Nowadays one of the most important factors when buying clothes, is the country of origin. Generally, people are willing to pay significantly more for products that were manufactured in Europe and North America, rather than Asia and Africa. This is based on the wages paid in the country, but how could you evaluate which origin is considered good or not?
In regards to fashion, there are many factors to be considered when evaluating the country of origin. Such as the difference between slow fashion and fast fashion. Most fast fashion brands exploit the low wages culture in third world countries, however, slow fashion brands as DURIBLE embrace the opportunity of improving the situation in these countries.
DURIBLE contributes to the working conditions of the employees manufacturing and hand sowing our apparel. For each item sold, €2 are donated to the Fair Wear Foundation. This charity improves working conditions globally, as well as that they actively try to increase living wages, but also support working empowerment. By purchasing your apparel from DURIBLE, you actively participate in improving working conditions for the employees in the manufacturing region, which is Bangladesh.
Bangladesh has gotten a terrible reputation for its working conditions, however, due to the input of the Fair Wear Foundation, the conditions have significantly improved. The Fair Wear Foundation has representatives in 229 out of 7000 factories in Bangladesh.
The Fair Wear Foundation stated that they strive to provide all garment workers their rightfully owned safety and that they want to realise properly paid employment for all garment workers in all manufacturing regions and factories globally.
COVID-19 has impacted daily lives globally, and the lives of the garment workers have not stayed unaffected. Millions of male and female garment workers are left jobless, as all factories have been shut down due to safety precautions. In this pandemic, it would be highly irresponsible to let these lives be at risk whilst working. However, it can’t be forgotten that these people are now left without the resources to support their families, as per the Fair Wear Foundation.
This situation proves the negative impact of boycotting products made in third world countries. Garments are the country’s largest export sector, and globally Bangladesh is the second-largest exporter of these after China. By boycotting products from this region, millions of jobs will disappear and families won’t have the recourses to provide any basic needs to themselves and their families. If the garment production in Bangladesh would be shut down, millions of people would be left being unable to afford basic human needs such as nourishment, housing or medical help.
It can’t be denied that a large part of the production is not safe for the garment workers, however, instead of making a sudden change which will cost thousands of lives, a solution can be implemented which will result in, for example, better working conditions. The Fair Wear Foundation stated that the garment industry in Bangladesh is making strides towards becoming a more sustainable market for investment and sourcing with improved governmental policies, better working conditions, adoption of energy-efficient production processes and more. The Fair Wear Foundation has been working on improving building and fire safety as well as gender-based violence since 2007.
As a consumer, it is important to research the country of origin in order to prevent purchasing apparel from fast fashion brands, as unacceptable working conditions are still a global problem. However, by supporting the Fair Wear Foundation and brands with socially and ethically responsible supply chains, you can actively contribute to a third world country and its inhabitants, when purchasing products from slow fashion brands whose manufacturing takes place in factories, whose employees are treated rightfully. Conclusively, together we can make a global change by supporting local slow fashion brands like DURIBLE.
I can really appreciate the transparancy and explanation of why the production in these countries has pros and cons. Thank you for this insight!
Reading this post I can clearly see how and to whom the donation is being done, I am more than happy with my choice to purchase this T-shirt, and with this also help the garment workers abroad.
Very edifying! Most people are unaware of the despicable working conditions under which these workers have to succumb to, how women and children especially, risk their lives to make our clothes. That is one of the reasons why people reach out to fast fashion and ignore the negative impacts that this has on the environment and on the people who make these clothes. A change of behaviour could enormously help the garment producers and give them a better life. With educative post like this, many people will learn of the importance of ethical living and support the Fair wear foundation to improve working conditions like DURIBLE is already doing.