Backing wool, grassroots sport and the people who always turn up

Iconic NZ apparel brand Norsewear has found a way to keep sports supporters’ heads toasty with its new Wool Blacks beanie, available in time for winter.

Crafted from Wool Integrity NZ certified traceable NZ wool and designed for the good sports who love to get out in support of their favourite team - braving arctic mornings, shadowy afternoons, and freezing stadiums – the beanie is soft, warm and the perfect addition to the Kiwi winter wardrobe.

“We wanted to launch the Wool Blacks beanie as a way of celebrating the parents, grandparents, coaches, volunteers and supporters who turn up week after week to cheer on rugby, football, netball, hockey and other winter sports across New Zealand,” says Norsewear managing director Tim Deane.

“But it’s also something you can stuff in your pocket and take to Eden Park.”

And Norsewear is going a step further to help keep grassroots sport thriving – 10 per cent of Wool Blacks beanie sales will be donated to School Sport NZ.

Tim says the idea was inspired by years spent on the sidelines himself, as a dad of four now adult children.

“I’m well aware that once the temperature drops, you find yourself standing there, chilled to the bone, and wishing you’d remembered your beanie.”

But there was another reason, too.

Last year, sports fans contacted Norsewear to voice their disappointment that official, branded rugby supporters’ beanies were cheap, synthetic, highly flammable and manufactured offshore.

"At Norsewear we've always backed NZ wool and the farmers who produce it - not to mention the fact that many of those farmers are turning out our toughest sportspeople!

“So we put a call out via an open letter, suggesting that there might be room for a woollen supporter beanie in NZ sport. When that idea didn't fly, we decided to make one ourselves.”

The Wool Blacks beanie reflects the company’s longstanding commitment to natural fibre and the people who love it as much as Norsewear does, Tim says.

"For decades we've made products for people who work and play outdoors.

"NZ produces the world's best wool and we think it deserves to be celebrated! This beanie is a fun way to champion wool while supporting the communities that keep grassroots sport alive."

School Sport NZ CEO Michael Summerell says funding generated by sales of the beanie will help create opportunities for secondary school sport from Kaitaia to Bluff.

“It’s wonderful to see an honest NZ brand like Norsewear backing sport in this way and celebrating the people who turn up, no matter the weather.”