Naadam's Original Cashmere Sweater is back down to $75 this weekend — here's what it's like to wear

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Naadam is a direct-to-consumer cashmere brand that got a lot of attention a few years ago when they advertised their famous "Essential $75 Cashmere Sweater." They renamed it the "Original Cashmere Sweater" when they bumped the price to $98 in October 2023. For this weekend only, it's back down to $75.

After testing lots of cashmere sweaters myself, I've learned that anything under $100 isn't typically "premium" quality. But that hasn't stopped me from wearing my Naadam sweater on a weekly basis — it's extremely soft, well-made, and most importantly for me, it's consciously crafted.

This is the best value on a high-quality cashmere sweater I've found. Quince's cashmere is cheaper, so naturally it feels cheaper. Naadam's is still at an accessible price point, but feels more luxury-grade. You can read more about the difference between the two in my Naadam vs Quince cashmere comparison.

Former reporter Mara Leighton tried Naadam's Original Cashmere Sweater when it was still $75 back in 2018. "It's thick, lightweight, and one of the softest things I own," she says. And I have to agree — I've even tried a $385 sweater from Gigi Hadid's cashmere brand, and the softness isn't that different.

I even sleep in mine, it's that soft. The knit is breathable and insulating all at once, which is unique to cashmere. Another thing I love — this one sweater is unisex (just size up for a looser fit) and comes in dozens of colors, from versatile neutrals to vibrant pastels.

It offers cashmere sweaters across a spectrum of softness.

The site ranks Naadam's clothing by its softness to give online shoppers a sense of what they're buying, and the scale goes from a non-committal "soft" all the way to "heavenly soft." All The Essential Cashmere is labeled as "heavenly soft," and it's not really an oversell. It also barely pills.

While the rest of the company's offerings aren't more expensive than average, they're also not as wildly affordable as the Original Cashmere sweaters are. If you're intrigued by the incredible value, you'll want to prioritize these.

Since Naadam uses cashmere fibers that are about 30% longer than regular Grade-A cashmere and doesn't use chemical dyes, the cashmere lasts longer and doesn't break or pill at the surface. And since softness is determined by the thinness of individual fibers, Naadam uses only the thinnest (one one-thousandth of a centimeter on average). The result is a soft, fluffy knit that retains its shape.

Rarely do you see low prices, high quality, profitability, and ethical practices combined. Naadam appears to excel at all of them. 

Naadam, like many digital companies, makes use of a leaner, more dexterous business model. Without the baggage of an existent corporation, they were able to avoid the manufacturing inefficiencies baked into other major labels. And to cut the costs of middlemen, they pair directly with Mongolian herders. With the money the company saves, they lower prices about 50% for customers and pay nomadic herders 50% more without changing the product itself. 

They also use 100% clean energy to power production facilities, invest in more sustainable grazing practices, and fund better vaccination programs for healthier goats. And they don't use toxic chemicals, which is good for you, their employees, and the earth.

All in all, a good cashmere sweater for less than $100 is worth writing home about — and a great one is worth stockpiling. Naadam's $98 Cashmere Sweater far exceeded my expectations, and it's probably going to be the highest quality option per dollar that you're going to find. That, plus spending your money somewhere that prioritizes a "people, planet, profit" mindset make it one of the best hidden gems on the internet. 

The bottom line

Naadam's Original Cashmere Sweaters are the cheapest luxury cashmere options I've found, and they're also among the best — regardless of price. I like that the brand is conscious of its effect on the environment it sources cashmere from, and it's a great entry-level cashmere crewneck for the knitwear novice.