There is an apparent paradox in cachemire from Inner Mongolia. The region that produces the finest, most sought-after fibre in the world is also one of the most extreme on the planet. Temperatures oscillate between –40°C in winter and +40°C in summer. Vegetation is sparse. Water is scarce. And yet it is precisely these conditions — this harshness that might seem hostile to refinement — that give Inner Mongolia cachemire its unique qualities.

The Hircus goat: a fibre machine

Everything starts with an animal: the Capra hircus laniger, the Mongolian cachemire goat. It is not a spectacular creature. Small, unassuming, it would pass unnoticed beside the more imposing breeds of other regions. But under its outer coat of coarser guard hair lies one of the most extraordinary natural fibres in the world: a fine, incredibly soft undercoat that the animal grows each autumn to protect itself from the brutal Mongolian winter.

Each goat produces between 150 and 200 grams of this raw fibre per year. That figure alone explains the value of cachemire: it takes four to six goats to make a single coat. Not four hours of work, not four metres of fabric — four to six entire animals, an entire year's growth, to dress one person.

This scarcity is not an argument invented by the luxury industry. It is a physical reality, inscribed in the biology of the animal and the constraints of the steppe. When you understand this, a cachemire coat takes on different meaning.

« At 15 microns, Inner Mongolia cachemire fibre is three to four times finer than a human hair. »

15 microns: the standard that defines luxury

The quality of a cachemire fibre is measured by its diameter, expressed in microns (thousandths of a millimetre). A human hair measures approximately 60 to 70 microns. A standard wool fibre, 30 to 40 microns. Inner Mongolia cachemire: 15 to 16 microns.

This fineness is not merely a technical figure. It directly determines the softness felt against the skin — the reason a good cachemire coat can be worn directly on bare skin without the slightest irritation. It also determines the quality of the drape: a finer fibre creates a smoother, more fluid fabric that falls differently, moves differently, holds shape differently.

It is also this fineness that makes Inner Mongolia cachemire superior to productions from other regions. Cashmere from China (outside Mongolia), from Afghanistan or Iran, generally measures 17 to 19 microns — finer than wool, but far from the 15 microns that defines the great Mongolian production.

The combing harvest: a gesture of patience

Inner Mongolia cachemire is not sheared. It is combed. Every spring, when temperatures rise and the goat naturally begins to shed its winter undercoat, shepherds patiently comb each animal by hand to collect the precious fibre without cutting the outer guard hair.

This gesture — repeated on each animal, unhurriedly — takes days. It cannot be accelerated without losing quality. Shearing would mix the fine undercoat fibre with the coarser guard hair, requiring more complex processing and degrading the final result. The comb method preserves the natural hierarchy of the fibres and extracts only what is worth extracting.

This is artisanal work in the truest sense of the word: a skilled gesture, transmitted through generations, that no machine can replicate with the same precision. The quality of the final cachemire depends on it.

Hircus goats in Inner Mongolia — Atelier MAUDÉ cashmere fibres

From steppe to fabric: five steps

Each step involves know-how, precision, and a choice that impacts the final quality. An economy made at any stage — faster sorting, more intensive washing, denser spinning — is visible and felt in the finished product. Quality cachemire tolerates no shortcuts.

Why we chose Inner Mongolia

When Aude and Mathilde founded Atelier MAUDÉ, the question of material was not a marketing choice. It was the central question: what material is worthy of coats we want to last ten, fifteen, twenty years?

The answer led straight to Inner Mongolia. Not because it is the most prestigious label, but because the properties are genuinely superior — measurably, verifiably. Fineness, softness, durability, the way it ages: Inner Mongolia cachemire improves over time rather than degrading. A coat worn for ten winters acquires a patina, a suppleness, a presence that a new piece has not yet developed.

This longevity is inseparable from the material's origin. A cachemire of lesser quality, more processed, more stretched during manufacturing, will pill more quickly, lose its shape, and stiffen at the first laundering. A good fibre, from a good source, prepared with care, does the opposite: it settles into the shape of your wearing, gains volume over washings rather than losing it, and becomes, season after season, more and more your own.

Composition of Atelier MAUDÉ pieces: 50% laine Mérinos / 50% cachemire from Inner Mongolia. The wool brings structure and resilience; the cachemire brings softness and warmth. A complementary blend, not a compromise.

A material that improves over time

This is perhaps the most counter-intuitive quality of good cachemire: it does not degrade with use. It evolves. The fibres soften, gain suppleness, develop what textile specialists call a "handle" — a tactile quality that is difficult to describe but immediately recognisable. A much-worn cachemire coat acquires a certain presence, a weight, a way of draping that it did not have when new.

This is the radical opposite of the fast-fashion logic where objects degrade as they are used. Here, use improves. The garment becomes more itself with time. This is what makes a good cachemire coat an investment rather than a purchase — an object that gains value as it is lived in, rather than losing it.