As the sun sets over a dusty, hot day in Berlin, Alan Balletshofer is preparing to show his SS26 ready-to-wear collection at the abandoned Tempelhof Airport. The last rays of light stretch their arms into the monumental entrance hall as the dusk’s fog fills the room. Final adjustments are made — socks shortened, sunglasses straightened, suitcases shut.

It feels exactly like the three hours before a long-haul flight, when all the last of things are gathered to depart toward something new. “This collection started with me thinking about how we’ve lost the art of stylish travel,” Balletshofer tells me. Mourning the intentional style in travel, this collection is about trying to return just a bit of 90s plane fashion to the zeitgeist.

Backstage, it’s a family affair. Balletshofer’s father, understandably, beams with pride, telling me his son still sews many pieces himself. His grandparents sit quietly to the side with his grandfather set to walk the final look. “Not nervous,” his wife says with the flair of a well-to-do businessman from the ’90s. “Just looking for his glasses.”

The show opens with a contemporary look: a clean-cut navy bomber jacket. From there on, the silhouettes move backward in time. It goes from tracksuits in light, soft fabrics into elegant, traditional tailoring in thick wool. By the finale, we’ve arrived at a beautifully constructed coat presented on Balletshofer’s grandfather walking with him.

Standouts include a windbreaker crafted from fabric sourced at the same Italian mill used by Dior, a weaved denim set consisting of jean jacket and trousers, giving the illusion of a palm landscape-print, as well as coat coming in versions for women and men. “Usually everything we design is unisex, but male and female bodies are still different, so we wanted a coat that fit both well.” There’s also a water-repellent track suit, complete with water-proof zippers. To prove its functionality water is poured over top outside the showroom.

All looks are presented with the Heritage Moc Toe shoe, a collaboration with Timberland that continues their relationship from last season’s 3-eye boat shoe in black-on-black and black-and-blue colorways.

“Alan is a craftsman” one of his friend’s says at the showroom while looking at a leather bag with a solid steel handle. Crafting the handle himself with no prior experience as a blacksmith, Balletshofer is no stranger to experimenting with new materials and techniques. “It’s a bit too heavy right now, though, so we might test it out with aluminum before we give it into production.”

He then points to the most classic piece in the collection: a suit with a horsehair-reinforced lapel, a traditional technique from high-end tailoring houses, rarely seen in RTW. “I want my clothes to last buyers a lifetime,” he says. Though he’s currently in talks to enter the direct-to-customer market, Balletshofer will continue his made-to-order model, allowing clients to order tailored pieces.