Did you know that merino is one of the world’s oldest breeds of sheep, originating in Spain as far back as the 12th century?! Merino sheep produce extremely fine and soft wool, making fabric that is breathable, moisture-wicking and suitable for all seasons as well as a huge variety of uses.

To create our ZQ Premium Merino, superfine merino fibre is spun into a single twist yarn, creating a slightly textural fabric with naturally occurring slubs throughout. The single jersey knit structure gives this fabric mechanical stretch and great drape. Beautifully soft, merino jersey is ideal for all seasons and perfect for next-to-skin basics and layering. Our ZQ Premium Merino range is ethically made and includes a spectrum of beautiful exclusive colours, read on below for more information.

We’re proud to partner with ZQ to produce our 200gsm Premium Merino range. World leaders for ethical wool, ZQ represents the wool of choice for world-class brands and stands for quality, sustainability and connection, from the merino farmers, to our Vietnamese production facilities and through to our community of sewists.

This partnership with ZQ allows us here at The Fabric Store to trace our merino right back to its source farms, connecting us to the values, vision, and ethical farming systems that went into its production. Considered guardians of the environment, each of these farms maintains individual long-term supply contracts with ZQ. These contracts provide sustainable wool price-points for farmers, meaning they are able to produce fit-for-purpose fibre, be recognised for their values and ethical farming systems, and have income stability. We love that these ZQ contracts give us the certainty that our merino is consistent in fibre quality, traceable to source, meets environmental sustainability benchmarks and adheres to animal welfare and social responsibilities.

This range is milled for us by a heritage company located in Nam Dinh City, Vietnam, with over 50 years in the business. We have a long and trusting relationship with this mill, which is a Bluesign System Partner and provides a MAPP performance guarantee. This company also adheres to social accountability practices based on the Social Accountability International SA8000 Standard, which provides safety and well-being standards for workers.

Before it arrives in our New Zealand HQ as sew-ready fabric, the production cycle is sectioned into four key stages:

Sheep + Fleece — Merino stations and farms across New Zealand
Scouring, Combing + Topmaking — Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu Province, China
Spinning — Dalat City and Nam Dinh City, Vietnam
Knitting — Nam Dinh City, Vietnam