From small beginnings
After identifying the need for an Australian merino outdoor clothing brand that provided customers with complete transparency into its practices, our family took action. On January 26th 2012, we established Bluey Merino with a dedication to sharing the entire journey of this incredible fiber, from the farm to the final product.
Our family-owned business has grown into an Australian-owned outdoor clothing brand that sources, designs, manufacturers, and markets its own range of Australian Made premium merino apparel - and it all started from humble beginnings.
During this journey as a small local business, we experienced all of the trials, tribulations, and achievements you would expect, plus some that you ordinarily wouldn’t. As a team, we have learnt so much about the merino fibre: its characteristics, its use, and, most importantly, its benefits for our customers and the planet.
Since these beginnings, we have always held firm our values of sourcing direct, meaning we hand-pick Australian growers that use sustainable farming practices to produce a fibre that is recognised as best in its class for softness and strength. Now, we also know there is so much more we can do with this fibre. Its growing use has a role to play in improving our environmental impacts, supporting regenerative agriculture, and maintaining its critical role in the circular economy. This knowledge we've accumulated over the past ten years is what will guide us into the future.
Some things don’t change
We have also had the challenge of working in an industry that is firmly entrenched in not realizing the true value of this innovative and value-adding fibre. Australian Merino Wool lacks the story behind its production and not much has changed in this regard since we launched 10 years ago. However, Australian merino wool growers' awareness, desire, and passion have become stronger than ever, and they are dedicated to getting their story of sustainability and ethical production out to the international market.
As a brand today, we operate with a vertically integrated supply chain, reaching out to our customers via a range of digital platforms. We no longer do face-to-face events, but instead are focused on creating a premium range of everyday essentials that can be accessed in the future, anywhere in the world. This in itself poses a range of immense challenges – which we gladly take on to promote and tell the story of this magnificent fibre in markets that just do not know how good Australia’s Merino wool is - yet.
Australian Made is where it starts
Building our vertically integrated supply chain from farm to finished product for merino wool completely contradicts the more common industry approach where Australian merino wool is exported and rarely seen until it returns from China or Italy as a finished product. Innovation, new products, and value gets created elsewhere.
So getting our yarns knitted and dyed here in Australia before finishing our fabrics and making our garments remains our core focus. This connects our growers, production processes, and you the customer with final products that support your outdoor hobbies.
However, making here in Australia is not without its difficulties. Finding expertise, managing lead times, and then acquiring the right machinery can be an uphill challenge. But for Bluey Merino, this is the area of greatest opportunity.
Our partners and customers deserve thanks
As a customer during the last 2 years, we admit (thanks to COVID shutdowns), it’s been at times a little more difficult than normal to always be able to engage with us. However, as we grow, our eCommerce team email, social media, and our chat applications are the very best way to reach out. We appreciate all of our customers for supporting us through these times, and, challenges aside, we are still here and committed to ensuring that our range in 2022 is the best we have ever produced for our customers.
We couldn’t begin to celebrate being in business for 10 years without recognising the patience and the encouragement from our manufacturing partners and our merino wool growers. It takes a whole supply chain to make this work, and many of you have been a part of this right from the beginning.
What the journey ahead looks like for us
The next 10 years will be a future tightly knitted to the Tasmanian Outdoors – whether it's sourcing our amazing fibres or venturing out to share the stories of our customers' adventures.
It’s a future where we adopt advanced manufacturing practices, continue with our single sourcing approach, and share our Australian Made products globally via our digital platforms.
But as a customer or partner, it’s also a time for you to share in this journey and these possibilities. When we relocate to Tasmania in 2022 and commission our small new facility, we will begin to share the knowledge we have gleaned as we launch the next phase of our story.
We have completed an early stage design of this new facility and, with your support, we will bring it to life over the coming years.
As we celebrate our first 10 years of business, we look forward to growing further into a brand that you can trust, admire, and always feel connected with as a partner in its growth. We will continue working diligently to become better than we are today, and more relevant tomorrow.
Thanks for your support and thanks for being the reason we continue to aim high. But most importantly, thanks for all of the encouragement you have provided us so far on this exciting journey.
- The Bluey Merino Team