BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
British sportswear brand Ashmei has partnered with the Woolmark Company of Australia on a campaign that champions Merino wool as the ultimate performance fibre in high temperatures.
Ashmei founder Stuart Brooke said: “We still meet customers who don’t realise that Merino wool will keep athletes cooler in hot conditions than synthetics. I think it’s because they relate Merino wool to the jumper they wear in winter.
Brooke visited Australia to shoot a short film championing the benefits of this natural fibre alongside the Woolmark Company’s in-house videography and marketing team. The film – Be Cool In Wool – focuses on how well cycling and running apparel performs in the heat.
Set on a woolgrower’s farm in New South Wales, the film features a fictional farmer and keen cyclist and runner testing out the natural Merino wool fibre he produces. Comparing the latest Merino wool cycling and running gear with synthetic apparel, the short film showcases the performance benefits of wool even in the Australian heat.
Woolmark Company MD Stuart McCullough said: “Our partnership with Ashmei champions the performance benefits of wool, highlighting wool as a fibre for all seasons, and all levels of exercise intensity. The rapid growth in demand for technical textiles has significantly boosted wool’s prominence in the activewear industry."
Wool fibres can absorb large quantities of moisture vapour – twice as much as cotton and thirty times as much as polyester – and allow it to evaporate, making wool garments feel less clingy and more comfortable to wear than garments made from synthetic fibres.
Brooke added: “Our collaboration with the Woolmark Company will hopefully help to shine a light on the natural benefits of using Merino wool for high aerobic exercise in warm conditions.”
The campaign will run through August and September. Brooke founded Ashmei in 2011.
The Woolmark Company is a subsidiary of Australian Wool Innovation, a not-for-profit enterprise that conducts research, development and marketing along the worldwide supply chain for Australian wool on behalf of 60,000 farmers.
