June 24, 2021

ETHICS & SUSTAINABILITY

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Band of Boys + The Girl Club is a design company, where our aim is to create well-crafted items that will be loved and used for a long time. We aren’t interested in selling loads of stuff, we want anyone who invests in a Band of Boys + The Girl Club product to believe in buying less but buying quality pieces that they know their minis will love and want to wear over and over. We are committed to being honest and taking responsibility for operating a business and maintaining a supply chain that respects the planet as well as those living on it. Our goal is to continuously improve and to treat everyone who interacts with our business with respect.

Before that cool new outfit arrived on your doorstep, it was harvested, spun, dyed, cut, assembled and packed by many hands. Consider that everyone in this chain deserves to make a fair wage, so it should be no surprise that our prices aren't at the bottom end of the market. Fast fashion has taken this industry by storm this past decade or so, and maybe our wallets have thanked us, but our environment and the workers in this industry have been left to suffer. It can be hard to compete with these retailers who price things as cheaply as single use items, but here's why we actually don't even try.

We are all about slow and sustainable fashion, and this means that we offer pieces that will still be cool and wearable well after the season is over. We create clothing that is versatile in design with fabrics that are comfortable so that they will be worn over and over again. Each piece is created with integrity and kindness from the highest-quality materials we can source, while still trying to make our garments affordable. We take a considered approach to creativity, reflecting on how each piece might be worn, layered and styled before adding it in to our range - we take a mindful and slow approach to design, producing only what is needed.

RESPECT FOR PEOPLE

The people we interact with are the most important part of our business, whether that be our employees, customers or suppliers. We have the utmost respect for everyone who contributes to Band of Boys + The Girl Club and are committed to ensuring our partnerships are mutually beneficial.

Our goal is to make sure that all the people who contribute to our collections are paid fairly and treated with respect. To achieve this, we are working in continuous partnership with our suppliers to understand their social responsibility practices and how we can work together in the future on improving not only the big things, but the small things too.

We are proud of the fact that since this little family-owned business started from a kitchen table, we have been able to grow our team and provide jobs to other Kiwis within a creative industry and we’ve worked hard to create a respectful and supportive culture which allows our staff to bring their real selves to work.

We care about our community and support local charities where we can. We donate each year to the Middlemore Foundation through Jammies in June, and we love to support school fundraisers.

RESPONSIBLE ETHICAL SOURCING

We take great care in the selection of our factory partners, and we keep working conditions and ethical practices a forefront priority when we make a decision to take on a new partner. We aim to build long-term strong personal relationships with our factory owners to ensure their factory's integrity and we visit our friends as often as we can, while also taking into consideration the impact of our international travel on the environment. We are committed to respecting and valuing the rights of workers in all countries and believe in the right to fair and safe workplace conditions.

We are dedicated to quality manufacturing, we don't look for the cheapest suppliers, we choose to partner with factories who are committed to making high quality garments and who are interested in working with us on continuous improvement; so, you know that all of your Band of Boys + The Girl Club pieces will last you through a number of seasons.

All of our suppliers are people who we love working with and they are the perfect partners to help us deliver a high-quality product in small boutique runs with excellent attention to detail. They support us and really care about our business and want to help us achieve our goals. They maintain strong labour rights records and are committed to supporting us in our quest to continuously make improvements to the positive impact we have on our planet.

SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS

We care for our environment so we use sustainable materials where we can:

- FABRICATIONS

We are conscious that our garments are mostly made from cotton which does take a lot of natural resources to produce. We are committed to working with our suppliers to use more recycled cotton where we can but are very conscious as a business about maintaining a price point that works for our customers. We are starting to work with more organic cotton, so watch this space. Where our products are made from other materials, we are finding the most eco-friendly options and continuing our journey to have a lighter impact on our planet. We do make sure that we only produce what we need in small runs with quality to last so that our product doesn’t end up in landfill.

- SINGLE USE BAGS

We work with our suppliers to limit the use of individual polybags in our products journey to our warehouse. Where our garments need protection on their journey, we use biodegradable bags to ensure their integrity is maintained. Some of our partners still have limitations, on which we are working together with them to find a positive solution as soon as we can.

- SWING TAGS, HANG TAGS + OTHER PACKAGING

All of our products are tagged or packaged in one way or another. We take care to use the most sustainable materials we can, and we constantly consider what is needed and what elements can be removed. Our swing tags are made from cardboard and are attached to the garments with a cotton string and safety pin. We are working towards eliminating the safety pin altogether – this may seem like a small change, but these are numerous and account for a substantial amount over a year. Our hang tags and other product packaging is all made from cardboard which is recyclable.

- COAT HANGERS

Where our retailers require us to provide coat hangers, we source recyclable cardboard hangers that can also be reused. In our showroom we have invested in good quality hangers and racks that we can use over and over.

- COURIER BAGS

We have sourced and are using our own branded recyclable Kraft Paper bags for the majority of orders that leave our warehouse. When needed, we also use 100% compostable courier bags for both local and international shipments. For any larger shipments, we use cardboard boxes that are reusable and recyclable.

- CARTON TAPE

We are working on sourcing kraft paper tape to seal all of our cartons going forward. This may seem like a small element, but we are committed to looking at every material we use in our business and becoming more and more conscious of our impact, big and small.

RESPONSIBLE USE

- OLD STOCK, SAMPLES + SECONDS

As we produce only what we need it means we don’t end up with much excess stock. We ensure that in the case that our forecasting didn’t quite go to plan, and with all of our samples and seconds we have creative plans in place to get this product out to market quickly, rather than sitting on it for years and then dumping it in to landfill.

- STAY LOCAL

Our staff all live locally so that we aren’t contributing to traffic congestion or car emissions daily. While we love visiting our customers and suppliers, we ensure we do this responsibly and not in an excessive way.

OUR COMMITMENTS

We are proud to say we are committed to being ethical, sustainable and honest. We take responsibility for operating a business that respects the planet as well as those living on it. Ethics and sustainability are close to our heart and every day we are looking at new ways to better our business and one way we hold ourselves accountable are our commitments to you and our brands.