Georgia is on Waipukurau firm's mind

WORK AND PLAY: Wright Wool's Shane Strachan (left) and Andrew Peters also investigated local cafes, bars and sights on their trip to Georgia to check out end uses for wool.

The Global Campaign for Wool initiative is all about creating new uses, markets and demand for the fibre. In Waipukurau, wool broker Wright Wool is taking that strategy and running with it - all the way to Georgia, United States.

Wright Wool wool buyer and store manager Shane Strachan and dag processing plant manager Andrew Peters recently returned from an eight-day trip to the southeastern state, home to a population of close to 10 million people.

They were there to see for themselves how New Zealand wool is being used and marketed, and to explore and develop ongoing and potential business opportunities.

"We have been doing business with a guy who has set up a plant, which we will be exporting to," Mr Strachan said.

"The plant has two carding machines for processing wool for insulation - 98 per cent of it New Zealand wool combined with some US wool, and we wanted to see his operation for ourselves and what they need from us, as well as gain an understanding of where the finished products go."

One outlet they visited was the upmarket chain store Room and Board, which sells high-end linen, cotton and New Zealand wool products.

Another was a rug company that creates New Zealand wool rugs that are hand knotted in Calhoun (a two-hour drive from Atlanta).

"At this end of the market, these retailers are aware that if the product is fully sustainable and green, people will buy it regardless of the price," Mr Peters said.

Back in New Zealand, Wright Wool clients stand to benefit from the price that comes back to them in the shed.

"It also gives people the opportunity to decide on a shearing pattern to fit with their stock and they will have more flexibility to shear short wool," said Mr Strachan.

Finding new uses for the fibre and increasing the value of wool is something that has had global attention with the Campaign for Wool initiative.

Wright Wool chief executive Philippa Wright is the New Zealand campaign's chairwoman and said it had highlighted the need to focus on the high-end market, rather than the low-end in competition with synthetic fibres.

"We need to lift wool back up to where it should be, and get it into the right marketplace such as these kinds of shops in the Northern Hemisphere where the large numbers of consumers are," Ms Wright said. Gaining an understanding of the market's needs and being able to convey that to growers so they could adjust their shearing schedule and breeding patterns helped give growers ownership of where their wool went, she added.

"We can't do it with all our wool, and the traditional auction channel is still our main channel, but if we can start slowly and carefully and create a transparent direct line, we will be able to take advantage of the opportunities when they come along.

"It's something I can see the industry doing more and more into the future."