In the 1920's in Australia an entrepreneurial Italian named Giovanni Schneider started a wool trading company that would go on to become a global business sourcing fibre from all over the globe.
I met the current Giovanni Schneider at a wedding some ten years ago. He has helped me a great deal since I began writing this blog and was especially helpful for one of my most important and interesting talks on ABC702 Evenings with Dom Knight, when we followed a bale of wool from the farm gate to the the suit on the peg.
Giovanni, who is a very private type, has recently begun putting their family company history onto the web, something I had always hoped he'd do - and the photos are absolutely fascinating and show not only a trading history with Australia, but also document a cultural evolution from a country that once rode on the sheep's back and survived in very harsh elements.
This country has come a long way and in part it is thanks to those Italians and Englishmen who sought to improve and promote the quality of this country's merino wool.
There will be more to come when Giovanni answers some questions about the history of the family company but in the meantime you can read more on their
website here.
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| Vintage photo of merino sheep in the paddock. |
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| A more contemporary photo of wool being classed. |
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| A vintage stockman with his riding spurs. |
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| Early 1900's wool classing |
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| Early 1900's shearing shed |
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| Wool trading desks in the 1950's |
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