For thousands of years the sun goddess Wala has been protecting the indigenous peoples of Australia from day and night…
Heritage
The sun rose out of the ground and the goddess “Wala” and her sisters then managed night and day. This is one of many Dreamtime stories that are told and retold by the first peoples of the lands now known as Australia and the Torres Straits.
Headwear has also been worn for thousands of years as protection from the sun in some of our harshest climates. In the past few hundred years, we have experienced an increase in the design and purpose of hats, and in the last half-century, a massive shift has been seen towards hats that are designed specifically for sports and culture where symbolism is an important component.
Our efforts recognise the original intention for headwear and our unique Australian culture. These insights have helped us apply new technologies and design elements to develop a hat that will protect us from the damaging effects of prolonged sun exposure whilst also delivering great fit, comfort, and style.
We are pleased to introduce the Wala Hat™ to help manage the day for future generations of peoples across the world and create new stories.
Innovation
The Wala Hat™ is not a radical departure from the hats that are currently available but it is innovative in its approach to the use of sustainable materials, has a unique and highly functional design and is produced with advanced manufacturing techniques.
Function
The Wala Hat™ has all the great functions you would expect from a high-quality hat with added features that provide comprehensive sun protection; a perfect fit system for any adult head and enhanced moisture and cooling management.
Sustainability
Our goal is to produce authentic sustainable products in a specific manner that will provide our customers with the confidence that we have done everything we can to ensure that the most appropriate materials and processes have been used in their development.
As a small business, we are able to challenge conventional thinking and processes as to how apparel products are designed and manufactured and this becomes a very obvious position to take when we consider the ecological impact of manufacturing and our increased awareness of carbon neutrality, biodiversity loss, the advantages of organic agriculture, global warming and the value of a circular economy.
During the development of the Wala Hat™ we were constantly asking ourselves multiple questions about materials, manufacturing, packaging, and distribution and some were more perplexing than others.
Based on current industry research and a few very good examples from pioneering companies, we established a platform that helps guide us in our sustainable quest. The metrics we developed are based on:
Community
Our community efforts are focused on messaging that helps people understand the long-term benefits of sun protection.
We do this with our “Hats on Everyone“ initiative that promotes the wearing of hats whenever you are outside for longer than 15 minutes in full sun.
We also work with prominent health agencies and groups that focus on skin cancer prevention and those researching cancer and chronic diseases within our communities providing grants, products, and people skillsets.
How to Buy the Wala Hat™
Foundation Colors