Woolmark Company focuses on natural fibre in latest promotional push

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Sep 6, 2022

The Woolmark Company is targeting environmentally aware consumers with its latest campaign that extols the virtue of the natural fibre over synthetic alternatives. 

Wear Wool, Not Fossil Fuel “aims to educate citizens about the hidden impact of synthetic fibres on the environment and how choosing natural fibres such as wool can be a solution to reducing fashion’s impact”.

It comes after the company conducted research that has shown while more than a third of global consumers say they’re willing to pay more for sustainability, “fibre consideration does not feature in the purchase journey at all”. And Woolmark added that consumers aren't making the link between synthetic fibres and fossil fuels. 

The campaign features a series of “powerful visual messages” that highlight the link between fabrics made from synthetic fibres and the crude oil used in its manufacture. It comprises a film and out-of-home imagery, with initial activity scheduled for the US, UK, France and Australia this month. 

The 60-second hero film shows people struggling in a swimming pool, based on the insight that every 25 minutes, an Olympic pool’s worth of crude oil is used to produce synthetic clothing, which amounts to almost 350 million barrels per year. 

Meanwhile, the “visually immersive and striking anamorphic digital out-of-home (DOOH) messaging” will be seen in “iconic sites” in London’s Piccadilly Circus and New York’s Times Square, along with global OOH, a WeTransfer partnership, digital and social touchpoints, plus a microsite, “providing a one-stop-shop to understand the scientific evidence behind the benefits of choosing wool over synthetics fibres”. 

As recently as the 1980s, natural fibres accounted for around 60% of consumers’ wardrobes.

But Woolmark Company MD John Roberts said it’s predicted that in just 10 years’ time, 73% of the entire clothing market will be made from synthetic fibres, which are derived directly from fossil fuels. 

"The impact these clothes have during the use and end of life stages of their lifetime cannot be underestimated,” he explained. “In fact, it’s been said that the equivalent of 50 billion plastic bottles’ worth of microfibres enter wastewater every year just from washing. Science shows that wool fibres biodegrade in both land and marine environments, so we know that Merino wool does not contribute to microplastic pollution.”