Headlines
- Our involvement in Fashion Revolution Week 2022: actions to increase living wages
- WHO MADE YOUR CLOTHES?
- World Soil Day: how Stanley/Stella takes biodegradability seriously
- The Grocery Shop Project – our way of improving workers' livelihoods
- We are certified : From the field to our network of GOTS certified dealers
Sustainability from the cotton field to the shop floor
Sustainability
Working sustainably is key to Stanley/Stella’s mission and that of many of our partners. Let us introduce you to one of our official dealers, MERCHYOU, who shares our sustainable philosophy and understands the value of GOTS certification.At Stanley/Stella, respect for the planet and its people, guides everything we do. Like our decision to only use organic cotton and be GOTS Certified (Global Organic Textile Standard), or to ensure that the working conditions of the men and women we employ reach the highest standards available (we are members of the Fair Wear Foundation.)
This quest for sustainability is shared by many of our partners. We currently work with a strong European network of specialised dealers who transform our products with the same care for the environment and people that we use to create our garments.
Based in Bratislava, with a sales office in Prague, MERCHYOU offers a variety of textile branding options to music bands, fashion brands, sports teams, bloggers and advertising agencies to name but a few. One of the first European textile printing companies to use GOTS certified inks, they are as eco-conscious in their daily lives as they are in business.
Environmentally minded inside and out
‘I am vegan. I spent a lot of my youth campaigning for social justice and playing in a punk hardcore band’ explains Drahos Sisovic, CEO at MERCHYOU. ‘So when I got the chance to run the print shop in a different way, I just went for it. From the very beginning, we have worked towards being as environmentally friendly as possible in every aspect of our production process.’
‘We care about where our textiles come from, where and how they have been produced and what impact they have on our environment. That is why we offer a wide variety of organic, sweatshop-free and fair trade cotton garments and why we love to work with Stanley/Stella’.
Organic Cotton in the field
More than a passing trend, Drahos argues that promoting organic cotton brings about a win-win situation for everyone. It uses no pesticides, no GMOs, no insecticides and no chemical fertilizers, which means that it poses no health risks to the farmers who pick it, or the villagers who live nearby.
Organic fertilizer also keeps soil healthy, fertile and more resistant to dry conditions. And keeping toxins out of the equation means that waterways and drinking water are kept safe and clean. The whole ecosystem – from people and animals to the earth and the oceans - benefits.
From the cotton field to the shop floor
Once knitted into textile form, organic cotton has further advantages over its non-organic counterpart. Organic cotton feels softer on the skin and is less allergenic too. As Tamsin Cook, Head of Design at Stanley/Stella explains ‘It feels right designing and developing products which have been made responsibly. It just makes sense.’
GOTS Certification
Stanley/Stella has been GOTS certified since 2012, a status that MERCHYOU has shared since 2017. Says Drahos, ‘GOTS certification ensures the organic status of textiles from harvesting of the raw materials through to environmentally and socially responsible manufacturing and printing, all the way down to labelling. It provides credible assurances to our customers, guaranteeing quality and transparency in every step of production.’
While the certification process took MERCHYOU a year, Drahos would definitely recommend other printers to do it. ‘Independent, specially accredited bodies lead you through the entire process. We are a medium-sized company of 50 people - if we can make it through the process, then others can do it too.’
As he sees it, obtaining GOTS certification is the logical conclusion of MERCHYOU’s continuous efforts to work ecologically and ethically, from the cotton field to the shop floor. ‘Once clients realise that a GOTS Certified Stanley/Stella garment mixed with GOTS Certified MERCHYOU print makes for a completely certified GOTS product, they are not only super impressed, but we all come out winners.’
Join us in our mission
At Stanley/Stella, we are continuously working to soften our environmental impact and deepen our social commitments, from the production of our cotton to our finalised, decorated garments. But we can’t do it alone. Why not join us?
You’re a dealer interested in finding out more about GOTS certification
You’re looking for an end-to-end certified printed garment, we’ll match you with a certified decoration specialist in your area.
