Heidi Dickens and Christine McBrearty-Hulse crossed pastures as cashmere growers in 2015.

The vision of creating a direct avenue to connect US cashmere growers to end users was further fostered by a trip to Tuscany Italy at an International Cashmere Conference held in the little town of Radda. Christine organized this International Conference in collaboration with the Cashmere Goat Association bringing together top producers and researchers from around the world including Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and Switzerland. It became apparent at this conference that when US cashmere was analyzed against other countries' cashmere it’s length, style, and micron were superior. To our knowledge, no other source has offered homegrown US cashmere to buyers looking to source a completely US product; be it through yarn or textiles, since the 1980’s. (American Cashmere Goat Marketing Cooperative attempted sourcing US cashmere, but we won’t go down that rabbit hole. Let’s just say we learn from past errors.) Realizing that today’s cashmere market was international, and that U. S. produced cashmere had only a small portion of the U.S. market, Heidi’s, and Christine's vision for US sourced cashmere from local farms took root. Their many adventures in Italy, which involved learning and researching the international landscape of cashmere growers, fueled their initiative to execute a business model where the producer and distributor join in an integrated sourcing model of US cashmere. The ever-increasing number of consumers attracted to products with sustainable, eco-friendly practices, who are looking to support American agriculture, has pivoted the textile industry to consider sourcing more locally produced raw materials. However, regarding cashmere the US supply chain has been non-existent to date.

Knowing there are many small farms with under 50 goats, as well as the hurdles these farms experience with processing challenges, led to a business model that benefits the growers and the product buyer. Starting with a core group of selective growers that follow guidelines to ensure animal welfare, quality graded fiber, and environmental standards, allows our sourcing practices to ensure a sustainable supply chain. Our vision is to source high-quality cashmere directly from cashmere herds throughout the United States who are healthy and graze sustainably.