As a follow on from the pilot launch of Fashion Roundtable’s wool programme in 2022, after vast amounts of qualitative and quantitative research and conversations with key stakeholders came the launch of The Great British Wool Revival, an open source tool that connects farmers, designers, makers and industry together to join the dots and make traceable British wool more accessible in fashion supply chains from farm right through to final product. 

Website design and art direction by www.studiobyfarr.co.uk

Fashion Roundtable’s Slow-fashion Policy lead and writer, Meg Pirie, talks with a local guild who are at closure, with the Welsh Wool Museum and the Heritage Craft Association on why skills are more important than ever. With comments from the Welsh Government on introducing the ARTS back into their curriculum.

This week, we hear from owner Clare Campbell, the founder of Prickly Thistle, the only B Corp mill in the UK. Over the last few years Clare has been collaborating with academics and students in Scotland undertaking fundamental research into effectively taking coarse dense British wool fibres and making them suitable for apparel. Clare shares Prickly Thistle’s goal for social equity and offers insight into why as a country with over 30 million sheep, we imported 36.13 million kilograms and exported 20.5 million kilograms of wool in 2021 alone. A staggering fact as we move yet further into a state of climate emergency.

A story of the heritage and culture woven through the Welsh woollen industry with insights from the real people working to keep it alive.