Out of Sight: A call for transparency from field to fabric (2021 brand scorecard)

OUT OF SIGHT: A call for transparency from field to fabric updated brand scorecard

November 2021

DONATE We need further support to continue our work in driving change in the fashion industry and improving the lives of the people who make our clothes. If you found this resource useful, please consider donating (suggested minimum amount £5) to help us continue to: • Push for further brand and supplier transparency throughout the industry to help drive accountability and change.

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• Create free educational content and resources to turn as many people as possible into fashion revolutionaries.

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CONTENTS 4

Introduction

6

Transparency is increasing, but remains too slow and too shallow

8

#WhoMadeMyFabric Campaign

18

Key Findings and Takeaways

20 Taking action beyond the first tier – What needs to happen next?

21

Annex 1. Overview of supplier disclosure among 63 major apparel brands and retailers

4

INTRODUCTION

Supply chains in the global garment and textiles industry are notoriously opaque. They are also long, complex, fragmented, and continuously evolving.

In fact, supply chains are more like webs This is why Fashion Revolution, among than linear chains, with networks of many other organisations, has been agents, contractors and subcontractors. calling for greater transparency and accountability across the global fashion This is a problem because fragmented industry since the Rana Plaza building and opaque supply chains can allow collapsed in Bangladesh in 2013 killing exploitative and unsafe working more than a thousand garment workers. conditions to thrive while obscuring who has the responsibility and power to This report is an update of our baseline redress them. research, published in October 2020, following on from the success of our At Fashion Revolution, we believe that #WhoMadeMyFabric campaign, which anyone, anywhere should be able to find launched in April 2021. out how, where, by whom and under what conditions their clothes are made.

5

"Time to see the bigger picture, there is so much work goes into clothing before it’s even cut, let alone stitched together" – Anonymous campaign feedback

6

Transparency is increasing; but progress remains too slow and too shallow Over the past seven years, and particularly in the past four years, a growing number of major apparel brands and retailers have publicly disclosed the facilities that manufacture their products. This is in large part due to the influence of initiatives like the Transparency Pledge and our #WhoMadeMyClothes campaign and our annual Fashion Transparency Indices (FTI): global, Brazil and Mexico. Supply chain disclosure continues to improve among major fashion brands and retailers, but progress remains too slow and too shallow.

In the sixth edition of our annual Fashion Transparency Index, published in July 2021, we reviewed 250 of the world’s largest brands and retailers and found that 47% were publicly disclosing a core selection of their first tier manufacturers where the final stage of production occurs, e.g. cutting, sewing, finishing products and packing them for shipments Encouragingly, this year’s Fashion Transparency Index’s findings revealed that several major luxury brands disclosed their first tier suppliers for the first time in 2021, after many years of resistance, often citing

7

commercial sensitivity as a barrier. A decade ago, having public access to factory lists seemed like an unrealistic dream for NGOs and trade unions.

This progress renews our optimism and ambition in the fight for full transparency and accountability, from field to fabric.

This responsibility is recognised by The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Due Diligence Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. Despite this, transparency around working conditions decreases the further down the supply chain you look. Our research shows that 46% of major brands disclose findings from However, supply chain disclosure by facility-level assessments at Tier most major brands and retailers remains One factories, while only 16% do so at limited to their first tier manufacturers, processing facilities (including textile where they tend to have direct business mills), and even fewer, just 4%, do so at relationships. When you start to look raw material level.1 further down the supply chain to where fabrics are knitted or woven, textiles Exploitation thrives in hidden places. are treated and laundered, yarns are There are millions of workers beyond spun and dyed, fibres are sorted and the first tier of the fashion supply processed and raw materials are grown chain, including the people who make and picked – what the industry typically our fabric, who remain out of sight, refers to as tiers two, three, four and exacerbating their vulnerability. Case five – a widespread lack of transparency studies across the globe demonstrate persists. Our Fashion Transparency the human rights risks and abuses these Index found that just 27% of brands workers face. Just three examples are were disclosing at least a partial list of cotton production in the Uyghur region their processing facilities.The workers of China, textile mills in Tamil Nadu, and who make our fabrics are therefore less leather production in Brazil, which you visible, more vulnerable and at higher can read about here. These examples risk of exploitation. demonstrate the clear and compelling need for transparency across fashion’s Brands have a responsibility to take entire supply chain. action on the human rights and environmental impacts across their entire supply chains.

1 Fashion Transparency Index 2021, https://issuu.com/fashionrevolution/docs/fashiontransparencyindex_2021

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#WhoMadeMyFabric Campaign During Fashion Revolution Week in April, as we marked 8 years since the Rana Plaza factory collapse tragedy, we launched our #WhoMadeMyFabric campaign.

We called on citizens everywhere to demand greater transparency from brands by asking #WhoMadeMyFabric. Thousands of you helped us call on more than 60 major fashion brands and retailers to publicly disclose the processing facilities and textile mills in their global supply chains by emailing them directly, sharing posters and graphics on social media and leaving product reviews on brand websites.

#WhoMadeMyFabric campaign impact & audience engagement 2 #WhoMadeMyFabric Total reach on Instagram: 646,883 posts

#IMadeYourFabric Instagram posts: 2,900+

#WhoMadeMyFabric Instagram posts: 7,700+

Emails sent to target brands asking #WhoMadeMyFabric: 3,000+

Who Made My Fabric? landing page views: 8,000+

Out of Sight report readers: 5,900+

2 Correct as of October 2021

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Workers’ voices are central to our movement, so we aim to remove barriers between producers and consumers by sharing their stories in their own words. With the help of grassroots organisations in Tamil Nadu, the largest producer of cotton yarn in India, we reached out to workers in spinning mills who make fabrics for the fashion industry to ask them what they think about their work and what changes they would like to see.

More than 100 workers shared their stories with us. Many told us that they like their jobs and are proud of the work they do. These are skilled workers who are demanding fairer working conditions for the work they are committed to excelling at. The areas where workers want to see change include low wages, long hours, excessive and unpaid overtime, lack of personal protective equipment and lack of sufficient rest breaks and leave. These are systemic issues across the global textile industry.

You can find photographs of people taking part in our #WhoMadeMyFabric campaign on the following pages: citizens asking ‘Who Made My Fabric?’ and workers replying ‘I Made Your Fabric’

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@fashionrevolutionluxembourg

11

@sizbrand Portugal

12

@sukkhacitta

13

IMYF – Rita from @tazt0pia Nigeria

14

@the.girlwith.wings

15

Signs read ‘I Made your Fabric’ in Tamil India

16

IMYF @indigograsslands Ta Pae, Thailand

17

@greenality

18

Key Findings and Takeaways

This report provides the first periodic³ update on the supply chain transparency efforts of 63⁴ major brands and retailers with reported links to textile suppliers in Tamil Nadu.

Our research assesses whether brands and retailers publish their textile production sites in the supply chain, including the following information: • The full name of all authorised production units, processing facilities (printing, embroidery, laundry) and textile production sites (spinning, knitting, weaving, dyeing)

• Worker numbers at each site (by category: less than 1000, 1001 to 5000, 5001 to 10,000, more than 10,000)

• The site address

• Whether these supplier lists are updated at least twice a year

• The parent company of the business at the site

• Whether the supplier lists are provided in an open data standard

• Types of products made • For tier 2 and 3 suppliers, the relationship between the readymade garment (RMG) unit and the textile supplier

Knowing where your fabric comes from is very powerful. Each one of us should demand from the brands they buy about this step.

– Anonymous campaign feedback

3 Data is correct as of end-of Sept 2021 4 The changes to the original 62 targeted brands since the first report in October 2020 are as follows: REMOVED - Arcadia Group, CHANGED - George at Asda (change in parent company), ADDED - Marc O’Polo, Mothercare, WE Fashion Group

19

49/63 are disclosing first tier manufacturers (in full or in part)

44%

2/63

29/63

28/63

are disclosing a selected number of processing facilities (printing, dyeing, laundering, embroidery)

are disclosing a selected number of textile production (spinning, knitting, weaving and fabric production)

This means that only 44% of brands reviewed are disclosing at least some of their textile production sites.

This is an increase of 13 percentage points in the original scorecard in October 2020.

Only two brands⁵ are disclosing a list of all its textile production sites.

The other 26 brands and retailers disclose selected textile suppliers which constitute their core supplier base, a portion of their product volume, or may be listed due to being vertically integrated into suppliers further up the chain.

5 Tchibo and Nudie Jeans

We invite you to explore the full list of brands and retailers reviewed in Annex 1 (page 22) at the end of this report to understand what information they disclose about the production sites across their supply chains.

20

TAKE ACTION

Taking action beyond the first tier – What needs to happen next?

Anyone anywhere should be able to find out how, where, by whom and at what social and environmental cost their clothes are made. We want to transform the fashion industry so that transparency and accountability are deeply embedded across the entire value chain.

This report calls for major brands and retailers to expand supply chain transparency by disclosing all textile production facilities in their supply chains. This demand aligns with a joint civil society call for full supply chain transparency in the clothing sector, signed by 33 NGOs and trade unions, including Fashion Revolution. The demand also supports Goal One of the Tamil Nadu Declaration that requests brands improve disclosure of textile manufacturing facilities in their supply chain, and the UNECE Call to Action for Traceability, Transparency, Sustainability and Circularity of Value Chains in the Garment and Footwear Sector.

In answering our demand, brands and retailers stand to gain from the reputational benefits and operational efficiencies that traceability and transparency catalyses, while enabling greater opportunities for workers’ lives to be improved. This report also calls on citizens everywhere to demand greater transparency from brands by asking #WhoMadeMyFabric? We’re also calling on producers to tell us #IMadeYourFabric, so we can connect more closely with the people who produce the fabrics and raw materials we wear. We have a range of tools to help you take action - on social media, by emailing brands and by leaving product reviews on brands websites.

To get involved, head here.

21

So much respect for spreading awareness about such a crucial topic.

A lot of employees in garment construction units are unrecognised!

Thank you for having some voices known – Anonymous campaign feedback

ANNEX 1

A NOTE ABOUT THE SCORING:

Overview of supplier disclosure among 63 major apparel brands and retailers

Company

Authorised production units (tier 1) Y = ≥ 95% of units, P = <95% or any % of product volume, N = does not state

Y

denotes ‘yes’ the brand is publishing this data.

N

denotes ‘no’ that brand is not publishing this data.

P

Processing facilities (printing, laundering, embroidery, dyeing)

Textile production sites (spinning, knitting, weaving)

Y = ≥ 95% of units, P = <95% or any % of product volume, N = does not state

Y = ≥ 95% of units, P = <95% or any % of product volume, N = does not state

Textile production sites: Address

denotes ‘partial’ meaning that the brand is disclosing some data but only partial amounts of relevant data.

For example, they may be disclosing only a percentage of suppliers rather than all their suppliers at that tier.

For more detailed notes on what partial disclosure entails for individual brands in each cell, please see here.

Textile production sites: Parent company

Textile production sites: Products/ services type - Y/N

Textile production sites (FM): Open Data Standard Y = needs to state published in ODS. Partially = EXL or CSV file

Textile production sites: Approx. # of workers

Textile production sites Updated bi-annually Y = every 6 months or less.

N = more than 6 months or do not disclose

Link to supply chain disclosure

Abercrombie & Fitch

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Aldi Nord

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Aldi South

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Amazon

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

American Eagle

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

ASOS

Y

Y

P

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

LINK

BESTSELLER

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Bon Prix (Otto Group)

P

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Boohoo

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

C&A

Y

Y

P

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

LINK

Carrefour

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Columbia Sportswear Co.

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Cortefiel

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Decathlon

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

El Corte Ingles

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Esprit

P

P

P

Y

Y

Y

Y

P

Y

LINK

Fashion Nova

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

G-Star Raw

Y

P

P

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

LINK

P

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

George @ Asda (TDR Capital)

P

P

P

Y

N

Y

Y

N

N

LINK

H&M

Y

P

P

Y

N

N

N

Y

Y

LINK

HanesBrands

P

P

P

Y

Y

N

Y

N

N

LINK

Hugo Boss

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Inditex (Bershka, Pull&Bear…)

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Jack Wolfskin

P

P

P

Y

Y

Y

N

P

N

LINK

JD Sports

P

P

P

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

LINK

John Lewis

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Kiabi

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

KiK

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Levi Strauss & Co.

P

P

P

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

LINK

Lidl

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

LLP

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Marc O’Polo

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Marks & Spencer

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Matalan

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Mexx

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Missguided

Y

P

P

Y

N

Y

N

N

Y

Mothercare

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

New Balance

Y

P

P

Y

N

Y

N

Y

Y

LINK

New Look

Y

P

P

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

LINK

Next

Y

P

P

Y

N

Y

N

Y

Y

LINK

Nike Inc.

Y

N

P

Y

Y

Y

N

P

N

LINK

Nudie Jeans

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

N

LINK

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

OVS

Y

P

P

Y

Y

Y

Y

P

Y

LINK

Pentland (Berghaus, Speedo…)

Y

P

P

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

LINK

Primark

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

PUMA

P

P

P

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

LINK

PVH (Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein…)

Y

P

P

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

LINK

Ralph Lauren

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Sainsbury’s

Y

P

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

Target

Y

P

P

Y

N

N

N

Y

Y

LINK

Tchibo

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

N

LINK

Tesco

Y

P

P

Y

N

N

N

Y

N

LINK

The Children's Place

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Uniqlo

P

P

P

Y

N

N

N

P

N

LINK

United Colors of Benetton

Y

P

P

Y

Y

Y

Y

P

N

LINK

Varner

Y

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

LINK

VF Corp (Timberland, Dickies)

Y

P

P

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

LINK

Walmart (excluding Asda)

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

WE Fashion (celio, Khabbaz Kids, Tara)

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

N

Zalando

Y

P

P

Y

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

LINK

Zeeman

P

N

P

Y

N

N

N

Y

Y

LINK

Gap Inc. (inluding Banana Republic and Old Navy)

Otto Group (Otto, Witt-Gruppe, Heine, Schwab...)

LINK

ABOUT Fashion Revolution works towards a vision of a fashion industry that conserves and restores the environment and values people over growth and profit.

Founded in the wake of the Rana Plaza disaster in Bangladesh, Fashion Revolution has become the world’s largest fashion activism movement, mobilising citizens, industry and policy makers through their research, education and advocacy work.

The issues in the fashion industry never fall on any single person, brand, or company. That’s why we focus on using our voices to transform the entire system. With systemic and structural change, the fashion industry can lift millions of people out of poverty and provide them with decent and dignified livelihoods. It can conserve and restore our living planet. It can bring people together and be a great source of joy, creativity and expression for individuals and communities. fashionrevolution.org @fash_rev @fash_rev facebook.com/fashionrevolution.org

CREDITS This is a Fashion Revolution report, based on research done by Fashion Revolution CIC. Authored by Ciara Barry with support from Liv Simpliciano.

Art direction and design by Maria Maleh and Emily Sear Fashion Revolution CIC., 70 Derby Street, Leek, Staffordshire, ST13 5AJ, United Kingdom www.fashionrevolution.org © Fashion Revolution CIC. (2021) The text of this publication is available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.

Photos are excluded from this license, as their copyright falls under the original copyright owner, which may or may not be Fashion Revolution.

Contact us for questions regarding use of any materials: transparency@fashionrevolution.org

CREDITS