There are many ways to measure greatness. In the world of cashmere, however, the difference between fine and phenomenal comes down to a matter of mere microns. Just look at Loro Piana, which has announced the winners of its 2025 Cashmere of the Year Award — and crowned a husband-and-wife team of Inner Mongolian herders whose winning fibre measures a remarkable 12.89 microns.

That would be Siqingbilige and Hasiqiqige, who took first prize at the award's 11th edition, held in New York at the Brant Foundation, after producing 135.8 kilograms of net-cleaned cashmere. It's an impressive result, and one that speaks to a much bigger story: the extraordinary lengths to which Loro Piana goes in its pursuit of the world's finest cashmere.

The couple was joined on the podium by another two pairs of herders. Jiyatu and Gegentuya took second place, with 87.1 kilograms at 13.01 microns, while Lifuqiang and Qiqi secured third, producing 116 kilograms at 13.04 microns. But each of these achievements is worth celebrating — and understanding. Cashmere, after all, doesn't begin life in a high-end boutique or an exclusive atelier. It begins with a goat, a landscape and the expertise of the people who know how to tend to both.

And Loro Piana knows it. That’s why the Maison’s tireless pursuit of ever-more exceptional cashmere begins out there on the steppes of Mongolia and Inner Mongolia, with the goats and the herders who begin this textile’s long and gossamer-soft journey. Because while, when styled correctly, a soft cashmere jumper might look effortless, producing these fibres is anything but.

That's where the Loro Piana Method comes in. Introduced in 2009, the programme is dedicated to improving the quality and fineness of the cashmere produced by each animal, while optimising quantities and helping preserve the Alashan cashmere goat. Through a local farm and an ongoing selection process, the Maison has achieved an extraordinary fibre fineness, constantly and significantly improved year after year, while this work led to new generations of goats. It's painstaking work, have no doubt — but then, the best things rarely come easily.

And, like those free-roaming goats, Loro Piana doesn’t ring-fence or gate-keep its findings and expertise, instead sharing its know-how with local herders and breeders, and building a relationship that benefits the wider cashmere community. The results are beginning to speak for themselves. Since the Cashmere of the Year Award was first introduced in 2015, the fineness of the fibres recognised has improved significantly.

Of course, producing these ever finer fibres is only part of the picture. The plains on which cashmere production depends need looking after, too. In 2025, Loro Piana launched Resilient Threads, an initiative supporting cashmere cooperatives, herding communities and vulnerable grassland ecosystems in Mongolia's Sukhbaatar Province. It's an ambitious undertaking, but one that recognises a simple truth — that the future of fine cashmere depends wholly on the future of the people, animals and environments that produce it.

Even the UN is involved. Resilient Threads was developed alongside the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, the Sustainable Fibre Alliance and the Odyssey Conservation Trust, and takes a properly holistic approach. Its work includes protecting local biodiversity, strengthening the resilience of the steppes and supporting the communities whose livelihoods depend on them. Academic institutions, including the Royal Veterinary College in London and the University of Liège in Belgium, also contribute research and training. It’s a serious amount of science behind something so wonderfully, softly simple.

And this purpose and passion provided the backdrop to the recent Cashmere of The Year Award ceremony in New York. Hosted at the prestigious Brant Foundation, the event saw the Maison celebrate its own history as the Master of Cashmere. Within the distinctive 1920s setting, an immersive exhibition took visitors on a journey from the origins of this remarkable natural fibre to the expertise, experience and craftsmanship required to transform it into Loro Piana's finished creations. Less a lesson in knitwear, more a masterclass in the pursuit of perfection.

And, for the evening’s winners, prizes. Alongside a financial reward for every kilogram of fibre produced, the winners received an intricately crafted silver comb — a nod to the traditional process of gathering cashmere and a fitting tribute to the people whose endeavours make the whole enterprise possible.

Because, for all the talk of microns, measurements and magnificent fibres, it's the people, not the numbers, who deserve the plaudits. The 12.89-micron result may be impressive, but it's the work of Siqingbilige and Hasiqiqige, alongside the scores of other herders, breeders and craftspeople, that makes such a figure possible. There are many ways to measure greatness. Loro Piana has found the finest way.

Want more from the Maison? We charted the long and illustrious history of Loro Piana…

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