I am sorry - this is a very long post.
I am working on my own brand and I care so much about being ethical and sustainable, not for greenwashing, but my own personal values and I want that to reflect in my brand. I have found a manufacturer in Hong Kong and they absolutely align with my values. I have researched them thoroughly the past few months.
But this brought me to a sort of moral dilemma and that's why I am asking for your opinions. Because I do not and refuse to support the exploitative labor practices, environmental damage, and cheap materials (namely polyester and other synthetic or plastic fibers) and shoddy manufacturing so prevalent in countries in Asia (or here in the USA, but that is another discussion. I'm aware this happens in all countries). And I hate, hate, hate fast fashion and ultra-fast fashion with so much rage I can't even describe it in words.
I know that is a harmful view and I feel so deeply ashamed to hold this bias to assume all manufacturers in Asia are sweatshops, but how can one know when there is so much propaganda? I want to apologize that I am so critical and generalizing a whole population. I think I feel this way out of my concern for other people's wellbeing and would be beyond horrified to be any part of exploitation or environmental destruction. That's where I am coming from.
So I researched this manufacturer, for so long and so carefully. I corresponded with the company, obtained their code of conduct, researched their impact report, researched the company that financially backs them, dug into the conditions of their factory, researched the location of their factory, even stalked their personal company Facebook Page. I mean, I took literal months to dig and dig into this company.
What I found is that they are similar to any company here. Their offices look like regular offices here with a break room, snacks and even Foosball. The manufacturing center is clean, organized, stocked well, large windows, proper ventilation. By all accounts, they have happy and proud employees that enjoy working there and are provided with benefits and fair wages. Their code of conduct looks better than many companies here in the USA honestly. I also found out their corporate office is in England and per their Terms and Conditions, they are under English Law. They have another satellite office in New York City.
On the sustainable front, they are extremely transparent (which surprised me) and also are critical of greenwashing. They work on an on-demand model with your company and encourage you to only order what you need, rather than the small batch production model. They will ship directly to your customer rather than to your business (where you would then ship to your customer domestically) in order to reduce carbon. They have developed design software to virtually see what your finished garment will look like so you can reduce the need to order a bunch of samples. Their products are made from 100% BCI certified cotton. I know cotton is problematic so I am glad they are trying to use the most sustainably sourced cotton possible. You can find more info on BCI https://bettercotton.org/.
So, to FINALLY get your opinion:
How would you feel about a company whose values are rooted in being ethical and sustainable when your package arrives from Hong Kong? Would you immediately hold the bias I did and think it came from a sweatshop? Two things to note: 1) I will be offsetting the carbon for the shipping on each order. and 2) I will be fully transparent on who the manufacturer is on a who made my clothes page. Any other opinions?
Thank you so much for reading this, your time and your help.
Submitted January 22, 2024 at 05:02PM by alacatit2 https://ift.tt/n3WS4OV
No comments:
Post a Comment