Kangaroo Island signs deal with AWN

01 Aug '15

3 min read

Kangaroo Island brand wool knitwear will soon debut on the world stage after it signed a deal with Australian Wool Network, a major wool marketer.

The deal between AWN and Kangaroo Island Wool is called DNA, the 'direct network advantage' wool supply programme, and has been developed in conjunction with the company's knitwear manufacturing business called Hysport Pty Ltd, AWN announced in its website.

The end product is the luxury knitwear label MerinoSnug, one of Hysport's premier clothing brands, and is made from Australian merino wool and New Zealand possum fur. As well as the MerinoSnug brand, the swing tag and point of sale signage will identify the contribution of wool grown on Kangaroo Island.

The knitwear is manufactured wholly in Australia using state of the art 'whole of garment' knitting machines and the MerinoSnug knitwear range is in high demand particularly from the tourism and travel retail sector. The finished garment is extremely warm to wear and lightweight.

The products will be available from 230 retail outlets around Australia including airports, which also gives access to international travellers and avoids a seasonal market downturn.

Plans are also in place to distribute the products through major airports and retailers throughout the world.

The DNA scheme that has been developed by Australian Wool Network is the first in Australia that allows wool growers to be able to follow the journey of their wool from bale to retail. This satisfies a long felt need by many growers who want to know where their wool goes, a desire that is consistent with the 'paddock to plate' trend so prevalent today with food producers.

Chairman of Kangaroo Island Wool Christine Berry said that the signing of the deal with AWN was the culmination of four years' work.

'We started on the concept of a grower to garment proposal in 2011 when 19 members came together to form Kangaroo Island Wool. Eighteen of our members are wool growers and the 19th is our local vet who supervises all our sheep health and genetic breeding work,” Christine said.

AWN MD John Colley said they preferred the term wool marketing rather than wool broking to describe their business.

“We started in 1999 with a vision to bring wool growers and processors closer together. By controlling wool processing from bale to retail we are in charge of some of the associated costs, enabling us to potentially offer a better price for specific wool types, as well as be much more aware of consumer desires,” he said. (SH)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

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