Where to Find Fair Trade and Ethically-Sourced Clothing

As of 2023: If you’re hunting for eco-friendly clothes to wear to work, check out major brands like Boden, Eileen Fisher, H&M Conscious, Karen Kane, L.K. Bennett, Theory, Hobbs, and Ted Baker — Nordstrom also has a big section devoted to sustainable style! You can also check out smaller eco-friendly workwear brands like Aday, Amour Vert, Cuyana, Everlane, Emerson Fry, Grana, Reformation and Wallis Evera.

Wondering where to find eco-friendly suits for women? H&M has affordable options in their Conscious line. Theory has a number of options, and NET-A-PORTER has some expensive options like Another Tomorrow in their NET SUSTAIN section.

In our first post in our ethical shopping series, we rounded up several clothing brands made in the United States, mostly startups and small and/or independent labels, and in part two, we shared a list of mainstream, more widely available workwear brands that sell clothing made in North America or Europe. Today we’re looking at clothing that’s fair trade certified, as well as clothing not officially considered fair trade but produced more responsibly or ethically than the average brand.

Of course, when a brand makes admirable claims like those, we as shoppers simply have to take their word for it — but I would rather give my business to a company that states that it’s committed to ethical labor practices and fair trade than to one who doesn’t say a word about its products’ origins or production. (Pictured: Brooks Brothers Stretch Wool Sheath Dress, $158.)

Fair trade certification is more complicated than you might think; there’s more than one certifying organization, and each has a slightly different definition of the term “fair trade.” It’s also possible that we may not be doing as much good as we think by buying these products.

Ndongo Sylla, a former Fairtrade International employee with a PhD in developmental economics, wrote a book called The Fair Trade Scandal: Marketing Poverty to Benefit the Rich (excerpt here in The Guardian). In The Economist‘s book review, the reviewer called it “an arduous read” but wrote, “It is hard to dispute [Sylla’s] conclusion that, so far, the fair-trade labelling movement has been more about easing consciences in rich countries than making serious inroads into poverty in the developing world.” (Sigh.)

That said, here are several brands that engage in fair trade:

Fair Trade Fashion for Work

• Indigenous: Certified as a B Corporation, this California-based company’s clothing — made solely from natural fibers and with environmentally-friendly dyes — is produced through fair trade in South America. The styles are mostly suited to business casual and casual/creative dress codes.
• Nomads Clothing: A member of the Ethical Fashion Forum and the British Association of Fair Trade Shops, this UK company’s offerings are produced in line with fair trade policies. Much of the clothing, which is made from organic cotton and colored with eco-friendly dyes, is work-appropriate, although most of it would be best for business casual and casual/creative offices.
• Noonday Collection: A member of the Fair Trade Federation, this company sources its products from 29 artisan businesses in 12 countries. It offers jewelry, scarves, and bags, some of which are office-appropriate.
• Ten Thousand Villages: The only nonprofit organization on our list, Ten Thousand Villages — which was founded in 1946 — has hundreds of brick-and-mortar stores as well as an online storefront. A member of the World Fair Trade Organization, the company holds fair trade partnerships with artisans around the world and is committed to environmentally-friendly practices. It offers jewelry (tending toward statement pieces) and accessories (as well as gifts and home items).

Imported But Ethically-Made Clothing (may not be “fair trade”)

• Accompany: The website for this Certified B Corporation tells customers that its mission is to “ensure our merchandise meets the standards in at least one of these three key areas” — the three being “artisan made,” “fair trade,” and “philanthropic.” Much of Accompany’s offerings are too casual for the office, but there are some workwear possibilities, including some jewelry and scarves.
• Brooks Brothers: Brooks Brothers holds its producers to strict rules that are explained in detail on its website, and it only deals with direct suppliers that meet its Code of Conduct. (Check out our post, “How to Build a Work Wardrobe at… Brooks Brothers.”)
• Ethica: This NYC company’s website offers clothing and beauty products from ethically-produced, environmentally-friendly brands and lets you shop by category: sustainable, made in the U.S.A., trade not aid, handcrafted, and vegan. (Its detailed explanations for each category are here.) Much of the clothing isn’t work-appropriate, but many of the shoes and bags are.
• Naja: Naja’s lingerie (in seven nude-for-you shades), activewear, and swimwear are made by a factory that employs single mothers and women heads of households who are paid above-market wages and provided health benefits and child education stipends. Each purchase comes with a lingerie the women’s continuing education. The company includes some fabrics made from recycled plastic bottles and uses digital fabric printing that drastically reduces water waste.
• Reformation: Reformation is all about celebrating bodies — and preserving the earth — with responsive, super-sustainable designs. This means sketches that come to life in a month, a meticulous approach to determining fit, eco-friendly buildings and, of course, a collection of need-now silhouettes made from ethically sourced materials, rescued deadstock fabrics, and repurposed vintage clothing. (Also available at Nordstrom!)
• Raven + Lily: A Certified B Corporation, Raven + Lily is a member of the Fair Trade Federation and Ethical Fashion Forum and sells clothing, accessories, and home items. The company pays fair-trade wages to 1,500 at-risk women in 10 countries around the world (for example, women who are human trafficking survivors or who are HIV-positive), and part of their profits fund microloans to woman entrepreneurs. They use recycled and repurposed materials.
  Most of the clothing is appropriate for business casual offices.
• St. John: St. John’s corporate responsibility page states that its business partners are monitored for humane and ethical business practices and compliance with labor and environmental laws as well as adherence to the company’s own strict code of conduct. The company’s auditors also look for risks of human trafficking, forced labor, and child labor
• Victoria Road: Victoria Road’s fair trade workshop in Pakistan pays employees living wages and provides many benefits, from paid holidays and overtime to a bike purchasing program and gifts at Ramadan. The company sources from local ethical suppliers and it favors women entrepreneurs for its partners. Victoria Road has a zero-waste workshop policy and uses recycled or reused materials in its packaging. Some of its clothing would work in casual or business casual offices, and the site also offers bags, scarves, and jewelry.

Resources

• The app Good on You (iPhone and Android) gives ethical brand ratings for 1,000+ fashion brands. (Note that you must create an account.)
• You can see which companies are members of the Ethical Trade Initiative (and find out what that entails) on their website. A few examples are ASOS, Boden, Burberry, Gap, H&M, Hobbs, and Reiss. That’s not a guarantee that you can trust all of the companies’ clothing is ethically made, but at least you’ll know they’re working on it.
• Fair Trade sites: Fair Trade USA, Fair Trade International, Fair Trade Federation. You can also search Nordstrom specifically for “fair trade” items (just don’t expect to find any workwear).

Is it important to you to buy fair trade clothing, chocolate, coffee, or other items? How much does it matter to you where and how the things you buy are made? 

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.