The standards of our sustainable brands

We helped develop the sustainability criteria for Get Changed as part of a workshop with representatives of the fair fashion industry from Switzerland and Germany. We largely adopt these criteria when selecting the brands that we include in our range. They apply in particular to the fashion industry. We apply them as far as possible to our entire range.

Why is this so important to us? Because we are not primarily looking for products that we can sell as successfully as possible, but for companies that we can join forces with in order to achieve a common goal: value creation that does not have a destructive effect on nature, the environment and people.

The three pillars of sustainability

Thanks to the defined criteria, the term sustainability suddenly becomes very concrete. Sustainability is not random or freely interpretable, but always ecological, always fair and always transparent.

• Ecology
  A company is ecological if it reduces its impact on the environment as much as possible. The entire production chain is designed to conserve resources and produce as few emissions as possible. Many brands are now looking for ways to return their products to the cycle when they are no longer needed so that they do not become waste.

• Human rights and work ethics
  A sustainable company ensures that all people within the production chain are treated with respect. Workers receive a living wage, are protected from health risks and have reasonable working hours. People in the surrounding area must not be endangered or affected in any way by production.

• Transparency
  A fair and responsible company has nothing to hide. It attaches great importance to transparency, communicates its goals and the implementation of its sustainability strategy openly and provides insight into and information about its business processes.

All the brands we work with are doing their utmost to ensure a sustainable value chain and are therefore doing valuable pioneering work. Close contact with raw material manufacturers, factories and production facilities, workers and craftspeople is an important part of this. Otherwise, it would hardly be possible to constantly monitor compliance with standards, optimize processes or conduct negotiations.

Our brands and products meet these standards

The criteria in the matrix below help us to identify the brands and products that meet the desired sustainability standards. Certifications play an important role in this. They are a valuable tool for repeatedly checking and ensuring that standards are met.

1. The company fulfills at least one criterion in the matrix in the area of ecology. It can provide certificates or other evidence of an ecological footprint.

2. The company meets at least one criterion in the matrix in the area of human and labor rights. If no trustworthy certificates are available, this can be compensated for by transparency. In this case, an individual check is necessary.

3. The company provides copies of all relevant certificates or other documents that prove that the company produces according to high social and ecological criteria.

4. Products meet at least 70% of the sustainability criteria in the matrix.

Matrix

Ecological and social production criteria

* The percentage of certified material is decisive. In the case of "blended" material, at least 70% should be certified.

** The burden of proof lies with the manufacturer. Low is to be seen in comparison with organic cotton.

Note: GOTS and IVN certifications at garment level (3rd garment) always automatically mean certification of the preliminary levels (1st and 2nd). In the case of GOTS and IVN, minimum social standards are also checked. However, these certifications work less systematically on the implementation of living wages. For this reason, both are only listed in the table as ecological certificates in the matrix.

Would you like to know which sustainability criteria we use to label the products in our online store?

Criteria for sustainable products