• Become familiar with the real thing. Watch out for so-called bargains and look for genuine quality behind the label. Cashmere is a rare and expensive luxury fiber. Worldwide Cashmere raw material production is approximately 1% that of sheep’s wool for apparel; fabric and garment prices will reflect this sacristy.
• When shopping for cashmere or cashmere blend garments check the loop labels and hang tags for cashmere percentage. Sometimes retailers use sleeve hang tags that read "Cashmere" or “Cashmere blend", but the garments only have 10% or less cashmere. Without a statement of actual fiber percentages, this is a violation of the law in all Countries in the world; for example:
• the Wool Products Labeling Act, enforced by Federal Trade Commission, in the USA,
• the Regulation (EU) N. 1007/2011 of 27 September 2011 in the European Union,
• the Household Goods Quality Labeling Law on Labelling of Textile Goods in Japan,
• the FZ/T 01053 Standard, Textiles - Identification of Fiber Content in China.
• To know more about cashmere shopping and frauds you can download our guide (in English). LINK


Wool products displaying Super S labels

• As with cashmere it is important to have familiarity with the products. Fabrics made with fine and superfine wool are normally used in suits and formal wear. Lower ranges of these products are often made with fabrics blended with polyester, viscose, acrylic and other fibers.
• When purchasing suits or other garments made with superfine wool pay attention to labels showing information like “Super xxx’S”, “Extrafine xxx’S”, “Merino xxx’S” or other similar statements with “xxx’S”. The “xxx” is normally replaced by numbers ranging from 80 to 250 with the most common between 100 and 160. These numbers indicate that the fabric is made of 100% superfine wool. Garments using those numbers but reporting other fibers in the content label for the main fabric (not including lining) should be considered fraudulent.
• The higher the “Super S”; the lower the mean fiber diameter of the wool: “Super 120’S” uses a finer wool than “Super 100’S”. Finer wools are more expensive and softer and allow the production of lighter fabrics. It is virtually impossible to feel the difference between adjacent classes, but with some experience it is possible to distinguish fabrics that are divided by three or more classes.
• To know more about the “Super S” and the Superfine Wool Council you can download our brochure. LINK