Woolmark

MEDIA RELEASE FROM THE WOOLMARK COMPANY http://www.woolmark.com/the-laundress

WOOL WASHING PRODUCT GAINS WOOLMARK CERTIFICATION 20 March 2014

Caring for your precious woollens does not necessarily mean laborious time spent at the wash basin hand-washing luxurious knits, or costly trips to dry cleaners every time laundry needs to be done.

Now, thanks to eco-friendly company The Laundress, another product has been added to the Woolmark Apparel Care Program, making caring for your woollens easy and taking the chore out of laundry. The brand is helping to spread the message that wool can and should be washed and can be done so in the comfort of your own home.

Specialising in fabric care and home cleaning products, The Laundress has this month released its Wool & Cashmere Shampoo with the Woolmark Apparel Care symbol to consumer markets in North America, Europe and Asia.

With consumers continually insisting on greater integrity and authenticity in the items they buy, and demanding products that firstly provide wellbeing and secondly are eco-friendly, wool - a premium fibre - is well-placed to take advantage of this consumer swing towards buying natural products. This trend has created an opening for wool products, and changes in buying behaviour due to the impact of eco-awareness are also being noted in the economy and retail markets. The desire for not only ease of care of wool products but also care of the environment sees new Woolmark licensee The Laundress check all the right boxes.

Co-founders of The Laundress, Gwen Whiting and Lindsey Boyd, are absolute fanatics about the proper care of garments and developed their own laundry solutions with the most effective ingredients.

"The Laundress was started with the concept of our Wool & Cashmere Shampoo. We knew the best way to care for woollens was to wash - not toxic (and expensive) dry cleaning," says Gwen Whiting.

"Our first and top-selling product being Woolmark approved is a notable achievement for our company and an important milestone in spreading our philosophy that all wool can and should be washed," says Lindsey Boyd.

According to The Laundress, The Wool & Cashmere Shampoo is a highly concentrated formula which is nontoxic, biodegradable, allergen-free and is suitable for both hand or machine washing. The Laundress claims the product is formulated not only to gently clean old, new and even previously dry cleaned wool items, such as sweaters, scarves, blankets and more, but also to preserve yarns and provide a beautiful finish.

The Wool & Cashmere Shampoo gained Woolmark approval after testing on pure wool fabrics showed its performance in the criteria of cleansing efficiency, product damage, colour fastness and presence of fluorescent whitening agents.

The Woolmark Apparel Care program seeks to provide quality laundering technology to consumers to provide the very best care options for wool garments. The program allows for the Woolmark Apparel Care symbol to be licensed for use on detergents, washing machines, tumble driers, irons, fabric softeners and bleaches for domestic use. All products are tested by independent laboratories, authorised to carry out Woolmark testing. Detergents were first licensed with the Woolmark symbol in 1969, and the symbol has been applied to washing machines since 1968.

The Woolmark Company's Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer Rob Langtry welcomes The Laundress to Woolmark's Apparel Care Program.

"The Woolmark Apparel Care program is about providing consumers with tools for laundering their wool apparel which have been tested as suitable for washing wool without causing damage," Mr Langtry says. "It also seeks to show consumers that caring for wool textile products is easy.

"Our global apparel care programs are designed to address a misperception among some consumers that wool garments are more difficult to care for than garments made from other fibres. We address these consumer perceptions through our activities across marketing, education and R&D." The Laundress products are sold internationally in fine retailers such as: Barneys, The Container Store and Bloomingdales in the US, Lane Crawford in Hong Kong and Isetan in Tokyo as well as product collaborations with J.Crew and Crate & Barrel. For your nearest stockist, please visit: www.thelaundress.com For further information, interview or images please contact: pr@wool.com

Media Release Wool Washing Product Gains Woolmark Certification Monday, 3 March 2014 - New Woolmark licensee, The Laundress, an eco-friendly company specializing in fabric care and home-cleaning products, has released the Wool & Cashmere Shampoo to consumer markets in North America, Europe, and Asia this month with the Woolmark Apparel Care symbol. Following strict performance testing, The Wool & Cashmere Shampoo is now the first US laundering product to be certified under these important standards, which guarantee the efficacy of the products when used on wool.

The Woolmark Apparel Care program seeks to provide quality laundering technology to consumers to provide the very best care options for wool garments. The program allows for the Woolmark Apparel Care symbol to be licensed for use on detergents, washing machines, tumble driers, irons, fabric softeners and bleaches for domestic use. All products are tested by independent laboratories, authorised to carry out Woolmark testing. Detergents were first licensed with the Woolmark symbol in 1969, with the symbol applied to washing machines since 1968.

Co-founders of The Laundress, Gwen Whiting and Lindsey Boyd, are absolute fanatics about the proper care of fabrics, and developed their own laundry solutions with the most effective ingredients.

“The Laundress was started with the concept of our Wool & Cashmere Shampoo. We knew the best way to care for woollens was to wash – not toxic (and expensive) dry cleaning. ” says, Gwen Whiting.

“Our first and top selling product being Woolmark approved is a notable achievement for our company and an important milestone in spreading our philosophy that all wool can and should be washed.” says, Lindsey Boyd.

Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer for The Woolmark Company, Rob Langtry, states, “We are excited to have The Laundress as a licensee in the apparel care category. We believe this partnership is a great avenue for communicating to consumers and the fashion industry that wool can be washable and easy to care for.”

The Wool & Cashmere Shampoo gained approval after performance testing on pure wool fabrics in the criteria of cleansing efficiency, product damage, color fastness and presence of fluorescent whitening agents. Like all products by The Laundress, The Wool & Cashmere Shampoo highly concentrated formula is nontoxic, biodegradable, allergen-free and is suitable for both hand or machine washing. According to The Laundress, the product is formulated not only to gently clean old, new and even previously dry cleaned wool items, such as sweaters, scarves, blankets and more, but also to preserve yarns and provide a beautiful finish.

The Laundress products are sold internationally in fine retailers such as: Barneys, The Container Store and Bloomingdales in the U.S, Lane Crawford in Hong Kong and Isetan in Tokyo as well as product collaborations with J.Crew and Crate & Barrel. For the nearest stockist/store listing, please visit: www.thelaundress.com For further information, interview or images please contact: The Laundress: Bell Courtney Bell PR bell@bellpr.com 646-207-3951

Media Release About The Woolmark Company: The Woolmark is the world’s best known textile fiber brand, established in 1964.

The Woolmark brand is owned by Australian Wool Innovation (AWI), a not-for-profit company owned by more than 27,000 woolgrowers. AWI’s vision is to be a significant contributor to a vibrant, stable and profitable wool industry providing the world with the best natural fiber. The company works throughout the global supply chain – from woolgrowers through to retailers.

The company mission is to enhance the profitability, international competitiveness and sustainability of the Australian wool industry; and increase demand and market access for Australian wool.

Merino wool provides stability, resilience, softness and luxury to the tailoring industry. The fiber has long been a favorite of designers, but younger consumers, born in an era of ‘disposable’ fashion know too little about the natural benefits.

Wool is a 100 per cent natural and renewable fiber. Sheep live on grass, water, fresh air and sunshine. Wool is a fiber that is grown – not man-made. Every year sheep produce a new fleece; making wool a renewable fiber source.

About The Laundress: Gwen Whiting and Lindsey Boyd weren’t always international soap mavens, delighting fashionistas, value seekers and environmentalists from New York to New Delhi. Many laundry cycles ago they were young fashion enthusiasts, launching careers in one of the world’s best-dressed cities. Following careers at Ralph Lauren and Chanel, they invested in building their wardrobes and were confronted with the frustration of maintaining them: replacing prematurely worn items and paying painful dry-cleaning bills. As graduates from Cornell University’s Fiber Science, Textile and Apparel Management and Design program they saw an opportunity to advance in the world of fabric care.

Beginning in 2002 the pair spent two years researching and developing the very elixirs they longed for. Their results are the highly effective, toxin-free line of laundry and home cleaning products you find today – online and in stores around the world. Each product is carefully crafted to work its magic on a specific fabric or surface with outstanding results.

A work of art built on science, The Laundress collection is sophisticated, eco-conscious and easy to use. Gwen and Lindsey have been taking the chore out of doing laundry since 2004.