Creative force at New Zealand Merino taking on a new ‘Leaft’
| Published date | 27 September 2023 |
| Publication title | Central Rural Life |
His arrival at The New Zealand Merino Company (NZM) coincided with its early work to move away from a long-held commodity model for selling wool.
New ways were being found to connect fine wool farmers with buyers and tell merino’s story to markets around the world.
For him, this inventive hotbed was a home away from home.
NZM’s creative general manager makes a good guide when he takes visitors through its forward-gazing headquarters in Christchurch.
That’s because he designed the layout — two winged lanes converging into a dramatic lobby with walls draped in shag pile carpet or a living wall.
Proof of the company’s innovative mantra are a couple of surfboards where wool is used as a fibreglass replacement next to a mock retail outlet.
This meeting point leads into an amphitheatre and then a dark room with a wide screen to relay merino messages. Next door is a display area illustrating the fibre’s many end uses.
An iPad first aimed at a QR code draws up hologram-type images when pointed to a circular seat. On another wall is an eclectic collection of small items documenting its past and future.
The NZM office is an extension of the creative force that was allowed to express itself inside and outside its walls.
Mr Williamson said the design was a window into the company’s culture.
His job was to reach into the future and bring a small slice back to today, he said.
This was always calibrated to see if it was being driven to the end user — anyone buying merino outdoorwear, a legacy garment or even a sock, shoe, woollen kayak or surfboard.
Mr Williamson leaves next week to carry out much the same role for his next employer at Leaft Foods, a plant protein start-up aiming to reduce the environmental impact of food production.
He was sad to be moving on, saying it had been a privilege to be a piece of the ‘‘giant NZM puzzle’’.
‘‘When I get kind of emotional about it I think of the growers and how amazing they’ve been in my years here.
‘‘It wasn’t an easy decision because there’s a community that’s embraced what we’ve been trying to do.
‘‘At the other end of the equation there’s been these incredible brands and their customers and being involved right through that value chain.’’
Nor has it been all plain sailing.
‘‘I owe a lot of beers around the community as we had to convince a lot of growers to do things which at the time were really uncomfortable for them...
To continue reading
Request your trial