Sending Your Garment to WOW

Mainfreight Sponsored Freighting

As a Major Partner of WOW, Mainfreight supports domestic and international designers by offering free freighting of garments to and from World of WearableArt HQ in Nelson, New Zealand.

Mainfreight sponsored freighting is available for designers in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, United Kingdom, and United States.

While the freighting cost is sponsored, there is a subsidised handling/customs fee to be paid by international designers. Drop-off dates are fixed, to allow time for freighting schedules. Garments must be delivered to drop-off points within the specified timeframes to qualify for sponsored freighting.

To take advantage of Mainfreight sponsored freighting you need to:

Ensure the box(es) that you pack your garment into fits within 1.0 cubic metres (m3). If your box(es) are over 1.0m3 additional fees may be incurred.
Book your garment with Mainfreight by emailing the appropriate participating depot.
Drop off your packed garment at the appropriate depot during the specified drop-off dates (see below).

This sponsored freighting option is from participating Mainfreight depots only and is not door-to-door.

New Zealand Designers

Mainfreight sponsored freighting is available from the main centres of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dunedin. Please note that this free freighting option is from the depots, not from your garment’s location. Your garment will be returned to the same depot.

Main Centre Depot Information

Auckland

Wellington

Gate 3, 2 Railway Lane
Ōtāhuhu
Auckland 1061
‍
Phone: 09 259 5500

Attn: Kevan Collins

81 Aotea Quay
Pipitea Wellington
6011
‍
Phone: 04 816 5200
‍
Attn: Pou Fiso

Christchurch

Dunedin

25 Hayton Road
Wigram
Christchurch 8042
‍
Phone: 03 348 4059
‍
Attn: Debbie Blackburn or Laurie McMahon

9 Strathallan Street
South Dunedin
Dunedin 9012
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Phone: 03 455 1009
‍
Attn: Lucy Wispinski

If you do not live near one of these centres, Mainfreight offers a 20% discount on freight for your entry to get from your local depot to the closest main centre depot. This enables you to take advantage of free freighting from a main centre depot to Nelson. There are 28 local depots around New Zealand – check out the Mainfreight website to find your closest depot.

Mainfreight Depot Drop-Off Dates

Mainfreight Main Centres:
‍For free freighting to Nelson.
Mon 5 May - Mon 19 May 2025
‍
Mainfreight Local Depots:
‍For 20% off freighting to the nearest main centre depot.
Tues 6 May – Tues 13 May 2025

International Designers

Mainfreight sponsored freighting is available for designers in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Italy, Netherlands, Singapore, United Kingdom, and United States. Please note that this free freighting option is from the depots, not from your garment’s location. Your garment will be returned to the same depot. The staff at Mainfreight will be able to help you with all freighting and clearance documentation and queries.

When using the Mainfreight Sponsored Freighting option, there is a subsidised handling/customs fee which will be payable to the Mainfreight office when you drop off your entry. This fee includes the return of your entry to that depot.

Australia: $250 AUD

United States: $250 USD

Europe: €250 EUR

United Kingdom: £250 GBP

China & Hong Kong: $250 USD (local currency equivalent)

Singapore: $250 USD (local currency equivalent)

We have created these templates to assist with documentation: SLI for Mainfreight Sponsored Freighting, Commercial Invoice

Mainfreight Depot Drop-Off Dates

Mainfreight Sponsored Freighting is only available during the dates listed below.

United Kingdom & Europe: Monday 10 March – Monday 17 March 2025

United States: Monday 10 March – Monday 17 March 2025

Hong Kong, China, and Singapore: Monday 17 March – Monday 24 March 2025

Australia: Monday 31 March – Monday 7 April 2025

Mainfreight International Depots:
Contacts and Details 2025

The Mainfreight depots offering sponsored freighting and their contact details are listed below.

If you live within Australia, the United States, China, Hong Kong or Singapore and want to take advantage of the sponsored freighting option but you do not live near one of the participating depots, Mainfreight also offer a 25% discount to help freight your entry to the nearest participating depot within your country.

If you live within the EU (European Union) and want to take advantage of the sponsored freighting option, Mainfreight offers a 25% discount to help freight your entry to the Rotterdam sponsored freight depot. Only designers residing in Italy can use the Milan depot option.

All entries from Europe, including entrants from the United Kingdom must have an EORI number.

For those entrants not based in the above countries and regions, WOW and Mainfreight can assist you to find the most cost-effective freight method if required, including a 15% discount if using Mainfreight.

Please obtain your booking reference number from the participating Mainfreight Depot before dropping off your entry, or it will not be accepted.

Australia

Sydney

Melbourne

Tel: 0061 2 9384 7900
Fax: 0061 2 9384 7999

Attn: Maral Shiralizadeh

Email: maral.shiralizadeh@mainfreight.com.au

Tel: 0061 3 9933 5039

Attn: Renee Edera

Email: renee.edera@mainfreight.com.au

Brisbane

Tel: 0061 7 3638 3900
Fax: 0061 7 3638 3999

Attn: Jayde Hamood

Email: jayde.hamood@mainfreight.com.au

United States

Chicago

Los Angeles

Tel: 001 630 496 7400

Attn: Al Xanthopoulos

Email: Argyris.Xanthopoulos@mainfreight.com

Tel: 001 310 900 1974

Attn: Cesar Torres

Email: Cesar.Torres@mainfreight.com

Asia

Shanghai

Hong Kong

Tel: 0086 21 63736699 *1016 or *888

Attn:Moana Long or Caroline Ding

Email: moana.long@mainfreight.com or caroline.ding@mainfreight.com

Tel: 00852 3666 7332

Attn: Sherman Yuen or Jacky Lam

Email: shermanyuen@mainfreightasia.com or jacky.lam@mainfreightasia.com

Singapore

Tel: 0065 6645 9485 or 0065 6265 8836

Attn: Doreen Ng

Email: doreen.ng@mainlineasia.com

Europe

United Kingdom

Netherlands

Tel: 0044 203 873 7644

Attn: Georgia Yee or Sam Roger

Email: georgia.yee@mainfreight.com or sam.roger@mainfreight.com

Tel: 0031 6 1331 6604

Attn: Mitchel Barendregt or Evgeny Gvozdev

Email: mitchel.barendregt@mainfreight.com and evgeny.gvozdev@mainfreight.com

Italy

Tel: 0039 02 35979100

Attn: Marica Anselmi

Email: marica.anselmi@mainfreight.com and julian.kistenmacher@mainfreight.com

Alternative Freighting

You are welcome to use alternative freighting options, courier services or postal companies from your city or country.

WOW will return your garment using the cheapest method available, at your cost, and will contact you in advance to arrange this.

All entries must be at World of WearableArt HQ in Nelson by Wednesday 4 June 2025, 5pm (NZT) at the latest.

World of WearableArt Ltd
95 Quarantine Road
Annesbrook
Nelson 7011
New Zealand

Hand delivery

You are also welcome to hand deliver your entry to World of WearableArt HQ in Nelson, however this is by appointment only. Please contact Operations & Logistics Coordinator, Jessica Wolters to arrange a suitable date and time in advance.

All entries must be at World of WearableArt HQ in Nelson by Wednesday 4 June 2025, 5pm (NZT) at the latest.

Hand delivered entries must also be picked up from Nelson when it is time for the garment to be returned to the designer.

Additional Freighting Considerations

Insurance
‍Garment insurance is the designer's responsibility from the time of dispatch through to its ultimate return.
‍

Electronics and Batteries
Batteries and power banks are classed as dangerous goods and generally are not accepted for freighting. You will need to discuss with your freighting provider before packing batteries with your garment.

If your garment has electrical components, please make sure that you provide detailed instructions. Our guidelines on electrical components can be found here.‍

If your garment requires a specialised form of power supply, please email our Competition Coordinator, Angela Fisk to discuss further.

We will not be able to return any batteries or power banks sent with garments.
‍

Customs Clearances
New Zealand’s biosecurity and custom clearance requirements are important to understand when sending your garment. All customs and clearance costs must be covered by the designer.

On your customs declaration form, state a nominal value for your garment (e.g. Less than AUD $100 or US $150). Please note that this is not a reflection of the true value of your garment, it is merely for customs purposes – you may insure your garment to any value.
Garments not sent with a nominal value will incur additional customs charges, payable by you (the designer) before your entry is released into New Zealand. This will delay arrival in Nelson.
Customs charges incurred on arrival in New Zealand will be in addition to those paid at origin.
If you are asked by your freight provider to provide the Terms of Shipment (sometimes called Incoterms), use ‘Deliver Duty Paid’ (DDP).
Please state on your documentation AND mark the box containing your entry: “Temporary Exhibit Only. Not for retail sale.”

Bio-clearances
New Zealand has strict requirements around biosecurity and biological materials entering the country. These have been put in place to help protect New Zealand’s native plants and animals from introduced pests and diseases. If you have used biological materials, you will need to check carefully that your garment will be able to clear biosecurity requirements.

Ensure that the contents including any biological materials are fully declared on your customs declaration.
Before entering a garment that uses animal or plant products, establish whether the products are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) https://cites.org/eng/disc/what.php.
If necessary, ensure that your entry is accompanied by the necessary export documentation from the CITES authority in the country of origin.

For more information on New Zealand Biosecurity:
Visit the Ministry for Primary Industries’ website for more information about New Zealand Biosecurity restrictions around importing your entry into New Zealand https://www.mpi.govt.nz/importing/.

If you have a specific query, you can also email info@mpi.govt.nz or phone 0064 9 909 3030.

Garment Returns

We will return your garment back to the address in your WOW Designer Profile. Keep your address details up to date and correct.

Garments will be returned to the designer by the same method which the garments were sent to us. For example, garments will be returned via Mainfreight sponsorship only if received via Mainfreight sponsorship. Garments that are hand delivered must be collected from Nelson.

Please note that your garment may return in a different box.

Garments are returned at two points each year:

Entries that are not selected at Final Selection are returned September/October.
Finalist entries are returned January/February.

Returning garments that are not selected at Final Selection

Entries that were received via Mainfreight sponsored freighting will be sent back to the Auckland Mainfreight depot in September. They will then be shipped in the next available container to the relevant depot.
If you have sent your garment at your own expense, we will get in touch with you directly to make the necessary arrangements for returning it to you.
New Zealand entries that are not selected will be returned to designers in September/October each year.

Returning Finalist Garments

International garments that were sent via Mainfreight sponsored freighting (and are not being acquired or held on temporary loan) will be transported to the Mainfreight depot in Auckland by end of February. They will then be dispatched in the next available container shipment to the relevant depot.
If you have sent your garment at your own expense, we will contact you by the end of January to make arrangements to return it to you.
New Zealand garments are returned to designers in January/February each year (except for any garments acquired or being held on temporary loan).