R.M.Williams has unveiled the next phase of its bid to increase local manufacturing and production partners.
The brand has released a Christmas gifting range in collaboration with small businesses and artisans from across the country.
The range includes a wool picnic blanket ($359), a BBQ essentials kit with an apron and gloves ($139) and a return of the brand’s canvas collection, in the form of a durable tote bag ($99 to $459) and stubby holder ($39).
The picnic blanket was crafted in collaboration with Waverly Mills - Australia's oldest textile mill - and is woven from a blend of merino wool fibres and fibres diverted from landfill.
Also included in the R.M.Williams Gift Guide is the brand's signature leather boots and small leather goods.
R.M.Williams currently has 17 Australian production partners and suppliers, with plans to increase this number and scale its local manufacturing site.
The company is currently evaluating opportunities to expand its 10,000sqm workshop in Adelaide and double its current factory workforce to 1000.
Parent company Tattarang, which acquired R.M.Williams for a reported $190 million in 2020, has appointed a new leadership team to drive the long-term strategy.
“We made some pretty courageous commitments to Australian manufacturing when we bought the business,” Tattarang CEO John Hartman said at a press briefing earlier this year. “We’re on that journey. It’s a tough journey but when you see the team we have in our workshop, R.M.Williams is really that jewel in the crown of Australian manufacturing."