American Ship Industry reviews VOORMI 2013 Collection from Rocky Mountain Merino
VOORMI®, a new-to-the-scene innovator of domestically sourced precision blended wool, announced the exclusive use of 100-percent, domestically sourced Rocky Mountain Highcountry Merino™ in the brand's fiscal year 2013 line of precision blended baselayers and midlayers.
Exhibiting a higher degree of crimp compared to wool grown in other regions of the world,
Rocky Mountain Highcountry Merino is generally stronger, more resilient and allows for better thermal regulation than wool grown in mild maritime climates, according to VOORMI and experts at the American Sheep Industry Association (ASI).
"After overwhelming feedback on the durability of our first prototypes, and a long held belief amongst the team that wool sourced from our unique climate is the best suited option for use in our unique climate, we thought it was worth doing some more digging," notes Timm Smith, director of brand marketing for VOORMI. "That's where ASI came in.
"With years of experience in the nuances of fiber chemistry and access to a nationwide network of wool experts, ASI was fundamental in helping us connect the rest of the dots. From there, it was a matter of reconfiguring our supply chain to isolate only the best, strongest fibers from our country's most iconic mountain range."
The move by VOORMI to source and develop Rocky Mountain Highcountry Merino represents yet another key step in building a 100-percent domestically produced line of performance wool apparel for the rugged backcountry and Southern Colorado lifestyle. From the high elevation grazing lands of the Rocky Mountains, to the production of fiber, textiles and apparel, VOORMI's unique domestic supply chain defies the convention of overseas mass production in favor of a tighter, faster and local approach to innovation and sourcing.