Patrick Woodyard
The deeper we dig, the more we see how broken the fashion industry is today. But there is hope, even for the pragmatists. More and more brands and manufacturers are focusing on sustainability practices, striving to help the fashion industry realize its hidden potential as a positive force for society. Since the beginning of the sustainability movement, we at Nisolo have been proud to fight alongside similar organizations. Here, we tell you a bit about the “why” behind Nisolo and where it all began.
Sudden Awakening
As an undergraduate, I studied international economics and business and spent a fair amount of time in developing countries learning about the ways international business can impact the world in very positive or very negative ways. Shortly after graduating, I moved to Peru to take a job in microfinance with the goal of helping women grow their small businesses. Little did I know at the time, my job took me to the shoemaking heartland of Peru, where I soon discovered the fascinating, centuries-old art of shoemaking. I was blown away by the skills on display, but I was outraged to learn that the makers I met faced terrible working conditions and unfair compensation.
I knew things could change, and saw great potential for me to make a difference in this community by starting Nisolo. I quickly learned something that most consumers (blinded by the allure of low prices) are completely unaware of today: the explosive growth of the global fashion industry, while good for some, has been deeply unfair to most others. In fact, low wages and poor working conditions are rampant, with an estimated 95% of fashion industry workers today being paid less than the minimum wage, enough to meet their most basic needs.
The planet isn’t doing much better either, with exorbitant water usage, irresponsible waste disposal, the proliferation of non-biodegradable man-made fibers like polyester, and dirty carbon emissions from coal-fired factories in the developing world. In fact, the fashion industry is estimated to be one of the top five most polluting industries in the world, emitting more carbon than international aviation and shipping combined.
A better way
On the contrary, we founded Nisolo as a brand that cares for the planet and the people in our supply chain as much as the end consumer. Ultimately, our goal is to play our part in driving the fashion industry in a more sustainable direction. And as a sustainability-focused brand, we know we are far from perfect.
We recently raised the bar on transparency by launching the Nisolo Sustainability Facts Label to hold ourselves more accountable in the hopes of inspiring the industry to do the same. Leveraging research from sustainability experts around the world, we created the label to help consumers make better choices and inspire brands like ours to do more with sustainability. We took into account everything from B Corp, Leather Working Group, Climate Neutral, Fair Trade USA, Higg Index, FLA, SA8000, Textile Exchange, Good On You and Re/Make to ensure our label reflects what experts generally consider most important to a sustainable approach.
With 10 categories and 200 publicly accessible data points scored across people and planet, the Sustainability Facts label is one of the most comprehensive and easy-to-understand assessment tools the fashion industry has ever seen. Each Nisolo product now comes with the label and a QR code that links directly to the 200 data points scored for that specific product across people and planet.
Empowering the Future
Remembering that business can have a very negative or positive impact on the world, our motivation comes not only from how bad our industry has become, but also from the opportunities that lie ahead. This is an industry that employs hundreds of millions of the world’s poorest people. What would the world be like for future generations in these communities if we guaranteed decent treatment and fair opportunities for all producers, instead of systematically trapping people in a never-ending cycle of poverty? I have seen firsthand the impact this has had on the future of our shoemakers and their children. We want this to happen all over the world.
As consumers, we must remember that we hold great power through our spending. We all want a better industry and a better world. That’s why we encourage each other to dig deep into the supply chains of our favorite brands. If brands aren’t showing visible movement in the right direction, let’s demand more transparency about where they’re missing.
After all, the journey to sustainability is a marathon, not a sprint, and we believe that by working together, we can bring about significant change in the fashion industry in our lifetime.
