Women in Wool: Gabby Neal

“For those who don’t know where Condobolin is, if you look on a map and draw a line between Broken Hill and Sydney you’ll find Condo smack bang in the middle. It’s an amazing little community and I grew up on a family sheep and wheat farm about 20km north of town. 

My childhood involved endless days outside and getting amongst life on the farm. Be it feeding the chooks and taking the dogs for a run, moving sheep, stick picking, yabbying, driving tractors, harvest or work in the sheep yards.

From a young age, as one of three girls, we were always encouraged to get our hands dirty and get a grasp on what was involved in the day-to-day running of the business. 

While I didn’t know it at the time, these activities had a huge influence on the type of person I am today and the way in which I approach life. 

I know I will always have a connection to the farm, I love the red dirt and I’m always happy to get involved during busy times like sowing and harvest, but when it comes down to it, managing a farming business is just not my skill set. 

That’s where INTACT came into play - it’s my way of keeping my connection to the farm, supporting the sheep and wool industry and furthering my interests in agriculture and fashion. 

I love fashion in the sense you can create something from scratch and make it your own. That you can lift a drawing from a piece of paper, which came from an idea in your head, and make something tangible. 

It’s a way to communicate so much to the world; how you’re feeling, what you believe in and who you are. 

Dress-ups were a huge part of my childhood. As a kid we had this ginormous cane basket full of costumes and accessories, and along my sisters and neighbours we’d regularly be turning the back verendah upside down, we had so much fun creating outrageous outfits and acting out plays. 

We also have a talented Mum who sewed our clothes, which was where my interest in sewing began and I still love making my own clothes in my spare time. 

Growing up, my sisters and I were always encouraged to explore our creative side, find our own style and use our imagination. 

Being surrounded by that, and having a strong interest in clothes (ask my sister and she’ll tell you ‘any chance you could get, you’d put on a pretty dress!’), the fashion world was something I naturally gravitated towards. 

INTACT was very much a culmination of ideas off the back of the recent drought. I was searching for a way to support the farm with the challenge being I was in New York, a world away from what was happening at home. 

I wanted to do something that could help and I knew I couldn’t go back to the farm as it just wasn’t viable at that time. 

Prior to my trip to New York I was working in fashion and I knew there was a gap in the market to promote wool in a new and exciting ‘everyday’ way. It was something I could leverage my skillset, channel my interests in the farm, support Australian wool growers and work towards a better fashion future. SO that’s how INTACT was born. 

The business also involves my oldest sister Sam who works in ag communications, and on the home front our middle sister Wease is working on the farm alongside Mum and Dad, the family layers are an important part of the brand story as our diverse skill sets have all contributed to the business in one way or another.

In terms of what we’re trying to achieve - at the crux of it, we want to encourage people to rethink their wardrobe foundations and offer an effortless way to blend natural fibres into their everyday. 

One of the biggest misconceptions we want to challenge is the outdated perception of wool as an itchy-scratchy, winter-only choice. Wool is an incredible and innovative natural fibre that has so many wide and varied applications that people don’t know about. 

While it definitely has its place in winter, keeping you cozy and warm, when done right, it can have the opposite effect in summer, keeping you cool and comfortable. Wool is an ideal everyday staple, all year round. 

Wool is also somewhat of a ‘forgotten fibre’ of the fast-fashion generation. It’s a natural homegrown hero that has so many benefits not only in its use but also in the context of the environment which is a timely topic that we really want to shine a light on as well. 

Wool is 100% natural, renewable and biodegradable. As a fashion fibre, you can’t get much better than that. 

One on hand, INTACT allows me to keep that connection to the family farm alive, I’m contributing to and supporting the industry our family business is built on. 

On the other, much like Humans of Agriculture, it’s the education piece that I’m really passionate about. 

I grew up in the country and my schooling and career were based in the city, I experienced first hand the disconnect between what people were eating and wearing and the realities of where their food and fibre comes from. 

I knew that whatever I was going to do, I had to offer a genuine point of difference through education and INTACT does this with Australian Merino wool. 

Throughout my career I’ve worked in a mix of small, startup and established businesses and I can now say I genuinely understand what they mean when they say how tough running your own business can be and the importance of having your ‘why’ as your north star. 

There are so many peaks and pits, ebs and flows and without it, you can easily get caught off track.”