Fashion Revolution Week

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It’s Fashion Revolution Week!

The 20th - 26th April is a week to raise awareness of and encourage change within the fashion industry.

Organised by the global movement Fashion Revolution, this week is about transparency, and for brands around the world to take a look at where and how their products are made. It’s about choosing the manufacturers that look after their employees and the environment and putting pressure on those that don’t to change.

The week coincides with the anniversary of the Rana Plaza factory collapse in 2013. The Rana Plaza housed five textile factories. The building's owners ignored reports of cracks, and garment workers were ordered back to work the following day. The building collapsed during the morning rush hour, killing 1,138 people and injuring approximately 2,500 more. 

Whilst tragedies like this are extremely rare, the lack of care for textile workers in countries like Bangladesh is commonplace. In the UK we live and work by certain standards and it is these basic rights that Fashion Revolution is campaigning for around the world. And Inkthreadable supports the movement 100%.

Fashion Revolution Week & Inkthreadable

Inkthreadable supports ethical and sustainable fashion in many ways, from the careful selection of the brands we worth with to our own environmental and ethical policies.

But the best way for us to take part in Fashion Revolution Week is to help educate the brands that use our service, and the best way we can think to do this is to highlight the most ethical brand in our catalogue: Stanley/Stella.

View the Stanley/Stella range

Fashion Revolution Week & Stanley/Stella

Stanley/Stella is actively taking part in Fashion Revolution Week, and with a history of responsible, ethical and sustainable manufacture dating back to their beginning in 2012 they’re in a strong position to do so.

Certifications

Stanley/Stella has multiple certifications that work towards better safety standards and healthy environmental practices. These accreditations are business-wide, applying to every aspect of the way Stanley/Stella operates from its factories in Bangladesh to its warehousing and other facilities around Europe: 

  • GOTS certification - for organic textiles made with organically grown raw fibres and for textiles made with organic fibres that have been processed into textiles without the use of harmful chemicals.
  • GRS certification - an international, voluntary, full-product standard that sets requirements for third-party certification of recycled content, chain of custody, social and environmental practices and chemical restrictions. 
  • Oeko-Tex certification - a label for consumers and a uniform safety standard for the assessment of harmful substances in fabrics. Its aim is to ensure products are free of harmful substances.
  • Textile Exchange (supporter member) - a global non-profit organization that works closely with its members to drive industry transformation in preferred fibres, integrity and standards and responsible supply networks.

100% organic cotton

All cotton used in Stanley/Stella products is organic, certified by GOTS as above. This means the cotton is grown without chemical pesticides and chemical fertilisers, and that in general no hazardous or toxic substances have been used. Not only is it kinder to the environment but this creates a safer working environment for farmers and their families.

Did you know? 
Pesticide poisoning can be a side effect of non-organic cotton growth, which can lead to multiple health complications and even death.

Transparency

In 2018 Stanley/Stella decided to publicly release the names and contact details for every factory they worked with, something quite unheard of in the B2B fashion industry.

Only by being open about who we work with and where, can we have healthy working relationships and make a positive impact.
Bruno Van Sieleghem, Head of Sustainability at Stanley/Stella

This would ordinarily be considered confidential information, but Stanley/Stella elected to release it freely to be as honest and transparent about where their garments come from as possible. Checks and accreditations are industry standard, but by releasing this information Stanley/Stella went a step further than other manufacturers.

Selecting & working with partners

Stanley/Stella take a strict approach to selecting which factories to work with. The aim is to work with partners that offer only the best working conditions for their employees.
They also make a point to work with partners which are willing to invest in corporate social responsibility schemes, such as providing childcare in facilities which employ female workers, and transparent monitoring of overtime.

You can find out more about Stanley/­Stella’­s social responsibility in their 2019 Social Report.

Blog profile Ashley

Ashley Grimshaw

Content Manager

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