This was very informative! While legislation for better transparency is important, I wonder if there's more we can do as consumers to put pressure on brands?
I worked at a big fast fashion company for ten years & every year we were required to do a training refresh. It was essentially yearly greenwashing - boasting about ties with the BCI and a big claim about how this company produced denim wasn’t as wasteful as other companies. As more and more horrors were exposed in the news - part of our training was to watch factories in the supply chain which loved to emphasise how they empower women. This showed one factory in one location. Part of the training also loved to remind us that THEY DO NOT lock fire exits - which they were obviously very conscious of after numerous tragedies. Sustainability and empowerment was always a yearly goal. However, in seeing how much unsold stock we had building up in stores despite chain supply issues… it was obvious sustainability was not a focus. The garment composition was mostly plastic. & how the BOH is setup for staff in the UK and the trickle down in how we treat and train staff from head office… it was glaringly obvious what we couldn’t see across continents was in no way going to be the shiny positives we were being fed in training.
this is amazing insight 😭 always so curious about what goes on on the other side of the curtain, i've worked at a small brand before but never a big fast fashion company - did you question what you were being told at the time, or only after you left? and did everyone else think it was greenwashing too?
@@katierobinson i’d say in the first few years sustainability was not part of the everyday jargon or company “values”. so when they took the initial step it really did feel like a step in the right direction; they were one of the first brands to offer a garment recycling initiative country wide, lines of basics and some staple fashion pieces were made of recycled materials, & everyone in the store had to watch sustainability training videos with a big emphasis on denim campaigns which allegedly was a lot kinder to the planet. it felt like they were doing a lot more than most but the heavy focus on training felt a bit like brainwashing and based on remembering facts and statistics that the higher ups would potentially ask when visiting. after a year or so of the sustainability launch, i noticed that behind the scenes things weren’t getting better. we didn’t have basic recycling or food waste bins in the staff room & only one industrial bin outside of our building. there was an endless amount of plastic waste in the processing rooms - three small plastic bags for ONE necklace would amount to HUNDREDS of pieces of plastic in one delivery crate. every year within this company you’re required to give “anonymous” feedback and the waste was something routinely highlighted but never tackled. we’d just get a training refresher.
İ love all the work and research you are putting into your videos! ❤ İ couldn't click fast enough when i saw you posted 😂 Thank you for your high quality content 🙏
Thank you for making this video! I really appreciated seeing the positives and the innovation at the end of the video, it reminds me to be optimistic about the fashion industry. I also plan to keep an eye out for the brands which have made these steps towards being more sustainable and eco friendly
as always, cohesive, informative, interesting. but also: you often add essential information as a text on screen. me and, i believe, many other people enjoy educational videos like podcasts rather than videos, so it'd be nice to have them if not voiced then with more noticeable audio cues.mqybe different audio for quotes and sources, and for your notes? also, I've been interested in your education history and work since i first came across your videos. especially education: what major you were, subjects, what papers you wrote, etc
📖 RESOURCES:
history of supply chains -
>www.cato.org/publications/globalization-fashion
supply chain issues -
>www.thesustainablefashionforum.com/pages/quick-question-why-are-brands-held-responsible-for-paying-garment-workers-a-living-wage
>www.somo.nl/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Hidden-subcontracting.pdf
>silae.medium.com/modern-slavery-in-fashion-supply-chain-1770a0050e8a
>www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/banned-chinese-cotton-found-19-us-retailers-merchandise-study-shows-2024-05-07/#:~:text=NEW%20YORK%2C%20May%207%20(Reuters,to%20forced%20labor%20in%20China.
tiers & scopes -
>trustrace.com/knowledge-hub/unpicking-fashions-supply-chain-tiers-their-risks
>www.thefashionpact.org/area-of-action/lower-impact-production/
global legislation doc -
>docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1t1dDoT0VU295b7pwJZVElyBbLLpoqNy1/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=109572468574904377097&rtpof=true&sd=true
Qr codes -
>www.forbes.com/sites/janehanson/2022/05/25/brands-are-now-communicating-to-consumers-about-sustainability-through-qr-codes--heres-how/
nearshoring -
>www.just-style.com/sponsored/speed-to-market-and-sustainability-the-rise-of-nearshoring-in-central-america/
supply chain investment -
>www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/industries/retail/our%20insights/fashions%20new%20must%20have%20sustainable%20sourcing%20at%20scale/fashions-new-must-have-sustainable-sourcing-at-scale-vf.pdf
This was very informative! While legislation for better transparency is important, I wonder if there's more we can do as consumers to put pressure on brands?
there's quite a few things we can do yes!!! i'll do a community post on this asap because i really should have included it in the video 🫶
didnt know those tiers before. thank you for helping us all be more aware
don't blame you haha, they like to keep consumers in the dark!
thanks for watching!!🫶
I worked at a big fast fashion company for ten years & every year we were required to do a training refresh. It was essentially yearly greenwashing - boasting about ties with the BCI and a big claim about how this company produced denim wasn’t as wasteful as other companies.
As more and more horrors were exposed in the news - part of our training was to watch factories in the supply chain which loved to emphasise how they empower women. This showed one factory in one location. Part of the training also loved to remind us that THEY DO NOT lock fire exits - which they were obviously very conscious of after numerous tragedies.
Sustainability and empowerment was always a yearly goal. However, in seeing how much unsold stock we had building up in stores despite chain supply issues… it was obvious sustainability was not a focus. The garment composition was mostly plastic. & how the BOH is setup for staff in the UK and the trickle down in how we treat and train staff from head office… it was glaringly obvious what we couldn’t see across continents was in no way going to be the shiny positives we were being fed in training.
this is amazing insight 😭 always so curious about what goes on on the other side of the curtain, i've worked at a small brand before but never a big fast fashion company - did you question what you were being told at the time, or only after you left? and did everyone else think it was greenwashing too?
@@katierobinson i’d say in the first few years sustainability was not part of the everyday jargon or company “values”. so when they took the initial step it really did feel like a step in the right direction; they were one of the first brands to offer a garment recycling initiative country wide, lines of basics and some staple fashion pieces were made of recycled materials, & everyone in the store had to watch sustainability training videos with a big emphasis on denim campaigns which allegedly was a lot kinder to the planet. it felt like they were doing a lot more than most but the heavy focus on training felt a bit like brainwashing and based on remembering facts and statistics that the higher ups would potentially ask when visiting.
after a year or so of the sustainability launch, i noticed that behind the scenes things weren’t getting better. we didn’t have basic recycling or food waste bins in the staff room & only one industrial bin outside of our building. there was an endless amount of plastic waste in the processing rooms - three small plastic bags for ONE necklace would amount to HUNDREDS of pieces of plastic in one delivery crate. every year within this company you’re required to give “anonymous” feedback and the waste was something routinely highlighted but never tackled. we’d just get a training refresher.
İ love all the work and research you are putting into your videos! ❤ İ couldn't click fast enough when i saw you posted 😂 Thank you for your high quality content 🙏
aww thanks for watching & glad you liked!!
Just wanted to tell you that your videos are so informative and i appreciate how much work you put into them.
aww this is so nice of you to say, thank you!! 🫶
Thank you for making this video! I really appreciated seeing the positives and the innovation at the end of the video, it reminds me to be optimistic about the fashion industry. I also plan to keep an eye out for the brands which have made these steps towards being more sustainable and eco friendly
thanks for watching!!🫶 i think ending on a positive note is essential, otherwise we'd all be in despair 😅
Love the deep dive in the supply chain! Thanks for your thorough research ❤
thanks for watching! 🫶
So informative! Love the videos !
aw thanks for watching!!!❤
More of this please!
Thank you for this video!
thanks for watching!!🫶
as always, cohesive, informative, interesting.
but also: you often add essential information as a text on screen. me and, i believe, many other people enjoy educational videos like podcasts rather than videos, so it'd be nice to have them if not voiced then with more noticeable audio cues.mqybe different audio for quotes and sources, and for your notes?
also, I've been interested in your education history and work since i first came across your videos. especially education: what major you were, subjects, what papers you wrote, etc