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7 Sweatshop-Free Brands to Ring in the New Year with

bySam Falb
January 2, 2017

As 21st century individuals one and all, we live in the era of fast fashion. Clothes fly off of store racks week after week, season after season, only to be quickly replaced with the next hottest trend items and the “next best thing”. Blouses with funky prints, ripped jeans in just the right shade of blue, leather jackets with perfect sheen, and every other article of clothing under the sun can be found at an affordable price, just when you want, almost wherever you want. While those prices and quality may seem like a dream come true, for the countless laboring to make your newest pair of shoes and the hundreds of thousands of identical pairs that came with it, those shoes were a nightmare.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, “a sweatshop is any factory that violates more than one of the fundamental U.S. labor laws, which include paying a minimum wage and keeping a time card, paying overtime, and paying on time.” And on much of the world stage, these conditions and violations are similar, if not the same. In Bangladesh, unregulated factories and their overseers thrive on working children with only half-a-day’s rest per week, while in the Philippines just two years ago, 72 died from a raging blaze at a footwear factory in Manila, with workers trapped inside without fire-safety training, desperately searching for one of the few exits.

The following stores create 100% of their merchandise with accordance to the labor laws and codes of their relevant nation, as well as support their workers sufficiently. In the coming year, please attempt to find education on this ever-continuing conflict, whether it’s through a documentary, guide or elsewhere, and remember to try to turn to a sweatshop-free establishment when you can.

#1: Everlane

Everlane, sourced out of several nations including the US, China, and Spain, evaluates and assesses each factory they work in before setting up shop, even taking journalists with them on factory tours. The brand also hosts a page on their website with information about each factory they operate worldwide. One can find anything from leather bags and fashionable dresses, to comfy sweaters and warm winter gloves on their site. The store often offers sales, and also holds a unique trait: allowing the consumer to choose their price, depending on if they would like to donate to the brand or not.

#2: Birdsong London

Birdsong London is a clothing company founded on feminism, pulling ethical brand names from across the world and creating a sleek, trendy line of clothing and jewelry on their website. The store offers anything slip dresses, hand-knitted sweaters, and even flowers, with a special twist. Many items are created by groups in challenged regions as well as from well-to-do companies, and Birdsong promises to give back 50-85 percent of the profit on given items back to the individuals who had originally sewn them.

#3: American Apparel

This brand is especially unique to the other brands on this list, as it will in less than two years be out of business. Due to two bankruptcy scares in the past couple years with little success from a turnaround strategy and frequent sales and style updates, the once strong clothing manufacturer housed out of Los Angeles will close. For the buyer, this is a bittersweet occurrence in more ways than one. While store shelves and online stock are quickly falling to eager shoppers, consumers can still now go onto the American Apparel site and choose once expensive, high-quality items for much lower costs. Recommended are the brand’s famed jeans, as well as one of their classic sweaters, all now 40% with the code “TAKE40”.

#4: New Balance

New Balance is well known for the variety of shoes it brings to the table, but is lesser known for the more than 4 million pairs of athletic footwear created and assembled in the USA each year. Sports sneakers, recreational shoes, and sandals are just a few of the offerings one can find on the brand’s expansive site. With a new line of sport watches and customizable sneakers to boot, why turn elsewhere for affordable, sweatshop-free shoes? Use the store locator to find a New Balance near you, and take advantage of their semi-annual sale.

#5: Patagonia

On the header of Patagonia’s site, one can easily find the company’s daring mission statement: “Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.” And so far, they seem to be doing just that. The business pledges on their site to donate time, service, and at least 1% of their sales to hundreds of grassroots environmental groups around the world each year. While on the expensive end of the casual-wear spectrum, Patagonia can be recognized for extremely durable winter coats and jackets, well-insulated sweaters and alpine pants, and bright colors and unique designs. Prices range from about $30 to about $900, with many deals and sales to be found throughout the year.

#6: People Tree

Based in Great Britain, this outfitter chooses free-trade resources for all their sustainable clothing and accessories. You can even track the origin of your purchase through tools on their site. While also on the more expensive end, the “Up To Half Price” sale has just started, and now may be the time to take action and snag some of the reasonably priced tee shirts, jumpers, and dresses that can be found.

#7: Reformation

Reformation was created in 2009 by Yael Aflalo, with the mission to lead and inspire a sustainable way to be fashionable. Since then, the store has grown and prospered through the myriad of fashion seasons that have followed, producing bright colored tops and warm sweaters, as well as purses and sunglasses sourced from the company’s Los Angeles factory, packed with sustainable fabrics and efficient, clean business practices that still get the job done well. Advertising free worldwide shipping, seasonal lookbooks, and regular stock updates, The Reformation is launching into 2017 strong.

Whether you use this resource or others, make it a new year’s resolution to find a way, no matter how small, to walk away from the fast fashion world sometime in 2017. Millions around the world are affected, whether they know it or not, by the harsh business practices and working conditions that touch too many lives, and the products and gizmos that pop up on shelves season after season. Here’s to a sustainable, safe, and green new year. Happy shopping!

 

Author
Sam Falb
Sam Falb is a 17 year old, Maryland-based writer with a passion for environmental activism and a love of nature. He's been writing for as long as he can remember and is excited to see where journalism will take him in the future.
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