Untouched World recently won an award for its efforts towards sustainable fashion. Photo / Supplied
Untouched World recently won an award for its efforts towards sustainable fashion. Photo / Supplied
Kiwi merino clothing retailer Untouched World has global ambitions to open retail stores in Australia, Canada, Britain and the United States.
The four-store retail business, which is currently searching for a shop in Auckland shopping district Newmarket after closing its Auckland CBD store, is in expansion mode.
The 40-year-old Christchurchbased business is undergoing a brand refresh - updating its logos, online capabilities and digital assets, as part of efforts to modernise the brand.
Over the next two to five years, Untouched World will take its brand into new retail markets through the bricks and mortar channel, starting with Australia and the United States.
The retailer, which specialises in clothing and apparel made from wool, already has stores in Wellington, Christchurch and Wanaka.
Founder and owner Peri Drysdale said New Zealand's recently signed free trade agreement with the UK meant the brand would also look for a store location in Britain. It is not likely Untouched World would open any more stores in New Zealand, she said.
An Australian store would ideally open next year while work on other international flagship stores are still approximately three years away from becoming a reality.
"It has always been a long term plan [to open international stores] and now with changes in the free trade agreement it makes it a lot more possible," Drysdale told the Herald.
"While our business intention is clear on global growth both on and offline, the pandemic has made it impossible to put timeframes on anything. In an ideal world we'd be opening stores in new places now.
"There are multiple cities that are of interest in each country, the starting point is to use our ecommerce data to guide us on store locations. On top of this, the right store location is so key; those opportunities will also influence one city over another and where to go first."
Peri Drysdale founded Untouched World more than 40 years ago. Photo / Supplied
Untouched World manufactures over 90 per cent of its products locally and sources the vast majority of its merino wool from Glenthorne Station in Canterbury. However, it has recently secured a production partnership with a manufacturer in Vietnam and will continue to grow its international supply from Asia. It also sources some organic cotton from India.
The business, which has been certified by non-profit organisation B Lab to have voluntarily met rigorous social and environmental standards, recently won a CO10 Award by global fashion industry network Common Objective for its efforts towards sustainable fashion.
The award recognises just ten businesses globally who have demonstrated excellence in sustainable fashion. Untouched World beat shortlisted fashion powerhouses Ted Baker and Gucci's parent company Kering, to the accolade. Judges described Untouched World as "a pioneer in best practice".
"Having a positive impact on our planet is at the heart of Untouched World, it always has been. When we look at the other winners, and finalists, we can see that sustainability in the fashion industry is finally shifting from tactics to table stakes, which is fantastic news for both people and the planet," Drysdale said of the award.
Drysdale had a medical career in echocardiography before she decided to branch out in 1981 to create her own firm shortly after she had children. Drysdale previously lived on a sheep farm and thought she would try her hand at making knitted mittens and booties for babies for the export market, inspired by the idea of adding value to wool.
The then-wholesale business started with 10 outworkers which grew to 500 within four years. The brand expanded into bricks and mortar retail in 1998, selling under the company name Snowy Peak. The Untouched World brand was established in the mid-nineties.
