Who the Mooo?
Winter is coming…. and everyone in the southern hemisphere is lusting over gorgeous Merino wool blankets filling up their social media feeds. Are you one of them?
Mooo’s Merino wool blankets are fast becoming the top item on everyone’s wish list. When I first saw Mooo on my Instagram feed, it was love at first sight. The more I read about the actual wool and how it was made the more I knew this was a kismet thing.
- I love the story of how this product is made, and that it is all done locally.
- My daughter Skylar has sensitive skin, she can’t use certain creams etc… but when I read that Merino wool is hypoallergenic and anti-bacterial, I knew this product would be a great fit for my family. I would not hesitate to wrap her in this gorgeous ‘blankie’ on colder days, as I know she will have zero reaction.
Over the last couple of weeks I have gotten to know the lady behind the gigantic chunky wool blankets. The story behind the product is just a good as the soft wool itself.
Without further a due… please read on and get to know more about Mooo….
Tell us a little bit about yourself, who you are, where you come from?
My name is Estée, I grew up in Pretoria with a hockey stick in the one hand and a paint brush in the other. After school I moved to ‘BloemFUNtein’ to study Bcom Economics. In my final year I got the amazing opportunity as an exchange student to complete my studies at the University of Prague, a truly international campus that saw me fall in love with the diversity of mind, culture, humour, heart and thought of students from all over the world.
You are getting married this year? How has this inspired your business and changes in your life?
I know Yeayyyy!! Can’t wait to walk down the Karoo isle, and not trip. I met *the fiancé in 2013 at the 2 Oceans Marathon. Their farm (Knoffelfontein – in Luckhoff) is about 2.5 hours from Bloemfontein, where I work as an investment specialist. Thanks to the digital era we live in, I would be able to continue working on new business models for financial services, even from the farm. I however wanted to do something that would contribute not just to the farm, but to the Luckhoff community as a whole. Something that could create work opportunities that foster pride, confidence, excitement, passion and engagement. With Knoffelfontein primarily a sheep farm, Mooo was born.
Your adventure to become a farm girl is exciting, what are you looking forward to the most and least?
I’m really excited about expanding Mooo. We have some really amazing and exciting plans in the pipeline (hint-hint, we’re going international) – so watch this space. and obviously seeing *the fiancé (then hubby) Every. Single. Day.
My biggest challenge I guess will be convincing *the fiancé, that chops don’t really count as vegetables – I’m a vegetarian!
Were you always an entrepreneur?
Well apart from some forced and flopped school entrepreneur days almost always ending with me sitting elbow deep in melted brownie mix – a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor. In 2015 my sister and I competed in the International #MazarsforGood Innovation Challenge with our concept of an online educational and skills development platform : CollaborAFRICA –
Our aim is to create a collaborative ecosystem where willing learners can acquire wanted skills, funded by business’s BBBEE compulsory spend, overseen by academia and knowledge owners, engaging all committed to the development Africa’s latent prosperity. You’re welcome to go check us out on youtube > http://bit.ly/28T7vY3.
By the way, our concept earned us third place internationally and a few dollars in the pocket
So you have mad skills with the wool? When did your passion for knitting and such begin?
Haha – well I don’t think I’ll call them mad skills but I can do a little somethin’somethin’:)
So as you know I’m getting married to a – s h e e p farmer – so wool was kind of the obvious choice! My passion is not so much knitting as it is creating something new and unique. Don’t get me wrong though, knitting these giant wool products is extreme fun – I love figuring out new patterns and ideas – but I love the people I get to meet, teach, help and collaborate whilst building a business and enabling others to do the same. So not that I’m giving anything away, but Mooo might not forever be a wool –brand only.
Luckhoff is almost in the middle of nowhere, but it must be beautiful there. Could you tell us more about it?
Well… as per Wikipedia’s definition starts like this : Lückhoff is a small merino sheep farming town in the Free State province of South Africa.
It’s extremely hot, but exceedingly beautiful – if you imagine it as this tiny flat town, in the middle of the Karoo with tumbleweed rolling over the streets and men with short khaki shorts and cowboy hats on – you’re right but just to add to that, it’s surrounded by these huge mountains that seem to have appeared out of nowhere. Luckhoff is about 60km form Vanderkloofdam (in volume, the second largest dam in South Africa), so on hot sunny (every) days, you’ll probably find us in one of the nearby canals going for a dip with our 5 “little” fury friends.
Wool… means there has to be sheep… are they a special breed that produce the wool?
Yup indeed a lot of sheep, We only use 100% Merino Wool for our chunky knits – Merino wool has quite a lot of significant qualities, I’ll just share a few against the skin, Merino Wool feels incredibly soft due to its ultra-fine fibers, and doesn’t itch like other wool types. It stays warm even when it’s wet, perfect for little ones (the human or furry kind). Merino wool also regulates body temperature due to its natural breathability, keeping you cool in the summer months by wicking away any moisture, and therefore, always keeping you comfortable. Merino wool has a great warmth-to-weight ratio; it naturally controls odor and stretches with movement only to go back to the original shape and form.
What makes Mooo unique and different to other makers in the market?
With our gigantic merino knits – Mooo adds new value to local farming businesses, we create new job opportunities and we offer a unique, exclusive and completely proudly South African product.
We don’t only wish to offer you a product, but we hope to offer you an experience.
When you order a Mooo from us, you’ll receive a free cotton canvas cover which doubles as a pouffe – to stylishly & safety store your Mooo in warmer months, everything delivered for free right to your doorstep.
Some quirky questions to relate back to the child in all of us
What was your favourite toy as a Child?
Ah the obvious answer – Barbie, My Mom & Dad never bought me Ken dolls, so I cut off all my expensive collection of porcelain dolls’ hair and used them as Kens instead.
Did you have a movie or cartoon that you loved?
The Little Rascals was my favourite movie of all time (Confession – I still sing the “pickle-song” silently in my head whenever I eat a pickle)
Were you a play outside and build forts or dress your doll for days?
Mhhh a bit of both actually – my Dad played rugby so I basically grow up next to the field with the boys, but my sister and I could play Barbie for literally hours!
*Names has been changed to protect individuals privacy. Jokes – his name is Bert, I just love saying fiancé J
– Side note – The name is Mooo, I know a lot of people say Mooo wool because of my social media, but friggin Facebook & Instagram wouldn’t allow just Mooo.
Want to know more about Mooo or wanting to place your order:
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