloured laundry ensure that dark clothes retain their colour intensity for longer. Heavy-duty laundry detergent should only be used for whites.
Liquid detergent does have the advantage that it dissolves more quickly and doesn’t leave white marks, particularly on darks. For sustainability reasons, however, the German Federal Environment Agency recommends using powder detergent, which has a higher washing performance and achieves better washing results, especially with heavy-duty detergents due to the bleaching agents they contain.
Follow the manufacturer’s recommended dosage, adjusted to the water hardness (information on this can be obtained from your local water supplier) and the degree of soiling of your laundry. The amount of detergent recommended for “lightly” or “normally” soiled laundry is usually sufficient.
Using an additional fabric softener isn’t necessary – and not just for the sake of the environment! Almost all modern detergents wash effectively even at lower washing temperatures. Stubborn collar stains can be tackled with special pre-treatment products.
Washing cycles at low temperatures and gentle spin cycles look after your clothes. In addition, reducing the washing temperature and shortening the washing time provide an excellent opportunity to preserve garment colour and shape, reduce energy consumption and thus make a lasting contribution to protecting the environment. This is particularly the case with garments such as business shirts, which are usually less soiled.

Always follow the care instructions and, in particular, the washing symbol on the label sewn into the shirt’s hem to preserve the colour and shape of your OLYMP shirts.
For whites, 40 degrees Celsius is usually sufficient, even if individual shirts are marked with the 60-degree symbol; for colours, a maximum of 30 degrees Celsius is recommended.
In addition, reducing the washing temperature still further and shortening the washing time provide an excellent opportunity to reduce energy consumption and make a lasting contribution to protecting the environment. This is particularly the case with garments such as business shirts, which are usually less soiled. 

The longer shirts remain in the washing machine after washing, the more they wrinkle. After washing, you should thus remove your shirts from the machine immediately, turn them inside out, hang them on hangers to dry and pull into shape and smooth out the collars, cuffs and closed button plackets.
If your shirt has removable collar stays, as many models in our premium OLYMP SIGNATURE line do, remove them during the washing cycle and put them back in the collar stay pockets for drying.
If you hang your shirts outside to dry, avoid direct sunlight. Using a tumble dryer is also possible. In this case, you should only turn your shirts inside out after drying and remove them from the dryer immediately after the cycle has finished, hang them on hangers and smooth them out (and replace any collar stays in their collar stay pockets).

Using a tumble dryer is possible. However, the drying process can take a lot out of your laundry. It also consumes a great deal of electricity, which is why air drying is both environmentally and economically more sustainable, as it reduces wear and tear on garments and means they can be used for longer.
Always follow the care instructions and, in particular, the dryer symbol on the label sewn into the shirt’s hem to preserve the colour and shape of your OLYMP shirts.
Remove shirts from the washing machine immediately after the wash cycle has finished, dry according to the dryer symbol (please do not overdry, as this will cause the fibres to become brittle and shirts to shrink), remove them from the dryer immediately after the drying cycle has finished, turn them inside out, hang them on hangers and pull into shape and smooth out the collars, cuffs and button plackets.

If you follow our care instructions, your shirts will be smooth as soon as they’re dry. This applies in particular to models from the OLYMP Luxor line, which are designed with non-iron fibres.
However, even our other OLYMP shirt lines, which are “only” labelled “easy-iron”, make the tedious task of ironing largely unnecessary if you follow our care tips. Any remaining wrinkles will disappear automatically during wear as a result of body heat and perspiration.
However, if you still wish to use an iron, make sure it is not too hot (maximum two points) and keep in mind that the set temperature may vary noticeably from the actual ironing temperature. For this reason, you should only iron collars and cuffs briefly and inside out to avoid bubbles or shiny patches.

Of course. When having your garments cleaned externally, please ensure that you pass on our valuable information for optimal washing results and increased durability to your dry cleaner, laundry service provider or other person responsible for caring for your OLYMP shirts in order to extend their life.
Further care tips can be found online at www.olymp.com/de_de/style/ratgeber/pflegehinweise.

The models in our OLYMP Luxor business shirt line in particular are designed to be non-iron with every fibre.
However, even our other OLYMP shirt lines, which are “only” labelled “easy-iron”, make the tedious task of ironing largely unnecessary if you follow our care tips.

To ensure that your OLYMP shirts remain wrinkle-free when travelling, you should fold them as they would be in the shop: close the button placket completely (leave the cuff buttons open!), lay your shirt on a flat surface with the button placket facing down, fold the sleeves and part of the shoulder area loosely up to the centre of the back of the shirt, and fold the shirt hem up once or twice.
Then place your shirts at the top of your suitcase and pad the neckline with your socks or underwear if necessary.
When you arrive at your destination, hang your OLYMP shirts on hangers immediately. If there are any wrinkles left, it helps to hang shirts in the bathroom after showering while the air is still humid.

Until they are next worn, OLYMP shirts should ideally be stored in a wardrobe on suitable hangers and protected from direct sunlight.

If garments are worn or stored for a long period of time, slight discolouration may occur, which is particularly noticeable on white fabrics as yellowish or greyish stains. This is mainly due to stains or sweat marks that have become embedded in the fabric. Hence garments should always be washed, then stored in a dry wardrobe.

The longer an OLYMP shirt is worn, the more sustainable it is – both environmentally and economically. Shirts that no longer fit properly can be altered by a tailor. Items that are no longer liked can be given away to friends, donated to clothing banks or charities, or sold through second-hand shops or online platforms.
However, even a high-quality garment such as an OLYMP shirt is inevitably subject to natural wear and tear, even with the most careful care and gentle wearing behaviour. So when the time inevitably comes to dispose of your favourite item, which is hopefully worn out but still in reasonably good condition, please use the special collection containers for old clothes and textiles so that they can be reused or recycled and valuable resources can be conserved.
Heavily worn, dirty or otherwise contaminated textiles should be disposed of with your general waste.

As a general rule: always wash different colours and materials separately to prevent discolouration. This means separating whites from coloured and dark cotton, and separate from wool. Turn your garments inside out and close any button plackets and zips completely to protect fibres on the out-side during the washing cycle, and to prevent damage. Please observe the care instructions on the label.

The following applies to knitted items made of wool: These should preferably be washed in the ma-chine on a wool cycle, even if washing by hand is recommended! This allows you to control the washing temperature precisely, use an optimum amount of detergent and reduce mechanical stress. If the care label indicates hand wash, set the wash cycle to cold, i.e. less than 30 degrees Celsius. With woollen knitwear, only fill the washing machine drum to a third of its capacity. This improves the washing result and protects your garments.