Who makes our clothes? Where are they sourced and produced? And, most importantly, under which circumstances? To us, ethical production and transparency aren’t things we’ve started doing recently because the consumer demands us to. They are - and always have been - in our DNA. Why? Simple. Everyone deserves to know where their clothes come from. Today, we go into more detail about supplier relations and how we work on this as a brand.

We always give our suppliers full credits

It’s Fashion Revolution Week. An important week in which the entire sustainable fashion industry focuses on brands to become more transparent about their supply chain. You can find a complete list of all of our suppliers here. It’s essential for us to mention them where we can; we are proud to work with them, and we have nothing to hide. You can find out, for example, on every product page of our webshop. We always give them the credit they deserve. Not many people know that it’s mostly the factories that make the innovations when a new material or concept enters the market. They are the ones with the knowledge, craftsmanship and innovation. Kuyichi values them a lot, and we would never take sole credit for the awesome work that they're doing.

- The power is in the chain -

We have our own Responsible Business Conduct

With all our suppliers, we work under our Responsible Business Conduct, describing everything we require from factories – from fair labour standards and certifications to safe chemical usage and transparency. This document is based on, amongst others, international regulations by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It also includes the Code of Labour Practices of the Fair Wear Foundation. Every single supplier we work with has signed this document and agrees with these requirements.

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We work with (GOTS) certified factories

Kuyichi only works with certified factories with one or multiple sustainability certificates and fair labour practices. For instance, we mainly work with GOTS-certified factories. The good thing with GOTS is that it doesn’t only say something about the (GOTS-certified) materials that we’re using. It also sets other social and environmental requirements like safe working conditions, chemical restrictions and water treatment. But of course, we do not only rely on this sole certification. We take responsibility for how and where our products are made, but we also acknowledge that positive change needs effort. That is why our approach is always focused on improvement over time.

We visit and audit suppliers regularly

As told, certifications are essential to us. But we do more. We visit our factories regularly - the images in this blog are also made during one of our visits. We also rely on audits of our suppliers. In these audits, the supplier is checked by an independent third party on different aspects, from wages and working hours to freedom of association. For instance, audits from Fair Wear Foundation, Sedex and BSCI, organisations that also pay visits to factories where we produce. However, we also acknowledge that audits are very time-consuming for the supplier. That’s why we also ask our suppliers to share their available audit reports. With the outcome of these reports, we start conversations with our suppliers to see how we can jointly improve conditions. Improvement is a continuous process, after all.

Gender equality is important to us

Gender is a very important topic for us. We’re proud to work with many factories that have women in higher positions, sometimes even as owners. For example, many of our direct contacts in factories are women, meaning they have higher responsibilities. Our factory numbers show that most of our factories' division between men and women is relatively equal. Also, women hold all sorts of functions - not just in the production line, which is mostly the case. They're able to climb up to higher positions in the factory as well.

It's crucial for us to be open about how and with who we work. Every consumer deserves to be able to make conscious choices; therefore, brands need to be transparent. That is why we keep sharing about our processes, projects and opinion. Only an informed consumer can make a conscious choice.