Smelly socks to get new lease on life at Fieldays

Wednesday, 3 June 2026

Those willing to air their dirty laundry will receive a pair of brand’s men’s thermal socks in exchange.

Fieldays attendees are being invited to hang up their most threadbare, dirty, and mismatched socks at a giant ‘Sock Swap Fence’ - though punters are encouraged to pop them through the wash first.

New Zealand rural apparel brand Back Country is behind the initiative, which will run at Mystery Creek from June 10 to 13. Those willing to air their dirty laundry will receive a pair of the brand’s men’s thermal socks in exchange.

At the end of the installation, the donated socks will be recycled into brand new items such as signage, packaging, and furniture by Auckland-based textile recovery business ImpacTex.

The Warehouse Group general manager marketing Rachel Hitchcock says they’d prefer donated socks to be washed, but welcomed all the holey, threadbare, and smelly socks they could get.

The Warehouse Group general manager marketing Rachel Hitchcock said the idea had been born from the gut feeling every Kiwi had a pair of socks which had seen better days.

“We took our inspiration from the Cardrona bra fence,” she told the Waikato Times, referencing the South Island tourist attraction.

The brand had been “really mindful” they didn’t want to contribute to landfill when planning the installation, and were utilising their long-standing relationship with ImpacTex to give the socks a new lease on life.

Socks in all condition are being accepted.

“Through our Sock Swap Fence, visitors to Fieldays can actively participate in the circular economy and see firsthand how even the most worn-out items can have a second life,” Hitchcock said.

She added the socks being given away were made from 100% wool, meaning they were less likely to get holey as quickly as their non-wool counterparts.

In total, Back Country was looking to give away 4000 pairs of new socks over the event. It was also the brand’s first time at Fieldays.

At the end of the installation, the donated socks will be recycled into brand new items such as signage, packaging, and furniture by Auckland-based textile recovery business ImpacTex (file photo).

While punters were welcome to donate as many holey socks as they liked, they would only be able to claim one new pair from Back Country.

A selection of the brand’s range, including footwear, hunting camo and waterproof jackets, will be available to browse on the day.

“We're so excited about it. We're actually pumped,” Hitchcock said.

Asked about plans to manage any smell from the worn-out socks, she replied the team had given it some thought.

“We would welcome pre-washed holey socks.”

But they wouldn’t hold anyone’s whiffy socks against them either.

“Obviously our team is open to the elements, so we're pretty confident that it's outside and the smell will waft away outside and away from any customers.”