It’s Easy to Forget Where our Clothes Come From
Nomad cashmere is made and finished in Mongolia. This picture is the inside of the yurt (called a Ger) that the herders live in. We want to tell the story of the Nomadic herders that tend the goats all winter on the Mongolian steppe in temperatures as low as -30 degrees C.
It is the harsh Mongolian winters that make Mongolian cashmere so fine. Colder temperatures mean finer hair. This makes great soft cashmere jumpers and scarves. Nomad cashmere comes from the nomadic herders in Mongolia. We set this project up because we think that their lifestyle is amazing and worth celebrating and supporting.
Harsh Mongolian Climate makes Soft Cashmere Jumpers
Cashmere goats adapted to the harsh climate by developing a double fleece: an outer guard layer that protects the undercoat from water, and an undercoat made of ultra-fine hairs with strong insulating properties. The fine cashmere down is combed carefully from the goats underbelly in the spring. The process of taking the cashmere off the goat is time consuming. It takes 5 goats to make enough Mongolian cashmere to make a jumper. This is about a full days work. It is not cruel to comb out the cashmere as the goats need to shed in the spring to handle the warm Mongolian summers, where daytime temperatures can be as high as 25 degrees C.
World’s Largest Nomadic Culture
The Mongolian steppe comprises one of the largest contiguous grassland expanses in the world. Mongolian pastoral herders make up one of the largest remaining nomadic cultures.
The grasslands are not owned, so nomadic herders move with the grazing goats. In this picture you can see the small white yurts. The life of the Mongolian cashmere herder is peaceful but not easy. So, a fair price for the cashmere they provide is the least we can do. This makes Nomad cashmere reassuringly expensive while still being great value. By selling online we keep overheads to a minimum so majority of the price stays in Mongolia. The cashmere used in all Nomad cashmere is certified by the Mongolian Cashmere Authority.