Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Wool Partners International?

Wool Partners is a new company that has the capability to take wool from farm to the market.

Who owns Wool Partners?

Ownership is 50% Wool Grower Holdings Limited and 50% PGG Wrightson.

Who governs Wool Partners?

The board is chaired by Theresa Gattung and has as its board members Craig Norgate, Alan McConnon, Keith Sutton, John Perriam, Mike Skilling and John Watson.

What resources does Wool Partners possess?

Wool Partners International:

Owns the largest wool handling facility in New Zealand (New Zealand Wool Handlers);
Has the largest wool-dedicated procurement team, with reps located throughout the country;
Operates the largest auction platform in New Zealand;
Owns Wools of New Zealand which is a market support company with offices in New Zealand, UK, USA, China and Europe;
Owns Bloch and Behrens, a well respected New Zealand wool trading company.

What does Wool Partners do?

The company has four key objectives:

To be innovative in the way wool is marketed.
For wool prices at farm to become stronger the price of wool products in the market must be strong. Wool Partners will be active in supporting its customers in meeting the needs of consumers.

To develop an integrated supply chain to market.
In other words to have within the company the capability to take wool from farm to market in the most efficient way possible.

To consolidate as much of the New Zealand clip as possible.
The economies of scale in doing this are significant and it means that an improved and co-ordinated offer can be made to the market.

To create a grower controlled company.
Wool Partners will be owned by growers through Wool Grower Holdings and will work to improve the value of wool at market and at farm.

What is new about this approach?

Wool has traditionally been taken to market through multiple parties. This means that the grower has no knowledge of the end user and vice versa. Wool Partners will move wool along the value chain all the way to market. This ensures a better product off farm and better support for customers in market. The company is led by a brand marketing philosophy that will see increased demand for wool and the development of the most sophisticated market support packages for strong wool users around the world.

How will the vision be realised?

This vision will be realised by achieving the following goals:

World leader in on-farm practices for strong wool;
Most efficient wool handling practices in the world;
Largest volume supplier for sustainable strong wool in the world;
Lead innovator and solutions provider;
Leading ingredient brand marketer;
Effective developer of strategic market partnerships worldwide;
Integrated strategies for key regional markets.

How will Wool Partners make a difference to the Wool industry?

Wool Partners will give New Zealand growers the ability to consolidate their clip and develop an integrated company owned and controlled by growers. This approach will provide the structure through which Wool Partners can provide the very best levels of market support to create value in market. As Wool Partners creates value it will begin to enjoy improved returns.

How can Growers benefit from Wool Partners?

Growers can benefit by initially supplying their wool to Wool Partners and in due course investing in Wool Grower Holdings. By executing on the strategies discussed returns to growers will improve and the brand value of Wool Partners will grow.

How can other people in the industry benefit from Wool Partners?

Wool Partners International is about partnership for profit. Other industry players can partner with Wool Partners for mutual commercial benefit.