The Woolmark Company has launched its new campaign to champion wool as the original performance fibre.
The company aims to lessen the consumer’s reliance on synthetic materials and educate them on the benefits of natural wool alternatives, such as Australian Merino wool. The new Live & Breathe campaign “reminds a new generation that Merino wool’s naturally inherent qualities – including breathability, odour control and moisture management – make it the original performance fibre.
The campaign will launch across The Woolmark Company’s social media channels and in advertising spaces in cities including London, New York, San Francisco, Shanghai and Tokyo in September. Each location will act as a unique opportunity for influences and consumers to wear-test the latest commercially available wool performance products.
The new campaign looks to promote wool as the original performance fibre
Natural quality
Wool is widely known for being 100% natural, renewable, biodegradable and the most reused and recycled apparel fibre on Earth. Consumers not only choose wool for these environmentally-friendly reasons, but also because they seek a combination of comfort and breathability.
These sought-after properties are particularly growing in demand in the sportswear sector, where technical knitted garments are gaining ground. The Woolmark Company states that at present, the global sportswear sector is the fastest-growing area of the US$1.7tn global textile industry.
In recent years, wool has found a new application in performance sportswear
Compared to its synthetic fibre counterparts, wool is an active fibre that reacts to changes in the body’s temperature during exercise. In warmer temperatures, wool can feel up to two times cooler to touch than synthetic fibres as it naturally moves heat away from the skin. Meanwhile, wool also has the ability to absorb up to 30% of its weight in moisture vapour before feeling wet and clinging to the skin. During physical exercise, this proves to be a significant advantage over rival sportswear materials such as nylon and polyester.
Growing demand
A continuous stream of innovations using Merino wool in the sportswear segment have contributed to the segment’s growth. Activewear, including base layers and outer layers, footwear, insulated products for hiking, skiing and climbing, and also new innovations in wearable technology have all grown in recent years as a result of the rise of Merino wool.
“The rapid growth in demand for technical textiles has significantly boosted Merino wool’s prominence in the sportswear industry due to the fibre’s naturally inherent qualities,” says Stuart McCullough, managing director, The Woolmark Company. “Wool, once the fibre of choice for athletes worldwide, was challenged by the rise of manmade fibres. A new generation of consumers is now expecting more from their purchases and Merino wool’s combined performance properties and eco-credentials are primed to meet these expectations.”
He adds: “The Woolmark Company’s global campaign reminds consumers of wool’s natural benefits which cannot be matched by any other fibre. The campaign features a carefully curated selection of some of the most technically advanced and innovative wool and wool-rich garments commercially available on the market today.”
