Despite all of the emphasis the fashion industry has been placing on transparency lately, according to a recent review by the non-profit, Fashion Revolution, things are still a hot, hot mess.
As reported by Business of Fashion, Fashion Revolution’s annual transparency scorecard is graded on a 250-point scale that’s “based on [a company’s] disclosure of social and environmental policies, as well as information about how responsibility for these are governed within the business, who their suppliers are and whether they provide information about the impact of their sustainability initiatives.”
After reviewing 200 major brands and retailers, the non-profit gave “an average rating of 21 percent,” a number that is better than previous years but still in no way commendable.
Of course, 21 percent is the average number, which means some companies are doing better (and others, worse). Adidas was the highest-scoring brand overall, earning a 64 percent rating, while Reebok, Patagonia, Esprit, and H&M all finished above 60 percent as well.
On the other end of things, “five brands scored no points at all,” a list that “includes the namesake brand of Tom Ford, who was recently named the new head of the Council of Fashion Designers of America.”
Per the report, “only three brands publish any information about incidents of gender-based violations in their supply chain and only around a third publish annual gender pay gap data.” Furthermore, a little more than half of the brands surveyed publish their carbon footprint and less than a fourth disclose emissions along supply chains.
“The fashion industry still operates in an opaque manner, which is a huge barrier to change,” said a founder of the Fashion Revolution movement. “Exploitation thrives in hidden places.”
You can read more about it at Business of Fashion.
