Playing Fair
Blue over unfair trade practices, four former Lands’ End-ers last year embarked on a mission to rewrite apparel sourcing rules with their startup, Fair Indigo. Bill Bass and his colleagues explain how they’ve fared so far.
“Most factory workers are unhappy people,” Bass says. “When we visit factories to explore sourcing, we tell the factory owners that we want to pay their workers extra.” Fair trade is nothing new in other industries, such as coffee, in which Starbucks regularly sources its beans from fair trade vendors. Even McDonald’s has begun to follow suit with its “premium” coffee. But in the U.S. apparel market, fair trade is virtually nonexistent. In some other countries, such as the United Kingdom, some marketers, such as Warrington, England-based Marks & Spencer, have started carrying fair trade-manufactured clothing.
- Companies:
- Millard Group Inc.
- Quad/Graphics
Related Content
Comments
