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AWEX EMI 1142 -10
Micron 17 1690 -37
Micron 18 1509 -33
Micron 19 1408 -4
Micron 20 1333 +1
Micron 21 1302 -10
Micron 22 1282 -13
Micron 25 688n -10
Micron 26 519n -11
Micron 28 352 -3
Micron 30 330 +5
Micron 32 290n -5
MCar 760 +6

Sarah Jane Bond hand knitted baby blankets

Vanessa Bell’s appreciation of wool first developed in the 1990s when she was modelling superfine Merino wool garments for some of the world’s top fashion brands. This admiration for the fibre grew further seven years ago when she married a woolgrower and settled in country NSW. In 2017, Vanessa launched Sarah Jane Bond – a brand selling premium hand-knitted baby blankets made from superfine Merino wool – and she has big plans for its future.

Vanessa Bell of Sarah Jane Bond at home at the family property at Breadalbane, NSW. PHOTOS: Rachael Cramp from it's a beautiful life photography.

Vanessa Bell’s appreciation of wool first developed in the 1990s when she was modelling superfine Merino wool garments for some of the world’s top fashion brands. This admiration for the fibre grew further seven years ago when she married a woolgrower and settled in country NSW. In 2017, Vanessa launched Sarah Jane Bond – a brand selling premium hand-knitted baby blankets made from superfine Merino wool – and she has big plans for its future.

While Vanessa’s relationship with Merino wool began in the late 1980s when she started modelling, the inspiration for her Sarah Jane Bond brand goes back even further, to 80 years ago when her great grandmother knitted a Merino baby blanket that was to become a family heirloom.

Vanessa’s great grandmother was a lady dedicated to the wellbeing of her family in fairly tough social and economic circumstances living in Forbes and Dubbo. Like many other mothers, she knitted with Merino wool to create comfortable baby wear and durable clothes for her children.

Eight years later, on the birth of her son, Vanessa searched for “a proper cot blanket” to keep her baby safe and warm. She reached for her great grandmother's Merino woollen blanket which was still going strong after all those years.

When Vanessa launched her baby blanket brand in October 2017, she decided to name it after her great grandmother: Sarah Jane Bond. “After all, her beautiful knitting was the catalyst and inspiration to create these family heirloom baby blankets,” said Vanessa.

VANESSA’S JOURNEY

Vanessa has had a very diverse background, from fashion to finance, from media to now being a farmer and business owner. She says it has been an interesting, challenging and rewarding journey.

“My love of Merino wool and my relationship with wool actually commenced on the runway modelling for clients such as Valentino and Armani. In the 1990s, high-end designers were utilising superfine Merino wool in a way I thought beautiful and functional. I’m proud to say my very first shoot for Vogue Australia in 1989 was wearing a Merino blazer for Jean-Paul Gaultier.

“My passion for excellence in quality and design stems from my fashion background. I lived overseas for most of my twenties, four years living in Tokyo, stints in the UK, USA and New Zealand modelling for clients such as Christian Dior, Comme des Garçons, Anne Klein and closer to home Country Road.”

On returning to Australia, Vanessa focused on new careers in finance, the wine business and then more comprehensively in media.

“Then in late 2012, I met a shy farmer through friends and in 2013 I moved from Sydney to live with my now husband and son,” she said.

Vanessa and her husband are based on a 875-hectare property at Breadalbane on the Southern Tablelands of NSW, with another nearly 9,000 hectares at Gilgunnia, south of Cobar. Together the two properties run about 5,000 Merinos, cattle and cropping.

“On marrying Philip, I gained three stepchildren. Our girls are in Queensland and Victoria and we enjoy raising our boys here on our farm south of Goulburn. I really enjoy being on the land and I’m very proud to be producing fine Merino wool and woollen baby products in one of the world’s best growing districts.”

SJBBranding2019-7679.jpgSarah Jane Bond baby blankets are hand knitted in country NSW from soft Merino wool yarn.

THE SARAH JANE BOND BRAND

Sarah Jane Bond produces a range of hand knitted Merino woollen baby blankets, booties, beanies and matinee jackets, with new blanket designs in development. Vanessa is also excited to launch hand knitted sleeping bags in Autumn 2020.

Each baby blanket or product is hand knitted with completion times varying; more intricate patterns can take up to three months to finish. Vanessa’s knitting team knit from their own homes, free of smoke or animals. They knit to specific designs and to demand.

They only use 100% pure Australian Merino wool, of approximately 18 micron.

“I was motivated to create an on-farm business drawing on my media skills to value add to our existing farming enterprise,” Vanessa said.

Vanessa developed the business during the first nine months of 2017, with its official launch in October 2017.

“There were all the usual suspects sitting behind starting a new business: strategy, marketing plans, prototypes, differentiating features of the product, implications for the customer and market research, together with a positioning statement that would carry the brand as it expanded.

“In terms of building the brand it has been relatively organic, a bit like moving to a small town! It takes time to get to know everyone, for them to get to know you and to build trust. I’m keenly aware of the importance of delivering an outstanding quality product while building authentic relationships at every touch point of the business.

“This desire to create bespoke family heirlooms and to build genuine connections with families has been hugely rewarding and instrumental to our success. I feel like we’ve settled in now, we are established and focusing on new opportunities and scaling the business.”


SALES AND MARKETING

100% of the brand’s sales are online through sarahjanebond.com, with sales currently being made in Australia, the UK, Italy, Switzerland, France and the USA. Vanessa says the digital space has played a major role in the positioning of the brand, both in the domestic and international markets.

“The online space offers incredible opportunities especially for people in rural or regional areas; you can now invite the world into your top paddock, entertain them, educate them and encourage them to buy. It’s a scenario previously thought impossible.

“Utilising the digital space is integral to the success of the business, leveraging various media channels and platforms to build a customer fan base.

“The role of social media has been so interesting; we’ve established so many connections and opportunities arising from not only a genuine following but by a sense of camaraderie as seen in the #buyfromthebush campaign.”

Brand recognition has also been bolstered by consistent PR thanks to Sarah Jane Bond being featured on the ABC’s Landline, Country Hour and in other magazines and editorials.

“I think the bottom line is we appeal to consumers who value quality products who have high social and environmental standards. We’re more than just another baby brand as we value local community knowledge and expertise. As an influencer I’m passionate about communicating the incredible attributes of this natural fibre, especially to those from the ‘city’.”

PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

Presently the wool used for Sarah Jane Bond product is sourced from Bendigo, but it’s Vanessa’s aim to eventually use wool from their own properties.

“It’s my long-term goal to produce a true ‘paddock to blanket’ offering, utilising home-grown Merino wool from non-mulesed sheep, with the certainty the wool is produced in a sustainable and ethical way.

“Ideally, I’d like to have our own wool processed into Sarah Jane Bond yarn to meet our product specifications ready for production by 2021. Our challenge is finding a processing partner, either in Australia or offshore, that aligns with our company values.”

Vanessa says that in terms of exporting to markets like the USA, Japan and UK, the brand’s focus will shift to high-end retail stores, such as Liberty or Nieman Marcus.

“We are positioning the product to customers wanting exceptional quality, those that want to purchase a hand knitted family heirloom that is so pure and unique they simply can’t buy it anywhere else in the world.

“So we will deliver a new tier of product that emphasises the importance of scarcity and bespoke. This will be in the form of limited-edition packages at a much higher price point. Certificates of authenticity will also drive the value and prestige of the brand, supported by QR coding and media content.”

GENERATION TO GENERATION

Vanessa was one of 20 retailers based in the bush that was invited to participate and set up a stall in Martin Place, Sydney, as part of the #buyfromthebush pop-up market in December.

“I was stopped in my tracks when I saw my great grandmother’s name ‘Sarah Jane Bond’ in large letters over our stand,” Vanessa said.

“I was immensely proud and wondered what she would have thought if she’d seen her name up in Martin Place all these years down the track, all from a baby blanket she knitted back in 1940. Back then, Martin Place may as well have been London!

“I remember as a young child going back to visit Sarah’s house in Dubbo, my grandma Ruby sitting next to me in the car with tears in her eyes as the memories of her childhood came rushing back.

“I’m so grateful for the extraordinary life I’m living and hope my great grandmother together with my much-loved Ma – both very frugal and hardworking elegant women – are in heaven looking down with a smile.”

 

MORE INFORMATION

www.sarahjanebond.com

 

This article appeared in the March 2020 edition of AWI’s Beyond the Bale magazine. Reproduction of the article is encouraged, however prior permission must be obtained from the Editor.

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