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As Seen on Seven Sharp
"Close-knit community keeps Norsewear socks on a good footing"
In Café Norsewood, you’ll find the lunch rush isn’t quite as hectic as our big centres. The town could be famous for Trish’s stellar pork tacos and homemade pies but, for the 150 people that call Norsewood home, there’s one thing that binds them together with pride – socks.
Ask to see theirs, and they’ll all quickly show you what they're packing — discreet snowflake emblem and all. Because these are Norsewear socks, New Zealand-made wool and possum socks that they stand behind as the best money can buy.
Classic Kiwi sock brand Norsewear makes a variety of socks. (Source: Seven Sharp)
The first pairs
In the 1960s, a Norwegian Army captain named Ola Rian began making socks from his garage in Wellington. They were hard-wearing woollen socks that became a farm favourite in our rural sector. They were thick, warm, and so long-lasting that there are stories of pairs that have been passed down through the generations.
Then Rian fell in love with the tiny town of Norsewood. He moved into the town’s disused dairy factory, and socks began to infiltrate the local identity.
Terence Ahern is now in his 46th year at Norsewood. (Source: Seven Sharp)
Local passion
Forty-six years ago, local Terrance Ahern turned up at the factory doors and never left.
“I walked out of high school at 16 and I'm now 62.”
He’s had only three sick days — a testament to his dedication to the company and the warming properties of a good pair of woollen socks. Ahern's life has been spent repairing and maintaining the many complex knitting machines on the factory floor — a specialised trade that’s quickly disappearing from our country.
Thanks to his watchful eye, even the old Farm Fleck machines continue to serve our rural sector.
"We are still doing the same sock and knitting technique on the same machines," he said.
"They get rebuilt now and again, new gearbox, but they should go for another 20 years."
The modern Norsewear socks, and the machines that make them, have come a long way from their thick ancestor. Now, the range includes everything from business casual to gumboot-specific. There’s one designed to compress around swollen feet. One for tramping and another for bed. The list is extensive, but every pair is made with the same local passion.
Unravelling the past
Things haven’t always come together so seamlessly at Norsewear. If you ask Ahern how many times the doors were near to closing on the factory, he will tell you half a dozen.
"We had trucks from the yarn supplier outside one morning when the staff arrived waiting for the words from the bank."
At its height, more than 140 people worked here; now, it’s around 20 – still a huge employer for the town. At one point, the employees themselves took ownership to stay afloat.
"Whenever the company has been down and out, someone will come along, and they've seen the passion of the staff and the people here, and they get involved. It's sort of addictive," said Ahern.
Norsewear owner Tim Deane. (Source: Seven Sharp)
The new head of Norsewear
If you ask Tim Deane whether people thought he was crazy when he bought Norsewear in 2023, he’s pretty honest.
"Some people would raise their eyebrows and say, 'Why would somebody who spent their life in a corporate career go and do this?'"
The Auckland-based owner had no experience in textiles and had been to Norsewood only once, but he knew two things: The brand was a part of New Zealand’s heritage and the socks were incredibly good.
"I want this to be an example of how you can take a small New Zealand company and grow it," said Deane.
"I hope the farmers who supply the wool will be paid fairly. That we will be able to grow employment in the regions, and we will be taking Norsewear to the world and bringing the goodness and the value of the brand back to New Zealand."
As the textile industry in New Zealand is constantly shrinking, this is his stand to show people that it can work.
"You gotta ask yourself, why is it that a company that has been on the brink continues to survive and thrive? And that comes down to the product's quality and the people's loyalty."
Sharon Doreen is the queen of quality control at Norsewear. (Source: Seven Sharp)
Norsewood is Norsewear
Over at the quality control line, Sharon Doreen’s proud to say that every sock goes through her hands.
In 33 years of service, she’s handled over ten million socks and loves how often she sees her hard work paying off.
“I’ll be down at the fish and chip shop or something. I'm sitting there looking at their feet to see what socks they’re wearing.”
Doreen's pride is shared by anyone who’s stepped through the factory doors.
Parents work alongside their children on the packing lines. Husbands and wives spend their smoko together. You’d be hard-pressed to find a family in town that hasn’t had someone do a shift.
"What this community and Norsewear have done over the last 30 years is phenomenal."
As Ahern says to anyone who will listen, "Norsewear is Norsewood and Norsewood is Norsewear."
Story by Lucas de Jong (Seven Sharp Reporter)