Gearing up for a cross-cultural bleatdown
Most people who know gear are well aware of the benefits of Merino wool sportswear. Keeps you cool when it's warm, keeps you warm when it's cold, it dries, it wicks, and most importantly (to me, anyway), it fends off the stink that goes hand-in-hand with the active life.
Much of the merino talk has come from New Zealand brands like Icebreaker, but Australian wool company Woolmark is looking to make waves in the outdoor sportswear market. By hiring co-founder of Pearl Izumi and former president of SUGOI Performance Apparel Stan Mavis, Woolmark is throwing its hat into the ring as a premium fabric in the sportswear world and challenging New Zealand as the producer of the finest merino wool.
In a recent press release, Woolmark touted the Australian Merino wool as "an amazing natural fibre with over 10,000 years in the making," and that “the majority of softer fine micron Merino comes out of Australia, dwarfing the rest of the world’s Merino market."
Consider the gauntlet thrown, New Zealand.
