For his brother Brian it was a chance to show off his top-quality fleece, but he admitted that returns are nothing flash.
But it (wool) grows and you've got to shear and so we try to promote our wool through companies such as those here today, because its the Chinese who are buying, he said. When I first started farming here wool provided 30 per cent of my income, cattle 30 per cent and meat 30 per cent. Now wool only accounts for 3 to 5 per cent of my income.
Nigel said the Wimbledon wool was likely to be exported to China and manufactured into carpet.
"The Nanjing Wool Market Group is a very influential body within the Chinese wool industry. It is responsible for issuing quota for wool imports into China and liaises with central government over policy and dispute resolution matters," he said.
The tour group also included representatives from the China SDIC International Trade Nanjing Company which is listed as being the number one importer of wool into China, importing more than 10 per cent of all wool that enters the country.
"It's important this group understand our industry, Nigel said. This tour is helping our relationship grow."
Ross George, managing director of investment company Direct Capital, told the Dannevirke News it had been very good for New Zealand to get the Chinese to visit here. Mr George, formerly a private equity manager in Hong Kong, speaks fluent Cantonese, but started life as a shearer and admitted he still loved stepping up on to the boards.
Originally from north of Ashhurst, Mr George has done his time in the shearing sheds, veteran shearer Neil Weggery said. He was a handy shearer in his time, he said.
And to prove a point, Mr George got rid of his corporate clobber and pulled on a shearers singlet to step up as one of the Clarke Shearing team for the early afternoon run.