SHE might head the marketing division of a retailer with a declared position opposing mulesing, but Australian Wool Innovation (AWI) director candidate Georgia Hack claims the mulesing issue is not on her agenda.
A head-hunted and independent board nomination committee (BNC) first-preference out of seven candidates contesting three AWI board positions - also the only candidate who can maintain the two women and five men director status quo - Ms Hack has a Masters degree in marketing and an 18-year career in that field.
For the past four years she has headed the marketing team at clothing retailer David Jones and previously marketed the Country Road Group, including Mimco and Witchery outlets.
It was Melbourne-based candidate Ms Hack's marketing credentials and experience, including having worked closely previously with AWI subsidiary The Woolmark Company on David Jones' projects including The Art of Wool window displays, that impressed the BNC enough to place her first in its recommendations.
Her skills and experience are very similar to those of retiring director and former AWI chairwoman Colette Garnsey, who will leave the board after 10 years at the November 19 annual general meeting as the only current AWI director with retail marketing expertise.
That point was noted by the BNC in its comments on the four candidates it recommended to AWI's woolgrower shareholders for the director elections to be conducted up to and finalised at the meeting.
"(Her) skills supplement the skills on the board, particularly having regard to the retirement of director Colette Garnsey after the 2021 AGM," it noted.
But Ms Hack's retail history also made some WA woolgrowers nervous about her intentions on trying to join the AWI board.
After all, some woolgrowers pointed out, David Jones and Country Road Group were some of the first Australian retailers to jump on the "non-mulesed bandwagon", declaring they would not sell woollen garments in their private-label products unless they were made from certified non-mulesed wool.
In 2019 David Jones and Country Road Group announced only certified non-mulesed wool would be used in their wool-rich private-label garment ranges from winter 2025, joining other global brands like H&M and Hugo Boss that have pledged to move away from wool sourced from sheep that have been mulesed.
Ms Hack this week spoke about her agenda if she is successful in being elected to the AWI board.
"Mulesing is an interesting (issue) and I've already been asked my views," she said.
"My reaction is I really need to learn more about mulesing in greater detail before forming my own opinion.
"David Jones and Country Road Group have gone through a process as it relates to private label products and I will take that into account.
"But I will also keep an open mind and seek to understand the different perspectives.
"I've spoken to a number of people in the industry who have given me the background on the mulesing issue, so I think for myself I really want to learn more about it to be able to contribute positively and for the benefit of a strong wool industry into the future.
"I'm a retailer and marketer and I can immediately add value and impact in this space, but I will need to understand this industry a lot more before I can comment on farming practices," she said.
Ms Hack said she believed her focus, if elected to the board, would be in growing the industry by driving end-user demand through innovation and educating consumers about the product and its benefits, particularly in relation to its sustainability.
"The luxury consumer of tomorrow is very much going to be interested in sustainable credentials which will help determine their buying preferences and, obviously, wool's sustainable credentials and the fibre itself make it perfectly placed for further market growth," she said.
"The marketing around the provenance of the product - how it's grown and those sorts of things - while important today, will become even more important into the future, as well as the need to communicate that (product provenance) to the consumer.
"(But) I think marketing is only one ingredient in a successful industry - yes you do need to invest in R&D (research and development) and invest in farm practices to ensure that we can continue producing this incredible Merino fibre that is servicing the world.
"What marketing does is help create demand and by educating the end consumer on the value of this product and maintaining that top-of-mind in terms of their purchase decisions, that will ensure the demand for the great work woolgrowers are doing on farms continues."
Ms Hack, who has a six-year-old son, said she also believed having a woman's view was important on issues, particularly when wool was not a gender-specific product and in relation to wool fashions, women were often the target consumer.
The other current woman director on the AWI board with Ms Garnsey is sheep veterinarian Dr Michelle Humphries whose expertise is in animal health and breeding science and technology.
"I think on any board these days diversity breeds innovation," Ms Hack said.
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