Shear genius Creativity, positivity, variety warms hearts of Wonderful World of Sheepskin, Lambskin Specialties leadership Made in Manitoba
By: Aaron Epp Posted: 8:06 PM CST Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025

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This article was published 13/02/2025 (566 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Wonderful World of Sheepskin has been open for more than 50 years — but it’s not unusual for someone to walk in and tell co-owners Myron Schultz and Melvyn Pollins they’ve just found out about the Winnipeg store.

“We invariably get the question, ‘Why don’t you advertise?’” Schultz says. “And I’m thinking, oh my God, I’ve advertised so much.”

But for all those people just discovering the store, there are also third-generation customers. They include former Winnipeggers, who, when they’re in town visiting family, make a special point of visiting the North End store to buy high-quality sheepskin products.

Those products include footwear, outerwear, plush toys and automotive items like steering wheel covers, as well as personal care and comfort items. The products are made on site under the company’s manufacturing trade name, Lambskin Specialties.

Lambskin Specialities also services the janitorial supplies industry by manufacturing a range of maintenance products, including a wool duster called the Dust Wand the company introduced to the market in 1969.

Natural lamb’s wool offers exceptional dusting power and it’s the company’s best-selling product. They’re used in hotels across North America, according to Schultz. About 70 per cent of the company’s business comes from the U.S.

The company has a reputation for making a diverse array of products, including custom items. In recent years, Lambskin Specialties has created custom parts for an exercise machine company and a company that manufactures equipment for the grain industry. It’s also manufactured a cleaning pad designed specifically for the boating industry.

“We’ll create, respond and be flexible enough to make something for somebody that maybe has never been made before,” Schultz says.

The company dates to the 1930s, when Schultz’s grandfather, Wigdor (Victor) Schultz started a small, fur trim manufacturing business.

“We’ll create, respond and be flexible enough to make something for somebody that maybe has never been made before”–Myron Schultz

Myron’s father, Albert, took over the business in the 1950s, and started manufacturing sheepskin clothing and eventually janitorial products.

In 1970, Albert opened the Wonderful World of Sheepskin on Selkirk Avenue. Pollins, who was born and raised in England, was working at the company by then.

Myron Schultz considered becoming an urban planner or a professional musician before joining the company in 1985. (An accomplished clarinetist, Schultz performs with local klezmer all-stars Finjan. He is also the band leader for Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre’s latest production, Indecent.)

In 1993, Myron and Pollins joined Albert in the ownership group. Three years later, the store moved to its present location at 250 Dufferin Ave.

“I like to say we moved south in 1996 — a joke that only North End Winnipeggers really understand,” Schultz says.

Albert remained involved with the company until a few years before his death in 2013 at age 92.

Schultz and Pollins currently employ 30 people at their 35,000-square-foot headquarters, which houses the storefront, manufacturing operation and warehouse.

The majority of the sheepskins are sourced from Australia and New Zealand and are tanned in China. The company uses tens of thousands of skins annually.

For Pollins, who cuts clothing and oversees the company’s manufacturing, the most enjoyable part of owning Lambskin Specialties is the variety.

“It’s different every day,” he says.

Schultz, who handles the company’s sales and marketing, enjoys connecting with employees and customers and finding ways to make their lives better. “It’s the experience of making things happen that I appreciate the most.”

The last five years have been challenging for the company. The COVID-19 pandemic shuttered the commercial cleaning industry and sales of the janitorial supplies Lambskin Specialties manufactures plummeted. Schultz and Pollins had to put about half of their employees on furlough.

At the same time, sales of the company’s clothing spiked. People were at home and looking to buy slippers to stay comfortable. Meanwhile, snowbirds couldn’t travel south for the winter and were looking for coats, mittens and hats to keep warm.

Things got back to normal last year, Schultz says, but now the recent threat of U.S. tariffs is disrupting business as usual. He likens the last few weeks to riding a roller-coaster.

“You go on those dips and you just hold on and you’re terrified,” he says. “And then you sort of go up again and you think, OK, I can breathe now.”

If U.S. President Donald Trump goes through with his plans to plaster 25 per cent tariffs on imported goods from Canada, Lambskin Specialties will work to expand its business in Canada and try to find customers in places like Europe and South America.

When he thinks about his customers in the U.S., Schultz is saddened by Trump’s actions. “We’ve got some superb people that we deal with down there.”

He hopes Trump’s actions have raised consumer awareness about where items are manufactured. Schultz doesn’t begrudge people who purchase products from the United States, but encourages people to support local businesses.

Occasionally, customers who visit the Wonderful World of Sheepskin will ask where the items are made. Many are surprised to learn they are manufactured on site.

“When you share that information with people that not only are they made in Winnipeg, but they’re made in the building that you’re shopping in, it gives them a whole new perspective on what it means to be buying from a local company,” Schultz says.

The company prides itself on taking custom orders. If you need size 15 slippers, a custom coat made in a hurry, a jacket for your dog, furniture coverings or a hard-to-find item, it’s quite possible the Wonderful World of Sheepskin can help you out.

“One of the great things when you’re dealing with a local company is that you can ask these questions,” Schultz says. “Maybe the answer will be no, but you can ask. And coming here, probably 95 per cent of the time the answer is going to be yes, we can do that for you.

“Our raison dêtre is to be trying to serve you in the way that’s going to satisfy your requirements.”

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca