About Us
Our adventure with Alpacas began with a comment from Megan about a program she saw on Martha Stewart about these cute, fuzzy little animals called Alpacas that people were raising for their fleece and the lifestyle they were enjoying. Of course, coming from the world of Hollywood costuming and the LA and Australian garment industry she knew of Alpaca yarns and fabrics, but didn’t know much about the animals it came from. I had only vague notions of some exotic South American antelope and a luxury wool I’d only heard about, but the discussion piqued my curiosity to search for more information.
As a more rural lifestyle was both of our goals, though we had no excuse to pursue it, we began to look into the Alpaca business further. We visited several ranches in our area to get a hands-on look at how the business is run and what it takes to get started and grow the business, and to find ultimately where we might buy our first animals.
As we investigated further, to our surprise, the business case for Alpacas was compelling and the barrier of entry is no more daunting than most other business ventures. To my relief, unlike other livestock businesses, the leaders and original business people of the Alpaca industry were and are savvy business folks who have put in place a strong national organization, business standards and important safeguards to protect the financial integrity of this business. Which is a good thing to know, since by now I was hooked on the little buggars anyway.
Of course, without much livestock experience and a sizable investment looking us in the face, the idea of starting this business was a bit intimidating. What do they eat? How can you tell a good one from a not so good one? How do I take care of them? Am I getting the most for my money, Etc, Etc., Etc. Our answers came through investigation, experience and, more importantly, our contacts within the industry.
We thought it prudent to spend extra time up-front to find the right folks to make our first purchase of Alpacas where we felt comfortable that we’d enjoy a long-term relationship. We knew we’d need support, training and mentoring to maintain and grow our business. Where they won’t mind if we needed some help at a not-so-convenient time.
Merrimac Alpacas 2000 Carlson Rd, Snohomish, WA 98290 (425) 397 9201, (425) 387 7586
info@merrimacalpacas.com
