After a lifetime in the industry, there isn’t much Neil Waite hasn’t seen.

“I was 15 when I first started working for Norman and Heath, and can vividly remember the booms and the busts that have happened over the years,” Neil said.

In 1999, he decided to go out on his own and established Waite Wool Trading.

Since then Neil, with the help of Dave Ellis, has continued to branch out into the southern Riverina and North-East Victoria and prides himself on having a widespread clientele.

While remaining staunchly independent, Waite Wool has in recent years started dealing with major exporter Techwool Trading.

“Straight away we noticed an increase in prices, particularly in the cross-bred range and as a result we are very rarely beaten when quoting on clips in the bush,” he said.

As well as “on-farm” and “at-the-door” sales, Waite Wool offers competitive auction sales and sells wool in Melbourne fortnightly.

“We are lucky to have a very loyal clientele who prefer to deal with a local business, as opposed to a faceless conglomerate and as a result we’re able to offer cheaper testing and sales fees and a more personal service,” Neil said.

Running his own truck, Neil is able to help with a pick-up service and also lends a hand to local growers with the free use of a wool press during shearing.​