“Social media is a busy, noisy place these days. Sometimes you have to do things differently to get your business out there.”
And Karol Devaney, the proprietor of Eweknit, an Irish-owned clothing brand and podcast for farmers, has most certainly lived up to his words with the launch of a novel social media competition.
The Sligo sheep farmer and shearer, a UCD food and agri-business management graduate, has launched a free-to-enter competition where one person will win five lambs worth an estimated €600.
Karol Devaney told That’s Farming editor, Catherina Cunnane:
“I came up with the idea a couple of months ago. Since our customers are primarily farmers, I thought, what is better than to giveaway some sheep?”
“Eweknit has grown at a steady rate in the last couple of months since That’s Farming last interviewed me.”
“The competition is free to enter; there are just two simple things to do,” he explained.
Competition
- Enter your name and email in the sign-up form on – eweknit.com – at the bottom of its home page;
- Tag two farmers on the competition posts on EweKnit’s social media platforms– either Facebook, Instagram or
“The lambs are five Cheviot-horned-cross ewes. They are five of our own that I picked out especially for the competition. The five lambs are comfortably worth €120 each this year, €600 in total.”
“Giveaways are a good method of promoting your business. If you plan and execute correctly, you can get a great return of brand awareness and sales from them.”
“My family thought I needed my head checked when I first mentioned it,” he laughed.
“However, after seeing how well the competition has done so far, they are more on board with the idea.”
“Being a farmer myself, I just had a gut feeling that it was a great prize to give away and that I could pull it off.”
“There are a couple of terms and conditions. The main ones are that the competition is just open to ROI and NI residents.”
“Furthermore, the winner has to collect the lambs themselves and legally transfer them across if they are in Northern Ireland. You or someone close to you also has to have a flock number too.”
Eweknit will announce the winner this Sunday, November 7th, 2021.
“So, if you want to be in with a chance, you have to act right away,” Karol advised.
Black Friday and Christmas
Devaney said the competition is “definitely moving the needle”, generating interest, but stated, “it is also due to the time of year”.
“The fourth quarter of the year is generally the busiest time for retail, coming into sale periods like Black Friday and, of course, Christmas.”
“It suits me as sheep shearing quiets down at this time this of year, so I am just in time for it all.”
New range
Eweknit has expanded its range for the winter season with 16 new products, including a new jacket and kids’ hoodies, along with new hoodie and sweatshirt colours.
“A bigger range with more options can only be a good thing for both new and existing customers.”
“They have responded very positively so far, and we are super grateful for that,” he remarked.
Currently, the Sligo native is focusing on marketing and promoting Eweknit and fulfilling orders as he prints and packs all products himself.
“The run into Christmas is just about serving our customers as best we can and getting the brand out there.”
“I am looking forward to Christmas and early next year to get some time to wind down and assess things and plan for a great year.”
“Furthermore, I want to expand our product range even more next year. I want to bring out some wool products.”
“The wool market is not in a great place at the moment. Being a sheep shearer myself, I feel that through Eweknit, I can play my part in its recovery in the years to come,” Karol Devaney concluded.
Read more sheep-farming-related articles on That’s Farming.
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