What’s the concept behind the business?
Wool and the Gang is a unique fashion experience – this is how I describe it, as an experience first and foremost. We have a collection and you can either buy a kit that has everything in it, or you can buy the finished piece that has been hand-knitted by what we call one of our gang members.
What do you mean by gang?
They are knitters, 70% of whom are between the ages of 18 and 35, and they are from everywhere. We did a call-out when we started the business, on our social media, and they started subscribing.
The gang knit the product and then send it back to us. They get part of the sale – 70% of it – but they buy the material on our site. We currently have nearly 3,000 subscribers – when we did the first call-out we had hundreds of people signing up.
How popular is knitting?
My co-founder Jade Harwood and I both went to Central Saint Martins [university in London] and studied knitwear. But when we started the business people were kind of laughing – knitting wasn’t at all what it is today. That was our first challenge.
Now it is amazing to see a young generation who want to go back to knitting things themselves. When you make something yourself you realise the time that goes into it. I think people are returning to knitting partly because of the trend setters, and also because of the economy and the environment.
What was your involvement with London Fashion Week?
We got invited to a hotel where the models go to rest and we started to teach them how to knit. We did a collaboration with the British Fashion Council and Save the Children. We knitted sweaters and sent them to UK designers and they had to customise them. Then they went to auction and the money went to Save the Children.
You have started exporting – how do you manage this aspect of the business?
FedEx is one of our great supporters and makes sure we are delivering at speed. We ship to South Korea, to the US and to Australia. The US in particular has been a great believer in knitting.
Wool jumpers conjure up images of winter – is it a very seasonal business?
At first we thought it would be more winter-focused, but actually you can knit with anything – it is all about researching the right materials. We have extended our categories and do babies clothes and lots of things for summer. It’s about having enough products and using interesting materials.
How important is the internet for your business?
Online has been key, because we started with our knitting kits – that was really the DNA of the business. We started seeing on Instagram and Facebook that people were making Wool and the Gang clothes, but really well. We thought – let’s work with them. Without social media we would never have seen the potential there.
What’s the most challenging thing about running your own business?
The most challenging thing is to find the right team – it’s really important to get people you think are more talented than you because you learn from them. Finding the right people takes time and that’s something you don’t always have.
And the most rewarding?
Two years ago we were two people and now we are 20. I have all these people around me and they are doing a great job.
Also, as a designer, when you create design and see someone on the street that you don’t know wearing your design, that’s the best feeling ever.
What’s next for the business?
Knitting parties: we started to have demand for them, so we decided to host them – and since we launched it has gone crazy.
Aurelie Popper is a co-founder of Wool and the Gang
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