Southern Cross Mark
Stamped at creation. Verified by CWA. Traceable forever.
The Southern Cross Hallmark · Creative Women’s Association
The guarantee of Australian cloth. One mark. One meaning. When you see the Southern Cross Mark on a piece of cloth, you know: the fibre was grown in Australia, processed in Australia, milled in Australia, by known hands, to a declared standard, with a certification number that can be traced.
The Southern Cross Mark is Australia’s national cloth certification mark — the direct equivalent of the Harris Tweed Orb in function and legal intent. It is applied to cloth, not to garments. It certifies the material, not the brand. When a piece of cloth carries the Southern Cross Mark, every element of its production has been independently verified by CWA.
The Mark is a certification trade mark registered with IP Australia. CWA is the certifying authority. No cloth may carry the Mark without CWA certification. A false Mark is actionable.
The proven model
What the Harris Tweed Orb achieved — and what the Southern Cross Mark applies to Australia
The Harris Tweed Authority was established under the Harris Tweed Act 1993. Every metre is independently inspected. No cloth may carry the Orb mark without certification. The economic outcomes are documented:
570%
Employment growth 2009–2014
3,000%
Turnover growth — £300k to €9.5m
30–60%
Brand premium from certification
$10–15B
Additional manufacturing value available to Australia from domestic fibre-to-cloth processing
The certification standards
Standard 01
Australian fibre origin
The primary fibre must be grown on named Australian land. Fibre origin is declared at registration and forms part of the permanent provenance record. Blended cloths must declare all fibre origins and percentages.
Standard 02
Australian processing
The fibre must be processed — scoured, carded, spun — in Australia by a registered processor. The processing location and operator are recorded in the chain of custody.
Standard 03
Australian milling
The cloth must be woven or produced at a CWA registered mill in Australia. Currently: Waverley Mills (Launceston, TAS) and LoomTex (Breakwater, VIC). Guild weavers may also qualify under the Guild Cloth standard.
Standard 04
Independent inspection
Every certified cloth is independently inspected by CWA before the Mark is issued. The Mark is not self-declared. CWA may inspect production records, visit premises, and request samples at any time.
Standard 05
Registered maker identity
Every maker in the certified chain holds a Unique Provenance Identifier in the Southern Cross Registry. The full chain — fibre farmer, processor, mill, weaver — is named and publicly verifiable.
Standard 06
Label and use compliance
Certified cloth must be labelled in accordance with the Southern Cross Labels Policy. The Mark may only appear on cloth that has passed inspection. Misuse is actionable under the certification trade mark.
Australian Cloth
Australian Cloth is the name given to textiles grown, processed, milled, woven, or otherwise produced within Australia’s textile manufacturing network, from Australian natural fibre where possible, by identified and registered Australian Makers, under independent provenance certification by the Southern Cross Registry.
Australia produces approximately 25 per cent of the world’s wool supply and exports 85 to 90 per cent of it as raw fibre for offshore processing. Domestic fibre-to-cloth manufacturing could generate $10 to $15 billion in additional manufacturing value currently captured offshore. Australian Cloth and the Southern Cross Mark are the mechanism to reverse that.
Mill Cloth
Cloth produced at a CWA registered mill — Waverley Mills or LoomTex. Independently inspected. Southern Cross Mark certified. Available by the metre to designers, labels, and brands sourcing verified Australian cloth.
Guild Cloth
Cloth produced by guild weavers and independent hand-loom operators registered with CWA. Guild Cloth meets the same provenance standards as Mill Cloth — fibre, process, maker identity, and independent verification — at handwoven scale.
For weavers & makers
If you are a hand-loom weaver, guild member, or cloth producer making Australian cloth — you can apply for the Southern Cross Mark, register your cloth in the Southern Cross Registry, and sell directly through the Marketplace. Get your UPI, list your cloth, and get paid.
For guilds & weaving groups
Weaving guilds and groups can register collectively with CWA. Each member receives their own UPI. Guild Cloth produced to the Southern Cross Mark standard is listed in the Registry and available for sale through the Southern Cross Marketplace — with provenance verified from the first thread.
The Southern Cross Mark is available to mills, processors, and cloth producers meeting the certification standards. CWA independently reviews every application. The Mark is issued only following independent inspection and verification.
Questions? Contact CWA · creativewomensassociation.org · ABN 54 693 315 043
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