Six years ago on 24th April, the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh collapsed, killing 1,138 people and injuring 2,500 making it the fourth largest industrial disaster in history. That is when The Fashion Revolution was born.
Since the Fashion Revolution began things are changing as more brands are being open about where their clothes are made, manufacturers are making their factories safer and more producers are being seen and heard but there is still more voices to be heard and more factory workers to be paid fairly and looked after.
This year from 22nd -28th April 2019 is Fashion Revolution Week so get involved with this global movement and ask your favourite clothing brands #whomademyclothes?
Cotton being handpicked in Tanzania, Africa.
At Tommy and Lottie we really believe in the Fashion Revolution as transparency is so important and how well people are treated, paid and looked after in any industry. We want to know where our fabrics and materials come from, how the cotton is grown and produced, who makes it and how well they are looked after.
Did you know? Africa grows a large percentage of cotton but it is exported out of the country taking with it employment and jobs. Our t shirts for an example are made in Tanzania, Africa and are ethical and sustainable in the way they are made.
Why & How?
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The cotton crop is grown near to the factory off the shores of Lake Victoria. The crop is taken to a local factory where the cotton is vertically produced so all of the processes that the cotton has to go through to become a tshirt is done in one place making the carbon footprint of our tees far lower than most.
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The people who live in the local communities are then given jobs and taught skills at the factory so they are able to take themselves and their families out of poverty. They are well looked after too, paid over the minimum wage, have no forced labour or unfair overtime, have a clean, healthy, safe working conditions, one hot nutritious subsidised meal a day and no child labour.
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The factory has the SA8000 certification which is the most stringent social audits and covers every stage of manufacturing and the cotton is certified oeko-tex 100 including class 1 for babywear which means the cotton contains no harmful chemicals or dyes so safe for babies skin.
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We only use embroidery or screen print by using water based, vegan friendly inks for our printing processes. No plastic transfers are used on any of our garments.
