Our Story
We are often asked why an average family would set out make the best All-Purpose Outerwear we could figure out. ... Because it needed to be done, and nobody else was doing it ... that still amazes me. (Many people may take exception to these statements, and I look forward to our exchange of ideas.)
I always loved being outside, and wool is more versatile than anything else. Plus, wool belongs outdoors, and in Nature ... wool IS a Natural Product. And I have always liked wool better than anything else.
As the years rolled by, my opinion never changed. I tried other types of clothing, and although I was never fully satisfied with wool, I was less satisfied with everything else.
Around January of 2000, I decided to take a chance on a very expensive woolen jacket. I still remember the first day I wore it ... a cold, windy day in January. After a few minutes, I was thinking to myself the day had really warmed up nicely. Then I turned into the wind and realized I was wearing the best winter jacket I'd ever had. I was so impressed I ordered complete outfits for myself and sons Alex and Zack. (At that point, Debby and Denali were not interested in men's hunting jackets.) Surprise! ... the company said an order of this size qualified us to be dealers ... they put our contact info on their website, and we got a nice discount. To my amusement, I began to get phone calls about the clothing. I had a good job that took all my energy. I didn't care if anybody bought wool from me, and I said so to the customers. I explained I was only involved because this was the best wool I'd ever found. It turns out a salesman who loves the product and doesn't care about making a sale is an effective salesman! And so this dealership-by-accident grew.
In late 2002, my Friend Bob Krause (who is an owner of WeatherWool) and I had started a small financial service company, and it was possible for me to devote more attention to the wool. We put up a website, began to carry more and more inventory, and by about 2005 we were the company's largest "stocking distributor". And we had learned more about wool and woolens than I ever thought I'd know. Among our customers were some of the most serious and intense outdoor people anywhere, and we were proud that such people also believed we were offering the best. But as our knowledge grew, we realized there were many ways the garments we offered could be improved. We also felt this company's customer service was severely lacking, even thoughCustomer Serviceis critical and inseparable from the products themselves. Given that we were the largest distributors, we made many suggestions, repeatedly, over several years. None of our suggestions were ever accepted.
So ... we had all these ideas ... and in 2009, we founded WeatherWool to make the best pure-wool, pure-American garments we can figure out how to make, and to improve the clothing worn by the US Military. Our products are supported by No-Risk Testing and the best Customer Service we can figure out how to provide.
Every decision is still made solely to improve our products or service. We have trademarked the words "Hardcore Luxury" because WeatherWool is chosen for truly extreme hardcore situations, as well as for luxurious feel and comfort.
We are still a small family company, we still believe wool makes the best All-Purpose Outerwear, and WeatherWool is the best we can figure out. We offer long-term, No-Risk Field Testing so people can prove it to themselves, and because we can't picture doing business any other way.
An important part of this business is that everyone has to be happy ... our Partners, our owners and of course our customers. Nobody will ever be "stuck" with WeatherWool. If you're not happy, or if you just need the cash, get a refund. We don't fret small stuff.
Lastly, and maybe most importantly, we are all -- particularly me -- "into" this. I was born in 1954, so "I've been 19" for a looooong time. I've been really lucky to have a work-history going back more than 50 years. Some jobs were very physical, sometimes even a little dangerous and quite unhealthy. Since 1977, when a school-friend got me a shot as a part-time figure-clerk at Institutional Investor/EuroMoney (Madison Avenue!), I've been white-collar. And I've been super-lucky -- largely as a result of being from the NYC suburbs -- to have worked at some of the world's most-respected companies, including pre-divestiture AT&T, Bell Labs, IBM, Citi and the original institutional Morgan Stanley. Most recently Bob Krause and I had our own company doing diligence on about 1000 hedge funds. All of this work was wonderful, and the people were fantastic. BUT all of this work was WORK, not passion. We have a passion for WeatherWool, and our crazy-extreme goal of "the best there has ever been" means WeatherWool affords a measure of personal fulfillment that had never before existed in my work.
Thanks for your interest --- Ralph
