Training retail staff increases wool sales
Woolmark works with brands and retailers to help educate their staff about wool. The training builds their knowledge and confidence to invest in wool product lines, and also helps the shop floor staff advise customers more effectively which increases wool purchases.
Woolmark has been delivering wool training programs to brands and retailers in key markets for many years. More than 80 training programs were delivered during the 2023/24 financial year to international and Australian brands and retailers.
Training is often provided by Woolmark to support brands/retailers with the launch and marketing of a new wool collection, particularly if Woolmark assisted with the product development. However training can be provided as a stand-alone service to brands/retailers that have an existing wool product range, especially if the brand/retailer is a Woolmark licensee or they are retailing Woolmark-certified products.
The aim of the training is to increase sales of the brand/retailer’s wool apparel and related products, which directly benefits Australian woolgrowers by building the demand for wool.
Types of retail staff targeted with training
The training is aimed at two broad types of staff within brands and retailers: (1) the back room decision makers, and (2) the shop floor staff.
Back room decision makers
The back room decision makers are the company’s buyers, product developers, sourcing teams and merchandisers. The training provides them with a strong knowledge about wool, the product manufacturing process, and the latest innovations and trends, which stimulates their interest and builds their confidence to stock and retail wool products in their stores.
“The back room staff get to really understand the wool supply chain, so they know the right questions to ask and specifications required to develop and source wool product lines,” said AWI Program Manager - Education Extension, Kelly Mcavoy.
“The training also provides them with a firm understanding of the unique attributes of wool, which enables their products to take full advantage of wool’s technical and aesthetic benefits. This can help them create product differentiation in the market place and build a competitive advantage.”
Woolmark can also arrange unique tours to further educate and inspire key brands and retailers about wool. These can be tours to Australia so they can see the on-farm source of Merino wool and be connected with woolgrowers, or they can be tours of the wool supply chain to learn more about wool processing, innovations and sourcing.
Shop floor staff
The shop floor staff are the front-line staff who talk to, interact with and actually sell the products to customers. Consumers can be influenced by many things when considering a purchase: price, quality, style, colour, fabric, advertising, to name a few. However, it is often the shop floor staff who steer the customer towards a particular choice.
“It is the knowledge and expertise of the customer-facing retail staff that often gives consumers the confidence to make the purchase. Consequently, AWI works with many of its retail partners to help educate their sales staff about the natural properties and benefits of wool, so they can confidently advise the customer,” Kelly said.
“By getting to understand the superior qualities of wool garments, staff working on the shop floor effectively become ‘product ambassadors’. They have the knowledge required to educate their customers, answer queries and ultimately influence their purchasing decisions. Training retail staff to become wool ‘product ambassadors’ is a cost-effective way for AWI to market wool.
“It’s always very encouraging to see retail staff and customers in the shop talking about wool. This can only be good for both the wool industry and, ultimately, Australian woolgrowers.”
Training content and delivery
The exact content of the training varies depending on the brand/retailer, and which type of staff and how many are being trained. Bespoke wool education programs are available for staff of all levels.
The Wool Appreciation Course is often at the core of the training, and is suitable for the back room decision makers through to marketing teams and floor staff. The course provides them with a solid understanding of the benefits of the wool and a framework of knowledge about wool production on-farm through to the manufacture of wool yarns, fabrics and products.
The Wool Appreciation Course is also available online as one of the many course available to retail staff on the digital Woolmark Learning Centre (www.woolmarklearningcentre.com).
Training is often tailored to focus on the actual wool product lines which the retailer is launching or currently selling. To complement the training, shop floor staff can be provided with assets such as fact sheets and FAQs summarising, for instance, wool’s benefits and caring for wool. Some of this collateral is suitable for giving to customers in store and complements the messaging on point of sale displays.
“It’s always very encouraging to see retail staff and customers in the shop talking about wool. This can only be good for both the wool industry and, ultimately, Australian woolgrowers.”
- Kelly Mcavoy, AWI Program Manager
Training can be delivered by Woolmark education experts directly to the brand/retailer’s many staff, although the training often works well, and is more efficient, in a train-the-trainer format. For example, Woolmark experts can train retail store managers who then train their own staff.
Delivery of training courses by Woolmark can be done online instead of, or in addition to, in-person training. For large retailers who have their own staff education programs, often the best approach is to integrate the Woolmark online training into the retailer’s existing digital learning platforms.
As well as educating retail staff working in brick-and-mortar stores, the training can also be provided to digital merchandising staff to increase sales via the retailer’s online stores. Woolmark can work with brands/retailers to include wool educational content (imagery and information) across their e-commerce and social media platforms to help them educate their consumers about wool and their wool products.
Top photo credit: andresr
Examples of Retail Training
Below are six examples of the many training programs that Woolmark has recently rolled out to brands and retailers across the world. Also see the articles in this edition of Beyond the Bale about Lafayette 148 and Tod’s.
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ITALY: BENETTON For its Autumn/Winter 2023/24 collection, iconic Italian fashion brand Benetton launched more than 1.5 million, Woolmark-certified, 100% Merino wool knitwear garments. To support the launch of a collaborative marketing campaign for the collection, Woolmark supplied educational content about the benefits of Merino wool and Woolmark certification for Benetton staff’s e-learning platform. The bespoke retail training video was watched by more than 1,200 Benetton staff. |
JAPAN: LVMH Woolmark in Japan recently hosted a Wool Appreciation Course seminar for staff from LVMH, the world’s largest luxury fashion conglomerate. Participants included shop staff from renowned LVMH brands such as Louis Vuitton, Dior, Givenchy and others. The initiative not only equipped attendees with a knowledge about wool to enable them to offer more accurate and informed advice to customers, but it also helped Woolmark foster deeper connections with the brands. |
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INDIA: TANEIRA Part of the Tata Group, India's largest business conglomerate, Taneira is a womenswear brand with stores across India. In November 2023, Woolmark trained 40 Taneira staff, mainly store managers and customer experience officers and the backend team from merchandising and sourcing. The training covered the benefits of Australian Merino wool, Woolmark certification, and was followed by a discussion on a potential joint development. |
AUSTRALIA: AUSTIN GROUP Four educational workshops were delivered online in March to retail store managers of the Austin Group, which is the parent company of Cable, Perri Cutten and GAZMAN. The training was held in the lead up to the launch of Cable and Perri Cutten’s Woolmark-certified Australian Merino wool knitwear range for Autumn/Winter 2024. The training comprised the Wool Appreciation Course and topics including wool care, with a particular focus on the products in the two new collections. |
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CANADA: HUDSON’S BAY As part of a collaborative marketing campaign, Woolmark provided a customised six-part video/digital training program to the shop-floor sales staff of iconic luxury retailer Hudson’s Bay, to educate them about the natural benefits of wool so they could advise their customers effectively. The training also addressed topics such as wool care, common customer questions and the significance of Woolmark certification. More than 7,200 Hudson’s Bay staff completed the training. |
CHINA: ICICLE Staff from leading Chinese eco-luxury brand ICICLE have visited Australian wool-growing properties on several occasions during the past 14 years to learn more about, and be inspired by, the source of Australian wool. As a result, the brand regularly includes Australian Merino wool in its apparel collections. The founder and staff of ICICLE, Chinese media representatives and Woolmark staff are pictured here on a visit in June to the Elsom’s property at Warrabkook in Victoria. |
This article appeared in the December 2024 edition of AWI’s Beyond the Bale magazine. Reproduction of the article is encouraged.
