Ikast, 28 November 2019
Brands4kids A/S is up to the mark where sustainability is concerned. New climate-friendly initiatives and objectives as well as a greener corporate culture will ensure that the company and its collaborative partners intensifies endeavours to achieve a greener earth and secure the future of our dear ones. The latest report on textiles and the environment issued by the EU Environment Agency, the EEA, speaks for itself. The report concludes that the production of clothing and textiles is extremely resource-intensive and harmful to the environment and that the pace of the sustainable transition must be increased. This is no surprise to the owners of Brands4kids, Erik Andreæ and Michael Nederby, but is rather a focus area that has been on the company’s agenda for several years in the form of tests prepared according to REACH standards and environmental certifications such as GOTS and Oeko-Tex 100 but within which future endeavours will be intensified. ”We are conscious of the responsibility resting on us, both as a company that wants to live up to the 17 sustainable development goals but also in terms of the challenging fact that we are part of an industry which contributes the most to CO2 emissions. The challenge is not merely the production of the clothes but just as much to spread the message to our collaborative partners and the end consumers. Studies show that end consumers would like to buy greener, but that the actual purchase does not support the thinking. We need to change that,” says Erik Andreæ, Managing Director, and continues ”Due to the size of our company and because we are dealing with children and their futures, we believe that leading the way is a must. Protecting our little ones is our primary task and, therefore, we are very conscious of how our children’s clothing is produced and by whom”. For this reason, 2019 has been the year when Brands4kids made the word ”Sustainability” mainstream with its employees and collaborative partners and the year when a stricter sustainability strategy and new climate-friendly measures were introduced to ensure that the company will meet the requirements of the 17 sustainable development goals.
Turning plastics into outerwear The latest initiative in the Brands4kids sustainability efforts is a range of outerwear products made from recycled plastics. In just two seasons, Brands4kids has increased the number of recycled products from 0-30% of the brand Color Kids and, in spring 2020, the company will launch the first products in the shops along with a selection of recycled CeLaVi basic outerwear. Brands4kids works strategically with three phases within recycling which, together, will ensure that, by 2023, the objective will be met that most of the outerwear products as well as its features and packaging are recycled.
”We will make it natural to act thoughtfully. We believe that as soon as more companies follow suit, the prices of the production of recycled products will decrease to an acceptable level, as this becomes the norm and, thus, a requirement for all suppliers in future. In that way, we also get more end users to jump the bandwagon,” says Per Henrik Brogaard, Brand Manager for Color Kids.
Increased focus on GOTS For many years, Brands4kids has focused on sustainability and environmentally friendly production. However, in 2016, the company received an important and recognised piece of paper providing evidence of its efforts. That was the year when Brands4kids A/S was GOTS-certified. The brand ME TOO and its baby collections were the first to be ”label-grade 1, Organic”, which means that the products are produced from a minimum of 95% organic fibres. GOTS (The Global Organic Textile Standard) is a standard for organic fibres which controls ingredients from production and harvesting of raw materials, through processing and to the finished product and provides a credible guarantee for an environmentally and socially responsible production to the end consumer. It is the highest level of quality assurance on children’s clothing which is also why this certification is the guarantee for the consumer that no harmful chemicals are present in the children’s clothing and that it is made from organic cotton. Over the past year, ME TOO has increased its share of GOTS-certified products to where it now accounts for 25% of the baby collection. Furthermore, in 2019, ME TOO has also focused on increasing the overall number of GOTS products which means that, from autumn 2020, it will also include a small selection of GOTS-certified products in its kids collection. 2019 was also the year when Minymo’s baby collection came onboard and, from spring 2020, GOTS-certified products will be available in the baby collections. The GOTS certification also makes a number of demands of Brands4kids as a company, including the working conditions of the employees and the working environment. Both the latter as well as the products are part of a process which is constantly being improved which is why Brands4kids places great demands on its suppliers. Brands4kids has just been GOTS-recertified which happens every three years. In addition to the GOTS-certified products, with its various brands, Brands4kids offers a range of products made from organic cotton and Oeko-Tex 100 certified. In addition, Bionic Finish® Eco is also used in most of the outerwear which is an impregnation without fluoride substances.
Small initiatives making a big difference At Brands4kids, sustainability is not merely about the product and the social responsibility that follows from the product development. It is also about the behaviour and mindset exhibited by the employees in their day-to-day work. Everything from paper being printed on FSC-certified paper to several digital solutions as well as a focus on minimising food waste in the canteen is to contribute to a greener culture. At special kick-off days, sales staff and agents are also informed about sustainability and the meaning of the various certifications and memberships achieved. ”We believe that communicating the knowledge which we, as a company have attained on the topic and on our products, is an important task to ensure that the green transition also happens at our vendors’. End consumers are very much inspired by vendors and their knowledge which is why vendors are an important piece in the puzzle of the green transition” says Erik Andreæ, Managing Director. In addition, Brands4kids has adapted the range with fewer styles which is to ensure that the customers only get the products they need in the shops which, in turn, should result in minimising the over-consumption of clothes.
Creating transparency in factories through BSCI membership In 2019, Brands4kids also has increased its focus on the entire supply chain, including the social aspects of the factories, through its BSCI (Business Social Compliance Initiatives) membership. In collaboration with its suppliers, Brands4kids wishes to take responsibility and comply with the common code of ”BSCI Code of Conduct”. ”We believe it is important that we continue to improve and that our suppliers are able to introduce and comply with this code” says Erik Andreæ, Managing Director, and continues: ”It is an exciting and continuous process which allows us to continue developing our suppliers. These audits of the suppliers create a transparency which we believe is essential to the future of our industry.”
Investing in greener cotton production Brands4kids already now work on new green initiatives for 2020. A new focus area will be BCI (Better Cotton Initiatives) which will ensure that the water and chemical consumption is reduced, the cotton harvest increased, the cotton growers educated and that the harvest generates greater yields. ”Since most of the Brands4kids products contain cotton, we share in the responsibility”, says Erik Andreæ, Managing Director, and continues: ”We expect to achieve membership in the new year and we look forward to the improvements and positive results which we can contribute to creating in our cotton supply chain”.
At Brands4kids, there is no doubt that sustainability will play an ever more important role in the future and that a carefully prepared sustainability strategy is essential to secure the company and the next generations. Notwithstanding the fact that, for some years, Brands4kids has had great focus on sustainability and has intensified its endeavours from 2019, this is just the beginning.
”We use the world as our playground on a daily basis and, therefore, we are very much concerned about making this playground greener in future,” concludes Erik Andreæ, Managing Director.
For more information, please contact:
Erik Andreæ, Managing Director, tel. 22 65 21 76, eran@brands4kids.dk
Brands4kids A/S – Industrivej 25 – DK-7430 Ikast – www.brands4kids.dk