Loro Piana announces winners of 2025 Record Bale Award in Tokyo 

Loro Piana has announced the winners of the 27th edition of the Loro Piana Record Bale Award, held at the Tokyo National Museum. 

Established in 1997, this annual event rewards two farms that produce the finest bale of Merino wool, one in Australia and one in New Zealand, with a minimum of 90 kg required to ensure enough fiber to create yarns, fabrics and garments. This fineness reflects exceptional production excellence and the ongoing dedication of generations of expert breeders, allowing one to wear a Record Bale garment and own a truly unique creation. 

The Australian 2025 Loro Piana Record Bale Award went to the Pyrenees Park farm for producing 92 kg of Merino wool fiber measuring just 10.4 microns. The New Zealand 2025 Loro Piana Record Bale Award went to Earnscleugh, a first-time winner, which produced 91 kg of Merino wool with a count of 11.2 microns. The awards ceremony and a gala dinner took place at the Hyokeikan Building, a historic site within the Tokyo National Museum in Ueno Park, renowned for its cultural institutions, including museums and historic temples.  

All Merino wool bales participating in the Record Bale competition are acquired by Loro Piana for their exceptional fineness and the wool is transformed into The Gift of Kings® garments.  Lightweight and naturally stretchy, these fabrics can absorb up to 35% of their weight in moisture and have a special label documenting the year the animal was shorn, the origin and the fiber’s micron.  

The Loro Piana Record Bale Award embodies excellence in the production of Merino wool and demonstrates the Maison’s dedication to sourcing the world’s finest wool, the quintessence of exceptional quality.