Meet Our Supporters – Woolf Outdoor
Meet Our Supporters – Woolf Outdoor
Banishing plastics from the mountains.
Creating a natural alternative to polyester outdoor wear.
Tell me a bit more about yourself?
David Henderson, Founder, Woolf
Most of my professional life has been spent advising leading brands in the UK and globally on their marketing and advertising, but outside work I’m very passionate about hiking, being in the outdoors and experiencing nature in the raw. My absolute favourite places are anywhere in the Alps, particularly along The Haute Route between Chamonix and Zermatt, and of course my beloved Highlands, with the stunning landscape around Loch Torridon a real highlight. Although I’m in London quite a bit, my home and Woolf HQ is now an ex-dairy farm in the beautiful and unspoilt landscape of The Blackdown Hills, in Somerset, where we’re currently in the planning stages of restoring the land to a more natural habitat.
Tell me a bit more about Woolf Outdoor?
I set up Woolf back in 2020 to create high performance outdoor apparel without using plastics or polyester in any way. It’s incredible to think that most, if not all the main brands are still completely hooked on plastics, this despite all the evidence that shows just how damaging microfibres are to our beautiful eco systems, and even our own health. I believe It’s nothing short of an environmental disaster. So, we’ve set out to prove there is a better way, working with one of the world’s best woollen mills here in the UK to develop a precision woven new fabric, PureFleece® and create our first garments, a quarter zip fleece top, made entirely with Merino Lambswool. Not only do our garments contain zero plastics anywhere, but they also actually perform better than any polyester fleece, with improved insulation and breathability. We also make them here in Britain too, using the fantastic skills we have in this country, further reducing our footprint on the planet. Most polyester outdoor garments are manufactured and shipped from somewhere like Vietnam or China. We launched in 2021 and although we’re a small company, word is slowly beginning to spread. We’ve been hugely impressed with the feedback and reviews so far, particularly from our customers in the worlds of hiking and outdoor adventure.
Why did you choose to support Scottish Mountain Rescue?
We chose to support Scottish Mountain Rescue for two reasons really. Firstly, it’s vital we test our garments to the limit, and continually look for any improvements we can make. So, for us, getting them out on the mountains, worn by the volunteers at Scottish Mountain Rescue in the harshest conditions to be found in the UK, seemed a particularly good testing ground. That’s why we’re currently working with the team at Torridon Mountain Rescue who are helping us in our 2022 performance trials, providing us with detailed technical feedback. And secondly, this team operate in Britain’s first ever National Nature Reserve, enjoyed by many thousands every year and are on call every day, every hour to help ensure this wild and beautiful landscape can be as safe as possible for us all to enjoy. We felt it was important and fitting for Woolf to support the vital voluntary work of them and all 25 Mountain Rescue Teams right across Scotland.
What are the different ways that you are supporting Scottish Mountain Rescue?
We now have in place an agreement with the main charity to donate £1 from the sale of every garment, which will go to help provide the kind of support needed to keep their teams running year-round. It’s incredible that many volunteers donate not only their own time, but sometimes the costs of their own equipment and even petrol! So, we also want to provide our PureFleece® Merino tops to anyone who is a volunteer with Scottish Mountain Rescue at a 50% discounted price of £75, instead of the full retail price of £149. Anyone wishing to do so, they can simply contact us via email at info@woolfoutdoor.com and we can send them a special checkout code. Any of your supporters or readers can also get a £20 discount online too.
Where can people buy your garments?
Our Quarter Zip Merino tops are available now online at www.woolf.store and our Full Zip fleece jackets and Gilets will be available from late May.
