20 | RURAL PEOPLE » Davaar & Co Changing the game Sue Russell Davaar & Co’s Kate Macdonald with parents Fiona and James. The inspirations for her designs goes back to the jerseys she used to wear. Kate with the crossbred ock. Beautiful sheep's wool jerseys made in New Zealand @davaarandco Kate Macdonald is realising a dream with the creation of her very own luxury fashion brand, Davaar & Co. With OE plans disrupted due to Covid-19, Kate has found herself selling jerseys made from sheep’s wool grown on her parents farm, Davaar Station, near Te Anau. Kate (25) is the 5th generation on the station along with her siblings Anna (23) and Ben (22). The century farm has been farmed by the Macdonald family since 1915. Kate had a desire to combine her family’s century-long wool growing experience with modern fashion to create a sustainable and ethically produced jersey that would be the staple of people’s wardrobes. She recalls fondly her late grandmother’s passion for knitting and as a young girl receiving beautiful knitwear, made with love, to keep her and her siblings warm. “Knitting was something that we just grew up around, so to have established a fashion brand aligned with our family farm is very nostalgic,” Kate explains. Personally selecting each eece in the woolshed during shearing means that Kate controls the quality of the garments from the outset. “The synthetic bre industry hasn’t done wool any favours and particularly not crossbred wool. Crossbred wool is usually upwards of 30 micron and we use our ewe wool for our jerseys, which is 37 micron. Removing that ‘itchiness’ that people feel when wearing crossbred wool was one of our biggest challenges. We worked with our yarn manufacturers, Woolyarns to re ne our yarn, yet still maintain the integrity of the crossbred bre,” Kate explains. Kate wanted to show that crossbred ewe wool can be worn and not just used for carpets and upholstery, and she intends to change that thinking, one jersey at a time. Without the support of her parents, who she says have been wonderful in their encouragement of her enterprise, Kate knows the journey would have been much tougher. “I have a very close relationship with my parents. They’ve worked very hard on the farm for over 20 years and taught us all the value of hard work, getting stuck in and not giving in when times get tough. These values and habits have been ingrained in us and have bene tted me in establishing my own business.” The inspiration for her designs were taken from jerseys her Granny Sally used to knit her, added with some modern are to appeal to both the rural and urban markets. With the help of some initial design expertise, Kate has created a size inclusive range of styles to suit anyone in four colour ways that re ect the station’s environment; snow, tussock, granite and bark. Davaar & Co was launched in February and since then there has been strong interest from people around New Zealand for the woollen jerseys. At this stage they are sold exclusively online via Kate’s website. “Seeing people wearing Davaar & Co jerseys out is really special and makes it all worth it. I love receiving feedback from customers. They’re so happy to see beautiful, well made, New Zealand woollen jerseys available to purchase.” To produce at a commercial level, Kate needed to nd a New Zealand company that could ensure the quality would be retained in each garment’s creation. She discovered Otago Knitwear in Dunedin who had the technologies to transform her designs into complete garments. After shearing and selecting the best eeces, Kate sends the wool to Wool Works in Washdyke who scour the wool and then onto Andy May, who is the General Manager of Woolyarns, where the wool is dyed and spun. Finally, the yarn is sent to Dunedin to be knitted into jerseys. “Sustainability is at the core of our brand so for me the fact that our entire production process is completed here in New Zealand is incredibly important. Our wool is a New Zealand story so this combined with sustainable fashion adds transparency and authenticity to the garments made. Future plans for Davaar & Co extend into a children’s range, which Kate hopes to launch later on this year. “I am just so pleased to be contributing in some way to the New Zealand wool industry and giving crossbred wool the credit it deserves.” A visit to the website - www.davaarwool.co.nz provides readers with an opportunity to see the range of knitwear Kate is currently producing.
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