WITHOUT fashion there wouldn't be a wool industry.
That simple fact can often become lost in the myriad of detail woolgrowers face each day in their individual attempts to remain economically and organically relevant.
It is understandable then that many woolgrowers have little understanding of the wool chain beyond the farmgate.
It might also be fair to say few at the high-end of the fashion industry have any understanding of the process involved in producing Australian Merino wool.
That variance in understanding is behind the recent initiative of the Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) in sponsoring a trip "Down Under" by one of the most influential men in the global fashion industry.
Nick Wooster is a New York-based fashion retailer and has an enormous worldwide following through his Instagram.
It is enough exposure to make his every fashion move noticed by a growing number of young men, all of whom are influenced by the elegantly casual style Mr Wooster prefers.
His wardrobe selections are carefully scrutinised, discussed and displayed in various attempts as his followers attempt to recreate their "beau ideal" of manly elegance.
Such is his international status and his fascination with Australian Merino wool, AWI introduced Mr Wooster to a wool-growing family on the Old Man Plain between Hay and Deniliquin.
Colin and Amanda McCrabb, of the Avenel Merino stud, near the village of Wanganella, along with Colin's parents Ken and Mary welcomed Mr Wooster and his entourage to their wool-growing property.
Stud ewes were drafted to show Mr Wooster one aspect of a Merino operation, Kelpie sheep dogs worked a small mob of sheep and a few Merino fleeces were on display in the woolshed.
"I am interested in wool for the same reason I am in the fashion business," Mr Wooster said.
"I like to be around beautiful things.
"What is so amazing is that a woollen suit continues to be the Holy Grail of fashion or style.
"It is a leading part of one's wardrobe and it is the thing that lasts.
"It is a classic product."
Classic product or not, there is still an enormous perception in the US, which continues to be the largest market globally for luxury fashion, that wool is itchy despite its status of being "smarter".
"Cashmere is always soft, cotton mostly feels soft, but wool has the perception of being prickly," Mr Wooster said
That is the challenge facing the wool industry and the opportunity for future markets because Mr Wooster said the lack of acceptance could be overcome by education.
"You have to start with the younger generation," Mr Wooster said.
"They don't have the same emotional baggage and are more open to innovation."
Mr Wooster was amazed Australia produced the greater bulk of Merino wool available globally, and it was a selling point he thought was little understood.
"I love the Woolmark and the farm to fashion concept," he said.
"I know a lot about fashion but not a lot about the raw material."
Farm visits like this one to Wanganella were important because it was one way of getting the message across to a wider audience.
And Mr Wooster went away with a greater appreciation for the woolgrowers of Australia.
"They are amazing and so multi-skilled - having to be agronomists, meteorologists, statisticians, nutritionists and geneticists as well as custodians of the land," he said.
It is a package that could also be developed as a selling point.
"I don't have any idea about the production process, nor have my peers, and we need to make that an interesting and compelling story," Mr Wooster said.
Recognising the casual urban/ streetwear market was a global phenomenon, AWI was supporting the use of new textiles such as wool/denim and lighter-weight Merino wool in garments worn by contemporary consumers.
By celebrating the quality of wool, and its heritage and authenticity in a contemporary and compelling manner, AWI was connecting Australian Merino wool with the active urbanites' daily life.
