We've been talking about it for years, but finally it is becoming a thing: ethical fashion. The State of Fashion Report 2019 states 'radical transparency' is one of the major consumer shifts affecting the industry. To not address this issue will definitely hurt your brand.
But where to start? A good place is your manufacturing. Here are our tips to ensure your manufacturers are part of the solution, not the problem:
- Code of conduct: Develop a list of
requirements regarding the treatment of workers (living wage, no
child labour, reasonable working hours, safe conditions, etc),
animals (fur?), and the environment (think limiting water usage,
chemicals and pollution, fabric wastage). Then get your
manufacturers to sign it and make it binding: a breach should give
you a right to terminate.
- Right to audit: You should have the
right to drop into their facilities without notice to ensure
compliance with the contract.
- Subcontracting: Make sure there is no
ability to subcontract without your consent. It's one of
the major transparency issues in supply chains.
- Brand damage: Give yourself a right to
terminate if the manufacturer does anything which may cause damage
to your brand. Keep this broad – it's hard to
predict where bad PR may come from.
- Product substitution: Like with
subcontracting, ensure no product substitution is allowed... at
all. It will ensure the quality and the integrity of the
finished product.
- Don't allow the employment of
slaves: Bleedingly obvious, and there are even
laws against it now. See our update
here.
- Consider certifications: Whilst there isn't a universally acknowledged certification system for ethical fashion just yet, you can look to certifications provided by organisations such as BCorp, Ethical Clothing Australia (if you manufacture in Oz), and Fairtrade to give you some cred.
Do the right thing and get this sorted. Get in touch if you need a hand.
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