Robb Read: Cashmere In Crisis

The fabric synonymous with luxury is under threat from cross-border bickering, climate change and the global pandemic.

By Mark Ellwood 14/04/2021

Cashmere is an unlikely candidate for controversy. It conjures up images of cosy, expensive scarves, made from the belly hair of goats roaming across the steppes of Mongolia, using techniques and skills honed over the centuries. It’s a luxe treat that has grown more accessible in recent years; check out the availability of cashmere knitwear in various mass-market stores, for example.

Yet even though the price of a cashmere sweater might have dipped, the costs are now higher than ever.

Much like one of the bitter winters, known as dzuds, that menace Mongolia, this age-old industry faces a perfect storm of challenges: rising demand, surging temperatures and plunging prices for raw materials, which should put cashmere into any ethical shopper’s crosshairs.

First, demand. Cashmere forms almost 7 per cent of the approx. $93 billion global luxury industry alone—more a problem than an opportunity when each goat’s yield is a meagre four ounces of finished fibre. Farmers have boosted their flocks to better cater to the new market; some 29 million goats graze the steppes today, almost five times the number 30 years ago. Such an increase in livestock would likely stress even plush pastures thanks to overgrazing, but the land in Mongolia is under its own duress. Ninety percent of the country is drylands and so especially vulnerable to desertification. Mongolia is a hot spot for climate change, where temperatures have risen by 4 degrees since 1940, compared with an average global rise of about 1.5 degrees. Of course, that warming threatens the very ecosystem on which the goats depend—the second major problem.

These two challenges are compounded by the crashing prices for raw cashmere. It was hard enough to ensure fair trade for the herders via the cashmere industry’s rickety supply chain, which yokes family herders to small processing centres and then to foreign mills with little connection to the herders halfway across the world. There’s no way to trace fibres and so make certain that herders received a proper price for the cashmere that is knitted into a $1,000 sweater. Add to that the pressures of the pandemic: after matching all-time highs in 2019, prices for raw cashmere recently plummeted by almost half. Mongolia’s largest processing factory, Gobi Cashmere, has already laid off
10 percent of its staff as a result, and insiders report that many brands have pulled back on purchases, relying on existing stocks rather than buying more wool—and exacerbating the glut.

These are just the issues in Mongolia. Today, there’s an enormous cashmere-producing industry across the border in China, too, and the rival operation there has its own ethical challenges: animal husbandry at the enormous, industrial-style farms, for one thing, as well as the risk of fraud. Two long-term cashmere-industry executives warn of the constant risk of Chinese producers bulking out their fine cashmere with bleached camel hair or extra-fine merino wool. One of the sources calls them “past masters at adulterating fibres”.

Clearly, then, there’s a yearning need for a yarn standard. Think of a Woolmark-style assurance for the cashmere niche guaranteeing a luxury consumer that their ultra-soft sweater hasn’t caused hardship at its source. It’s a conundrum the industry recognises very well. If only businesses were tackling it properly. Instead, rather than companies coordinating efforts, a series of rival programs are jostling for prominence as the de facto soft-gold standard; two are already in operation, and a third is set to launch soon.

The first is run by the UK-based Sustainable Fibre Alliance. Its SFA Cashmere Standard promises adherence to five freedoms, including freedom from discomfort and thirst for the goats. Among its 45 members are Burberry and Johnstons of Elgin, one of Scotland’s foremost mills and supplier to the likes of Brora.

“There’s a code of practice, around grassland management and animal welfare, and herders have to achieve a pass score,” says Simon Cotton, CEO of Johnstons, of the certification, which aims to help improve the quality of the goat hair while allowing grasslands to rebound, among other things. This year, for the first time, 80 tons of raw fibre were produced with SFA certification. Cotton proudly reports that it traded at 10 percent over market price. But the yield is a tiny amount, given that Mongolia’s total annual production capacity is 9,400 tons. It’s not yet possible, either, for a shopper to know whether a given item was made from SFA-verified cashmere, though the group says that member brands will be able to promote certified products—made with a minimum 33 percent of approved fibre—by next year. The nonprofit plans to launch a Woolmark-style hangtag, but for now the program operates only behind the scenes.

Conversely, walk into a Hugo Boss store later this year, and you could pick up a garment touting its production under the Good Cashmere Standard. A separate, rival nonprofit operates this certification—the German-based Aid by Trade Foundation —with a smaller number of partners, including Boss and Lacoste. The process operates at a grassroots level, including sending teams of verifiers into the field firsthand; earlier this year, they quarantined as a precaution during the pandemic so that they could complete their checks on animal-welfare, environmental and social practices in Mongolia.

“Nothing we do is based on charity or donations,” says Tina Stridde, managing director of Aid by Trade. “It’s all about activating the trade or retail sector to raise the bar of sustainable, responsible trade.” Its certification is offered in two tiers, with the premium level including a DNA-tracing system developed with Swiss firm Haelixa. An invisible liquid is sprayed on raw wool at the buying stations, soon after the hair has been combed from the goats; these fibres can then be tracked throughout production.

Yet this system has one major drawback: it operates only among the industrial farms in China, and there are no plans to extend its verification to the countless herders across the border in Mongolia, where cashmere is the top non-mineral export.

To the mêlée add a new, third program, the South Gobi Cashmere Project, or “Goat to Coat”. It’s a team effort from mining conglomerate Rio Tinto, French luxury group Kering and the Wildlife Conservation Society. Kering, the parent company to Gucci, Balenciaga and YSL, among others, has impressive sustainability bona fides, having launched almost a decade ago its EP&L (Environmental Profit & Loss) program to track the eco-impact of its production. In 2016, it even developed an app that shoppers can use to learn the production history of individual items. Initially, Kering pledged to the Sustainable Fibre Alliance but broke away four years ago for what a spokesperson says delicately were “internal strategic reasons”. It found a willing partner for its stand-alone efforts in mining giant Rio Tinto, which helped underwrite the initiative as part of its own program of environmental offsets around its operations, in this case the Oyu Tolgoi copper and gold mine in Mongolia.

Katrina ole-MoiYoi, Kering’s sustainable sourcing specialist, is closely involved with this program, which aims to use high-tech methods to improve the sustainable standards in cashmere, as she explains. Take goat herding, for which it’s harder than ever to find fresh grasslands. The answer, says ole-MoiYoi, lies in part with NASA and Stanford University. The space agency uses satellites to monitor rainfall and weather patterns worldwide; it passes such data on to scientists in California, who can use computer modelling to predict when deluges or droughts might occur. Under the South Gobi initiative, program managers are then equipped with these grazing forecasts and work directly with the herders to move their livestock strategically, keeping the goats fed while also allowing vegetation sufficient time to recover.

But as smart as this program might be, it’s aimed at addressing challenges only in the Mongolian supply chain rather than cashmere as a whole, including China. Kering also says it’s up to the individual brands whether to create customer-facing certifications—say, a “Cashmeremark” —that would guarantee sourcing to a shopper. In the meantime, it’s another corporate scheme to which luxury firms can pledge adherence. As yet, Kering has not confirmed other partners.

Each of these efforts is admirable, of course, but for a consumer, the confusion and challenges are likely to persist.

One luxury executive says that an industry-wide benchmark is almost impossible to establish, owing in part to rivalry between the two main cashmere-producing nations, Mongolia and China, locked in a long-standing tussle to establish primacy. In truth, they are separate but equal: China’s fibres are often white, but can be finer and so less strong, while Mongolia often produces flexible, durable hair that tends to be grey, cream or brown in colour. Chinese authorities, then, would adopt an industry-wide benchmark on one condition: if its parameters skewed so as to establish, permanently, that Chinese cashmere was better.

But locals doubt that even a program aimed only at Mongolia, where the problems are more acute, can easily succeed. Ulziibodijav Jambal, known as Bodio, lives in Ulaanbaatar and owns a knitwear and dehairing facility. He notes that many of the workers in such programs are shipped in from overseas.

“It is nearly impossible to have a clear understanding of this very unique community of people unless you are born and raised among them,” he tells Robb Report. “Most projects usually involve more international marketing expertise than local experts who can relate them to herders’ lives. This leads to a false impression of what they can achieve but without having proper understanding of the root of the problem they need to face.”

Take, for example, asking herders to decrease the number of animals in their flocks and so, in theory, boost the price of cashmere. It won’t work, as China has an effective monopoly on pricing, buying 80 percent of the raw wool from Mongolia to process into yarn in its factories. Put another way, it’s China, rather than the law of supply and demand, that determines what herders earn per gram.

Until there’s a clear, industry-wide solution, then, perhaps it’s best to look elsewhere. Wendy Pieh lives in Bremen, Maine, and runs the Cashmere Goat Association. Her small herd of goats is among the 10,000 or so animals farmed Stateside. They develop their warm, thick coats as a result of the brutal New England winters, and Pieh sells small-batch fibre and yarn to niche customers, both amateur knitters and professional designers, including Jeffrey Monteiro of J.M. Generals. Her product is a guilt-free luxury. It’s local, traceable and sustainably farmed on land that isn’t overgrazed. And it’s very expensive, as she explains, quietly proud. “You can buy Mongolian cashmere online for half what I sell it for.”

 

This piece is from our new Autumn Issue – on sale now. Get your copy or subscribe here, or stay up to speed with the Robb Report weekly newsletter.

ADVERTISE WITH US

Subscribe to the Newsletter

Stay Connected

You may also like.

How Off-the-Rack Suits Got Sophisticated Enough to Win Over Bespoke Guys

Ready-to-wear tailoring has never been better, and it offers even the most particular dressers a fast, easy platform for experimenting with their look.

By Aleks Cvetkovic 18/02/2025

The world moves fast—and for once, tailoring is moving a little bit faster.

Guys around the globe are rediscovering their love of suits, but many have determined that they can’t stomach the monthslong wait for bespoke. The good news? Ready-to-wear tailoring has never been better.

That’s in part because bespoke makers are beefing up their off-the-rack offerings. Anderson & Sheppard’s shop-in-store at N.Y.C.’s Bergdorf Goodman—the first outpost beyond its London flagship— opened in December with, among other things, a sharp wool-and-cashmere jacket in a delightful shade of teal. Huntsman’s recent fall-winter collection, billed as its most comprehensive assortment yet, offered everything from tuxedos to shooting breeches. Even Leonard Logsdail, Hollywood’s highly esteemed bespoke purveyor, is experimenting with hem-and-go models.

But non-custom tailors are upping the ante, too. Some of the best ready-to-wear suits on the market come from such brands, whose wholly distinctive points of view provide a welcome departure from the rigidity of many bespoke tailors’ house styles. The preponderance and diversity of such high-quality, easy-to-access threads has recast off-the-rack suits as the ultimate way to experiment with your look, not just a way for some to get dressed on the cheap. What’s more, it reflects the new reality that even people who suit up regularly might want to show up looking different on Thursday night than they did on Tuesday morning.

“Life nowadays is much more fluid,” says Chris Modoo, a London-based stylist who once worked as a tailor on Savile Row. “Things happen, invitations appear. You might get an invite for a black-tie party in the South of France for next Saturday.” Ready-to-wear is the obvious solution when you’re in a last-minute menswear quandary, but “it also means you can try new things.”

One maker worth a test-drive is Husbands Paris, founded by Nicolas Gabard, who sees his role as an “archivist of the past.” His look, inspired by stylish men such as Yves Saint Laurent, David Hemmings, and Gary Cooper, is unabashedly striking—think long, fully canvased jackets, broad lapels, structured shoulders, and wide-leg, high-waisted trousers. These wares are made in small workshops in Italy and Portugal, where craftspeople infuse them with high-end details such as hand-sewn buttonholes and silk bar tacks, a form of stitching that reinforces seams and pockets.

Thom Sweeney L.A. store Brett Wood

They’re the kind of touches any menswear enthusiast can appreciate—even if they’re the trees to Gabard’s style forest. Clothes like this are designed as a form of wearable self-assurance, enhancing what Gabard calls a “classically masculine” silhouette: broad shoulders, slim waist, narrow hips.

“Of course, tailoring has to fit well, but it also has to bring something else,” he says. “More and more [Husbands] customers want to be confident, powerful, and sexy in their outfit.”

When you want to look more suave than soigné, turn to the indie Milanese brand Massimo Alba, which is known for its chic casualwear but made its name with easygoing tailoring. “A great suit is not just about the way it fits but about the way it makes you feel,” says the eponymous label’s founder of his relaxed approach. “For me, the essence lies in balance, between structure and softness, elegance and ease. In my opinion, a suit should adapt to the wearer, not the other way around.”

Alba’s creations are cut from plush materials such as corduroy and flannel, featuring natural shoulders and only the lightest of canvasing in the chest, which results in a less-formal look. Which is not to say they aren’t workhorses: Daniel Craig wore one of Alba’s Sloop suits to dodge bullets in 2021’s James Bond film No Time to Die. “I always focus on fabrics that move with the body, details that whisper rather than shout, and cuts that allow for freedom,” Alba adds.

And freedom is precisely what this newfound inventory of great ready-to-wear tailoring provides. Modoo advises some clients to look to bespoke tailors for investment-level garments, such as morning suits, tuxedos, or the dark, serious stuff you might need for a funeral or odd courtroom appearance. “You know you’re going to wear these for 10 or 15 years,” he says. Let the new class of distinctive ready-to-wear step in when you want to try something that just wouldn’t make sense as a bespoke order. “Your pink-velvet blazer for the Christmas party? How well does that need to fit?”

London bespoke tailor Caroline Andrew is one of many who admits ready-to-wear has its place. Courtesy of Caroline Andrew

Fortunately, with so many options available, the fit is easier to dial in. You can expect most high-end operations to make a long list of changes, from ensuring that the seat of the trousers drapes appropriately to cutting working buttonholes on the jacket. For a peerless experience, you can always reach for garments from one of the many talented bespoke tailors offering ready-to-wear. At Thom Sweeney, such clothes are “all influenced by our bespoke cut,” says Thom Whiddett, who cofounded the brand with Luke Sweeney in 2007. “You try on [our ready-to-wear] jacket, and you immediately get a sense of the proportions and shapes that we put into a bespoke garment.”

That alluring sense of near-instant gratification is the point. For some, nothing will ever replace the distinguished feeling of slipping into a bench-made suit—and plenty are willing to wait for it.

“You have to mentally buy into the process and enjoy it,” says Caroline Andrew, a London bespoke specialist. “The journey is just as important as the finished product.” But ready-to-wear sets the time-strapped tailoring enthusiast down a different path: discovering new facets of your personal style at a record pace.

Buy the Magazine

Subscribe today

Stay Connected

Tom Brady Wears a Jacob & Co. Watch Decked in Yellow Sapphires to the Super Bowl

The $740,000 Caviar Tourbillon was an opulent choice for the former NFL star.

By 17/02/2025

Tom Brady was on the field tonight at the 59th annual Super Bowl game, and while the retired NFL hero—a seven-time Super Bowl winner (the most of any footballer in history)—wasn’t playing, he came dressed to impress with a $116,400 Jacob & Co. watch on his wrist.

Brady, who is a notable watch collector, recently sold off several of his timepieces at a Sotheby’s auction called “The GOAT Collection: Watches and Treasures from Tom Brady” this past December. Those timepieces ran the gamut from a Rolex Daytona Ref. 6241 to a unique Audemars Piguet Royal Oak with his name spelled out in diamonds across the salmon-colored tapisserie dial. His Rolex Daytona sold for over $1.5 million, and, in total, his auction raked in around $7 million. So, he’s well-equipped for a new watch purchase.

Whether or not he owns the six-figure sapphire stunner or it was a paid spot, the watch certainly stood out against his conservative but immaculately fit gray suit. “Tom Brady is the epitome of excellence, both on and off the field,” said Benjamin Arabov, CEO of Jacob & Co, in a press release sent out by the company shortly after Brady’s appearance. “We’re thrilled to see him wearing two of our most prestigious timepieces on the biggest stage in sports. The Billionaire Mini Ashoka and Caviar Tourbillon embody the precision, luxury, and innovation that define Jacob & Co. We’re honored to have him represent the artistry and craftsmanship behind every piece we create.”

Like much of Brady’s wrist candy, his 44 by 15.8 mm Caviar Tourbillon is not easy to come by. It is limited to just 18 pieces. It features hours, minutes, and a one-minute flying tourbillon in the JCAA43 movement with 216 components and 72 hours of power reserve. The movement itself is set with 338 brilliant-cut diamonds, while a total of 337 yellow sapphires adorn the case and dial. The clasp is decorated with another 18 baguette-cut yellow sapphires, and the crown comes with 14 baguette-cut yellow sapphires and one rose-cut yellow sapphire. As far as gem setting goes, this is one extraordinary piece, but it certainly seemed like a surprising choice for Brady, who was otherwise dressed like he just stepped out of a boardroom or a Ralph Lauren catalog.

Benjamin Arabov, son of Jacob & Co. founder Jacob Arabov, is now the CEO of the company. The 32-year-old recently took to Instagram to post that he was looking for a rebranding agency with experience in visual identity and packaging. As far as marketing goes, however, with Tom Brady, he’s golden.

Buy the Magazine

Subscribe today

Stay Connected

This Vintage Rolex Day-Date Has an Ultra-Rare and Coveted ‘Bark’ Design

The ultra-cool piece from Wind Vintage also comes in pristine condition with a desirable patina.

By Paige Reddinger 17/02/2025

Over the last four years there has been a resurgence in interest for 18-karat yellow gold watches. Much of that is due to fatigue over the long-running craze for steel tool watches, but it is also in part due to the rising value of gold (which shows no sign of slowing), rendering these once undesirable pieces increasingly worth collecting. Add to that the fact that, in some niche and stylish circles, unusual bracelet treatments, gem-setting, and interesting dials are becoming increasingly appealing and you have a new wave of watch collecting emerging. Steel sports watches are still the bread and butter for most dealers, but as pockets of interest in more unusual timekeepers, often from younger and fashion-forward collectors, continue to rise we’re seeing some really fun pieces pop up on the market. Case in point: This 1980s Rolex Day-Date in 18-karat yellow gold with a sapphire and diamond dial from Wind Vintage currently available exclusively on The Vault.

It wasn’t that long ago that dealers had a hard time unloading an all-gold gem-set piece. Eric Wind, the notable dealer and founder of Wind Vintage, says five years ago he would have sold this piece for around $23,000 to $28,000. The asking price today? $45,000. “It is very rare,” he tells Robb Report. “I think that was all clearly hand-done. Funnily enough, bark watches were not very desirable in the past. You know, even five to 10 years ago, they were very, very hard to sell. But, over the last three to five years, there’s been such an emergence and interest in jewellery and watches and work like that engraving and other kind of artistic forms that the watches took.” The style of engraving he is referring to on this watch can be seen on the bezel and middle links of the bracelet that is referred to as “bark” for its rough tree-like appearance.

“Bark” engraving on the bezel and bracelet of the Wind Vintage 1980s Rolex Day-Date
Courtesy of Wind Vintage

And while the bracelet is certainly a notable feature that will stand out in a sea of Submariners and Daytonas, the dial is also worth bragging about. Its diamond minutes track and sapphire hour markers are executed in what is known as a “string dial” because it looks like a string of pearls. “They’ve become very popular,” says Wind. “They were very expensive back in the 80s, just because of the cost of the stones, and there are just not many that exist on the planet.” Likewise, Wind says the canary yellow matte dial is not something he comes across often, having only seen a couple of others.

An up-close look at the patina and “bark” engraving on this 1980s Day-Date from Wind Vintage.
Courtesy of Wind Vintage

Part of what makes this watch so hard to find on the market is that pieces like this often didn’t survive past their ’80s heyday. “A lot of times these watches were so undesirable that dealers would replace the bezel inserts and put on fluted inserts, or smooth bezels or fluted bezels and melt down the bracelets or polish the center link so they looked like a standard Day-Date. Those dealers should have learned that what goes around, always comes around. Now with these interesting Rolex watches on the rise, they’ll become even harder to find.

A Wind Vintage 1980s Day-Date with “bark” engraving and a gem-set “string dial”
Courtesy of Wind Vintage

If you’re interested in the piece and want to speak to Wind about it IRL, he will be at Robb Report’s House of Robb event in San Francsico today during the NBA All-Star weekend.

Buy the Magazine

Subscribe today

Stay Connected

Soccer Star Kylian Mbappé Is Now an Investor in Watch Marketplace Wristcheck

Just like Jay-Z.
Published on February 7, 2025

By Abby Montanez 11/02/2025

Kylian Mbappé just went from brand ambassador to investor.

The celebrated French footballer, who currently plays for Real Madrid, has taken a stake in luxury watch trading platform Wristcheck, Hypebeast reported lat week.

Off the filed, the 26-year-old soccer star is a known timepiece collector and has served as an ambassador for Swiss marque Hublot since 2018. With this new partnership, the forward joins a growing group of influential backers, including Jay-Z. The rapper and business mogul took an equity stake in the Hong Kong-based company last summer as part of a recent funding round of $7.9 million.

“I’m thrilled to join Wristcheck as an investor through Coalition Capital,” Mbappé said in a press statement. “As a Hublot ambassador and someone passionate about watches and innovation, I see Wristcheck as a platform that truly understands the next generation of collectors. They’re reshaping the watch industry with a forward-thinking approach that blends technology, transparency, and creativity.” Mbappé did not immediately respond to Robb Report‘s request for comment on his new business endeavor.

Kylian Mbappé is an investor in online watch shop Wristcheck.
Tnani Badreddine/DeFodi Images via Getty Images

Launched in 2020 by renowned horophile and Instagram personality Austen Chu, Wristcheck offers a platform for collectors to buy and sell pre-owned watches that have been authenticated by Swiss-trained watchmakers. Since it was founded, the company has raised more than $21.6 million in funding from investors including the Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, Gobi Partners GBA, and K3 Ventures.

Mbappé, meanwhile, has achieved remarkable success in his soccer career. He won the 2018 FIFA World Cup with France, becoming the youngest player to score in a final since Pelé. At PSG, he has secured multiple Ligue 1 titles and domestic cups. Individually, Mbappé has earned the Ligue 1 Player of the Year award and regularly features in top European scoring charts. And in 2020, he was ranked the world’s highest-paid player, surpassing rivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Buy the Magazine

Subscribe today

Stay Connected

Sotheby’s Will Put on the Largest Auction of Breguet Watches in Decades This Fall

To celebrate the revered watchmaking house’s 250th anniversary, the sale includes rare collectibles belonging to living Breguet family members.

By Paige Reddinger 11/02/2025

Interest in Breguet has experienced a quiet resurgence among savvy collectors who appreciate the brand’s deep-rooted watchmaking heritage. This growing enthusiasm will soon take center stage with an upcoming auction that shines a significant spotlight on the storied Maison.

Founded in Paris 250 years ago, Abraham-Louis Breguet was one of the most influential watchmakers in history, best known for inventing the tourbillon and the automatic winding system—along with many other groundbreaking innovations. His legacy continues to inspire modern masters such as F.P. Journe and Philippe Dufour. You can see Breguet’s influence pointedly in pieces like F.P. Journe’s famous Chronomètre à Résonance timepiece, voted one of Robb Report‘s 50 Greatest Watches of All Time.

Now, Sotheby’s has announced “the largest sale of Breguet timepieces in three decades.” Though the auction won’t take place until November, the auction house is already working to build anticipation. In the meantime, it might be wise to brush up on the most coveted Breguet references.

Breguet 1827 Perpétuelle à Tact watch made for King George IV Breguet

What may pique collectors’ interest is the sale is being curated in conjunction with Breguet and Emmanuel Breguet, the vice president and head of patrimony, who happens to be a descendant of the original Monsieur Breguet. So far, the only timekeeper publicly associated (at least visually) with the auction is the 1827 Perpétuelle à Tact watch made for King George IV. Still, it hints at the historic level of pocket watches, wristwatches, and clocks that will be on offer. Abraham-Louis Breguet was a frequent supplier of high-end and state-of-the-art timepieces for royalty, including Marie Antoinette, Napoleon Bonaparte, and King George III.

Other highlights include an open-faced montre à tact (a watch that replicates the internal hour hand on the cover of the pocket watch via an arrow so that time could be read via touch) with a calendar and moonphase indications that was the inspiration for the Ref. 3330. A pendulette with alarm, perpetual calendar and repeater, and a two-color gold open-faced tourbillon watch is said to be a part of the sale, although no images were provided as of press time. More info on what will be in the sale will come this spring.

Buy the Magazine

Subscribe today

Stay Connected