Some renowned New Zealand clothing businesses are neglecting to offer basic information about where their clothes are created, despite the growing trend towards transparency in Australia and Europe.
According to a report released by Oxfam Aotearoa as part of the ‘What She Makes’ campaign, supply chain transparency ratings for six of New Zealand’s major fashion businesses are based on publicly available consumer data.
While some companies achieved a five-star rating, two sister brands – Glassons and Hallenstein Bros – received a low two-star rating.
“More and more, customers are expecting their favourite brands to be upfront about where their clothes are made,” said Shalomi Daniel, Oxfam Aotearoa’s campaign lead for gender and economic justice.
“Transparency is the foundation of an ethical supply chain – it allows workers, unions, and groups of people like us to scrutinise the working conditions of these factories and ensure that women who make our clothes are treated and paid fairly.”
The brand rankings from the What She Makes Brand Transparency Report:
- Hallenstein Bros – 2 stars
- Glassons – 2 stars
- Kathmandu – 5 stars
- Macpac – 5 stars
- H&M – 5 stars
- Lululemon – 5 stars
Daniel said that if a company does not publish this information, it does not imply that working conditions in their factories are poor, but it does make it more difficult for anyone to find out.
“It’s clear the basic standards have shifted – and they’ll only continue to. While we focused on Tier 1 suppliers in this report – the factories that directly supply the brands – some of the brands we looked at are already looking into reporting on their Tier 2 suppliers, the ones that supply their Tier 1 factories,” he added.
This transparency milestone is the second in the What She Makes campaign, in which Oxfam Aotearoa is collaborating with manufacturers to pay livable wages to the women who create their clothes in countries such as Bangladesh and China.
