Prince Charles joked he is a fashion icon, as he proudly wore his New Zealand wool suit at the Wool Expo in Auckland on Monday afternoon.
He told exhibitors New Zealand is globally recognised for the quality of its wool.
The prince and his wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, are on the second day of their six-day tour of New Zealand as part of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
Prince Charles, in his New Zealand wool suit, has a go at Sam Maloney's wool gun. Photo: RNZ
Prince Charles met with each exhibitor, including artist Sam Maloney who used a wool gun to make a woollen coat of arms, at the wool showcase at the Cloud on Auckland's waterfront.
The Prince, who is the patron of Campaign for Wool, gave a seven-minute speech to the crowd, in which he told of his passion for wool, and what producing it means for the land, the environment, and rural communities.
He joked that in the men's magazine, GQ, he was voted a fashion icon before proudly telling people his designer suit was made of New Zealand wool.
One of the exhibitors, Nick Radford from Radford Rugs, says the Prince encouraged him to keep pushing the boundaries of what's possible with wool.
He says it was unbelievable to get a minute or two with the Prince, and he jokingly offered the royal a bright green rug.
The Royal day started with a visit to the AUT Millennium high-performance sports centre on the North Shore where the couple met with Olympians and members of the Silver Ferns netball team.
Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall visit AUT's Millennium Campus on the North Shore. Photo: RNZ
The Prince and Duchess then attended a performance of Hairy Maclary along with hundreds of children at the Bruce Mason Theatre in Takapuna, Auckland mayor Len Brown and Lynley Dodd, the author of the popular children's books.
They received a warm reception beforehand from about 100 supporters, including Sally Shannon who managed to shake hands with Camilla.
"I think they represent the Commonwealth very, very well. They've been good supporters of the Queen themselves and I think they probably will be the King and Queen in future, so we need to support them."
The couple encountered a short burst of rain and a two-person protest on their walk along lower Queen Street.
Among the hundreds of supporters two protesters called out to them about not needing the monarchy, and about taxpayers having to fund their holiday.
The day's events end with a reception at SkyCity marking the Diamond Jubilee, at which Prince Charles made his first speech of the tour.
The royal couple have a day off on Tuesday before their next round of engagements in Wellington on Wednesday, the Prince's 64th birthday.
Their trip also includes visits to Feilding and Christchurch.
