Conscious consumers are demanding, more and more every day, to know how their clothes are produced. Where do they come from? Which materials do they use? Are they paying their employees fairly?
These concerns have become really important when buying our clothes. We are now constantly researching first before every purchase.
Plus, the fact that we are finally seeing the impact it has on fashion if we demand sustainable products. We can observe it the on the “eco-friendly” collections fast fashion brands are trying to produce. That even though those products may be less harmful and polluting, they have a 1,000 other designs that aren’t. This is not conscious at all.
Here is when GREENWASHING appears and it becomes our worst enemy. When brands claim their products are sustainable without providing the data to back it up, or like I just mentioned, they don’t truly care about sustainability.
They create this “sustainable collections” to use them as smokescreens for awful labor conditions and massive environmental impact. These are only marketing strategies, not real commitments.
Which only takes us three steps back. We don’t want to be misled into buying a piece of clothing. We want honest and conscious purchases.
These situations has made us realize that transparency is not enough anymore. We need a profound knowledge on the entire process of producing our clothing.
Difference between Transparency and Traceability
Since we as consumers feel like we need more than transparency from brands, the natural step forward would be to have traceability. This one is more complex it goes deeper into their suppliers chain and takes into consideration every single element of their production.
TRANSPARENCY refers to a company making a claim about its supply chain.
TRACEABILITY is when the company has the knowledge of where and how every single part of a garment is made. Which means that they can prove their claim.
For example like this flower, when we refer to transparency we are only looking for brands to show the roots, no matter how extended they are. On the other hand with traceability we would like to know the whole extent of those roots, even the smallest ones. We should be able to follow every root.
Being transparent is not enough. Brands need to be aware of every component of their product. Most can identify and track their immediate suppliers, but the information is often lost about the suppliers of the suppliers.
There can be traceability without transparency, but they are both essential for sustainability. It makes no sense, if you know the background of your garments and you have nothing to hide, share it.
THE TRUTH ABOUT FASHION SUPPLY CHAINS
I see fashion supply chains as mazes. Weird, right? But look, imagine you get into a maze and start following the path, but then you get lost and face yourself with a wall, you can’t move forward.
When you try to find the path to a supply chain is the same, you start tracing all the steps and components, everything is going well and then, you find a material that the supplier is a dead end. There is no information at all, no record of who are their suppliers. A wall that you can’t go through.
But if you go back and retrace the steps, you can find a new open path with a transparent supplier that can lead you to the next one, and so on. If you are able to find the finish line, no matter how dark and twisted it gets, that’s traceability.
To what extent brands, should know their production?
As extent as they can get, go far back, all the way. When producing clothes, there are tons of processes and materials needed. For example, think about your favorite pair of jeans, they have a long story behind them. From the seeds to your closet, they go through so many steps.
- Starting with the crops where the cotton was grown.
- The mills where the fabric was woven.
- The factories where their garments are sewn.
- To sourcing other materials like the buttons, zippers, and thread for sewing.
- Plus any chemical used like dyes, bleaches, softeners.
Every single thing needs to be on the record and able to be tracked down. Brands should know that, they have that responsibility when creating their garments.
That’s why traceability is so important. If brands know their supplier and how their whole production is working, then they can add the eco-friendly element. Also, they can think about which of these components can be replaced with ones that are natural, biodegradable, recycled, or even repurposed.
How can you change something and make it right if you don’t even know where it comes from?
Right? Therefore, there can be no sustainability without traceability.
Sustainability can not only be on the superficial things; it should be in the tiny details as well. Every single aspect of the production chain needs to be known and made better.
Fashion is still one of the industries that still need humans to produce. It needs employees to create the garments, not machines operated by themselves. Your clothes are still made by someone else hands. Why not thank them by paying them fairly and giving them a safe place to work. Fast fashion doesn’t care about their workers, but they are essential for them. Their employees have rights, let us not forget them.
If you would like to know more about Ethical Fashion, we have another blog explaining in detail what is it? and why does it matter? Click here to read more.
Another issue in supply chains and suppliers is that “95 percent of the value chain data is locked up in paper or electronic documents”. Not a lot of people can get access to them. Brands and manufacturers need that data. It shouldn’t be locked up, instead, it should be out there for everyone to see.
If brands have access to that data, it could help brands get an overview of their suppliers and track them. So that when they try and get their certifications, they can achieve them on each level.
Every single detail matters! I can’t say those words enough.
Unfortunately, supply-chain transparency is not mandated by governments or regulated by international law. We can’t keep producing garments without having regulations and laws that protect the workers or the planet.
The closest we get of traceability from most brands, is the “Made in…” label. That’s the only piece of information ultra-fast fashion brands like SHEIN provide on their labels, nothing else. It is just an introduction but not the whole truth, which is unbelievable to me.
NORMAL LABELS PROVIDED BY BRANDS
LABELS WE SHOULD DEMAND
How is it that we worry about where our food comes from but not about our clothing?
There is still a long way to go, but like we always say, small steps have a great impact.
One thing we can always do as consumers is question brands for more information. Demand them to tell you how your clothes are made, where, and by who.
We created a Sustainable Brand Dictionary where most of these brands have been doing strategies to have 100% traceability of their supply chains. You can start there and if you spot a brand that hasn’t mentioned this topic on their website, you can send them an email asking for this information. Now that you know specifically what to ask for, you can demand it with confidence.
Traceability does not only apply to fashion. Any type of company should be able to trace back and have in record every step of their production.
Love finding new brands that truly care about the planet and its people, so if you know any other companies that applies this, let me know in the comments.
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