145+ Years of History

Let’s be honest, unless you’re a history buff, tales of times gone by can be kind of boring. And it’s not like we landed on the moon, so our history isn’t exactly the kind of thing they make Hollywood blockbuster movies about. With our history, there’s less rockets, more sheep, and no movie. So we wouldn’t be all that surprised if you couldn’t care less. But here’s why you should:

You see, if you’re an outdoorsy sort of person, who wears outdoorsy clothes, it's useful to know at least a little bit about the people who are making them. Fancy colours and designs are nice, but when you’re out in the elements, Mother Nature isn’t going to be kind to you because you’re wearing something that looks good. If she’s in a bad mood, she’s unleashing on you no matter what. And that’s when something that’s really well made, with millions of years of natural evolution and more than a century of know-how and expertise between every natural fibre is going to come in handy. Real handy.

The reality is, you’re unlikely to ever see our stuff on the catwalk at Fashion Week. But when it’s cold outside, you’re going to be happier than a Victoria’s Secret model tucking into a cheeseburger and fries, that you’re wearing our premium quality, superfine Australian Merino wool base layers. Let’s be clear, these are no ordinary base layers. They’re high performance base layers with 145 years of research and development crammed into them. Sure, the Merino wool is already a natural wonder. But it’s what we do with it next that makes it better than the rest.

While some people are just now discovering the wonders of Merino wool, the family behind ioMerino have been working with it since not long after sheep were invented. OK, perhaps not quite that long, but six generations and counting. As a result, our unique MicroMerino® fabrics are like literally nothing else on Earth. They’re softer, warmer, better. Much better. Click here to check out our new season styles.  

Our head honcho David Michell doesn’t just sell this ioMerino stuff, he wears it. Religiously. And not just around the house, but out there skiing, trail running, cycling - doing all the sorts of things the clothes are designed for. He lives and breathes wool and isn’t interested in producing average Merino clothing. The world has more than enough average already. His passion is to make things better, so we can all get out there and enjoy all outdoor adventures, great and small, in relative comfort.

David may have started out sweeping the floors at his family’s wool factory in South Australia more years ago than he’ll let us tell you about, but these days he’s the brains behind one of Australia’s biggest wool manufacturers. So much so, we call him The Wolf of Wool Street, but please don’t tell him we said that. Anyway, while he’s a lovely guy, he’s also pretty fussy. So everything we sell has to get his two thumbs up before it makes its way out into the world for the rest of us to wear.

That’s not to say we can’t still improve things from time to time. We’re always looking at new ways to make our garment even better. But for now, David and his family invite you to put their gear to the test. He’s so confident you’ll agree with the experts who say it’s the most comfortable Merino they’ve ever worn, he wants you to wear it for up to 60 days to try it out for yourself. Then, if you’re still not convinced, just send it back and he’ll give you your money back. And you can’t be any fairer, or more confident, than that.

So even if you couldn’t care less about our history, we think you’ll agree, it’s nice to know a little about who’s making your high performance Merino wool layers, where they’re coming from, and why there’s more to our promises than just a lot of hot air.