Ethics within fashion

TOMS

The brand of TOMS has footwear designed and made specifically to provide ethical vegan shoes that save the environment.

TOMS was founded by Blake Mycoskie in 2006 following a trip to Argentina. During his visit, Mycoskie saw firsthand how people living in impoverished areas of Argentina had to live without shoes, a challenge that many of us likely give little thought. Inspired by his trip, Mycoskie decided to establish his company with giving in mind.

Since 2006, TOMS’ footwear business has donated more than 60 million pairs of shoes to children in need all over the world. The company's eyewear division has given more than 400,000 pairs of glasses to visually impaired people who can't access eye care. TOMS’ mission is so central to the company’s branding, it’s given almost equal emphasis on its website as the products it sells. In fact, it’s almost impossible to navigate through TOMS’ site without seeing further examples of how TOMS helps people around the world. It tries to benefit as many aspects of the environment and people in third-world countries. 

Everlane

All Everlane clothing is tracked while in the making and shows each individual step taken to creating these clothes and how they are work-safe and environmentally friendly with no workers being subdued to labour or underpayment.

Founded in 2010 by Michael Preysman, Everlane is boldly committed to ethical manufacturing. All of Everlane’s garments are made in factories that meet the most stringent quality standards – not only in terms of the clothes themselves, but also in how workers are treated. Everlane only partners with manufacturers that demonstrate a strong commitment to their workers’ welfare, a fact the company prides itself upon in its marketing material.

the company also provides customers with a detailed cost breakdown for each and every one of its stylish, minimalist garments. This includes details on the cost of materials, labor, transportation and logistics, excise taxes and duties, and even hardware such as zippers and buttons.

Fashion Conscience

They create clothes, accessories, gifts and shoes that are all safely made, eco friendly, fairtrade, sustainable, recycled, organic and vegan.

The company feels passionately about tackling the issues of textile landfill in the UK as 1 million tonnes of textiles ending up in landfill every year, so is hugely important to them to reduce this waste to keep a more eco-friendly approach.

Q&A: How do I know the designers and manufacturers are ethical? 

We work on an understanding of transparency of our designers' manufacturing process. We know that all of our designers are working to make their collections as ethical as possible, many already use internationally recognised eco, fair trade and organic fabrics and fair trade processes or are striving to get official recognition. In some cases it can take several years to get international ethical or fair trade accreditation but we recognise their actions now.

People Tree

People Tree purchases the majority of its Fair Trade products from marginalized producer groups in the developing world and guarantee most of our purchasing is committed to the World Fair Trade Organization and Fair Trade standards. Their priority is to support producer partners’ efforts towards economic independence and control over their local environment and community. They use natural resources throughout our production to promote environmentally responsible initiatives for a sustainable future.