18th-24th April marks the second annual Fashion Revolution Week. Organised by Carry Somers and Orsola de Castro of Fashion Revolution, it aims to bring together people across 84 countries to demand a fairer and more transparent garment industry. The event kicked off on Monday with Fashion Question Time at the Houses of Parliament, which I was honoured to attend.
Although things have come a long way during the past few years, one of the key points that came out of the discussion was that many of the issues faced by the industry and its workers could be solved with more transparent supply chains. The report on the first round of Modern Slavery Act statements was also fairly damning, with many companies reporting only limited activity to prevent unethical practices within their supply chains.
Results from the Fashion Transparency Index report were announced as part of Fashion Revolution Week. Its research shows that the average transparency score of the 40 global brands surveyed was just 42%, with only 3 brands sitting above 70%. This demonstrates a huge potential for improvement to be made across many areas including auditing, reporting, tracking, traceability and governance. By striving to reform areas which are lacking, businesses can work together towards a more sustainable, ethical and transparent garment industry.
“Transparency means companies know who makes their products – from who stitched them right through to who dyed the fabric and who farmed the cotton. When companies are working in a transparent way, this also implies openness, communication and accountability across the supply chain and with the public too.”
Fashion Transparency Index, April 2016.
Segura works with some of the UK’s leading retailers and brands to help address these issues and gain better visibility of their supply chains. Customers are able to map their full supply network and see exactly what each supplier provides. Realtime updates on every order’s progress, from the sourcing of materials right up to delivery, ensures visibility and full accountability across even the most complex of supply networks.
The ability to trace the journey of every component and order throughout a business’ supply network is the first step towards a transparent garment industry, allowing brands to start taking effective steps towards change.
