14 Oct 2010

Carpet wool initiatives reaching stores

7:47 pm on 14 October 2010

New initiatives for New Zealand carpet wools are starting to weave their way into the retail end of the market.

Wool carpets under the Just Shorn brand are now selling in 100 stores in 80 cities in the United States.

Elders Primary Wool launched the brand in the US earlier this year, paying farmers a premium for the wool.

Dozens of carpet designs have been created by different manufacturers.

And carpets carrying the Just Shorn brand are being sold in International Design Guild stores.

New Zealand wool is also being used in new carpet designs released through Europe's largest carpet distributor, the Headlam Group.

Wools of New Zealand, a subsidiary of Wool Partners International, is supplying that wool.

WPI's chief executive, Iain Abercrombie, says it could build up to more than two million kilograms of carpet wool a year.

He says WPI will also supply the wool to be used in a new fabric developed for seating in Starbucks coffee houses, and expects to announce more supply agreements in the coming months.