Our Approach
We are building a modern brand.
Vivienne Westwood is one of the last independent global fashion
houses in the world and we exist to produce more than clothes and
accessories.
We use our collections, collaborations and catwalk shows as a platform
to capture the imagination, promote innovative design and campaign
for protecting life on Mother Earth, Gaia.
We strive to make our clothes with greater care, promote Arts &
Culture and always use our voice to mobilise people around Climate
Change and Human Rights.
Our approach is based on three areas of work:
QUALITY V QUANTITY
GAIA
ARTS & CULTURE
QUALITY V QUANTITY
We use our brand voice to raise awareness of the environmental impact of
overconsumption, urging people to buy less and buy better quality clothes while
creating collections that meet this standard.
We strive to make quality products that respect people and the planet with every
design decision by focusing on four key areas; Craft and Heritage, People Power,
Materials & Processing and Reimagining Waste.
CRAFT AND HERITAGE
We are a longtime champion of craftsmanship and heritage.
Traditional British textiles and Savile Row tailoring traditions have informed and
influenced Vivienne’s work since the 1980’s. Vivienne has always partnered with
local industries and artisans as well as, later in her career, bigger Italian factories.
Today, we are proud to say that we still work with many small, highly skilled
independent businesses such as Harris Tweed and Lochcarron of Scotland. Together
over the last 30 years, we have created iconic products that are recognised globally
as a sign of durable quality and style.
PEOPLE POWER
We respect the Human Rights of the people who make our brand what it is today;
our supply chain workers, our heritage partners, our employees, our customers
and our wider public.
We want to be a responsible employer who provides desirable jobs and fair wages,
develops talent and skills, strengthens worker’s voices and lends support for
vulnerable groups.
We are committed to working with partners that share our values and aim to be
accountable for the labour conditions under which our products are manufactured,
to companies we do business with, to consumers, and in general to the society that
we are part of.
We have adopted a Code of Labour Practice and Modern Slavery Policy; within which
we are very clear on the standards that we hold ourselves and our suppliers to.
Our Code of Labour Practice is based on the conventions of the International Labour
Organisation (ILO). Our Modern Slavery Statement sets out steps we are taking to
ensure slavery and human trafficking is not taking place in our supply chain and our
own business.
We are a member of Sedex, a collaborative platform for sharing responsible sourcing
data on supply chains. Our membership helps us to manage our performance around
labour standards and supply chain monitoring, health & safety and the environment.
MATERIALS AND PROCESSING
We are committed to always enhancing our efforts in sourcing raw materials with
minimal social and environmental impact.
We embrace opportunities to use sustainable fibres and fabrics, low impact dyeing
and processing and work with our suppliers to improve our performance with every
collection. Highlights include:
ANIMAL WELFARE: We are committed to upholding the highest animal welfare
standards in our raw material supply chain, based on the on the internationally
recognised ‘Five Freedoms’ for animal welfare.
BLENDED FIBRES: We try to avoid blended fibres and have actively reduced our use
of blended fibres as they are difficult to recycle to a high value.
CERTIFICATIONS: We work with the following certifications and standards for fibre
and textile sourcing; Soil Association, Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), Oeko-
Tex 100 and FSC (Forestry Stewardship Council).
COTTON: 96% of the cotton jersey we currently produce is made from certified organic yarns.
We are working to increase this to 100%. We are committed to using organic cotton
shirting made from certified organic yarns in 80% of our production by 2020.
DYEING: We give preference to low impact dyeing and finishing techniques and use
GOTS certified dyeing and processing where possible, in our silk supply chain for example.
EXOTIC SKINS: We do not permit the use of exotic skins in our products.
FABRIC INNOVATIONS: We actively research and source the latest sustainable
fabric/fibre innovations e.g. Coir (coconut fibre), Nettle, Lenzing Modal & Tencel.
FUR: We do not permit the use of fur in our products.
GREENPEACE DETOX: In 2018, we initiated a chemicals improvement process with
Greenpeace Detox supporter, Texmoda Tessuti who are taking measures to
eliminate all the hazardous substances from production by 2020.
HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS: Our dyeing and processing is done in compliance with
REACH and we take guidance from REACH for a Restricted Substances List (as a
minimum).
HEMP: We have increased the use of fabrics such as hemp, which naturally reduce
pests, controls erosion of topsoil, produces oxygen and uses less water in cultivation.
PACKAGING: Our retail packaging is plastic-free, made from FSC certified card and
paper – packaging for our retail bags is made from 40% recycled pulp, 25% leather
by-product and is produced with 100% green energy.
PLASTIC: We are eliminating all single-use plastic from transit packaging and use
shredded card made from used boxes for protective inner packaging. We are
working to change our plastic hangers and polythene garment covers to more
sustainable alternatives.
SYNTHETIC FABRICS: We are increasingly reducing our use of polyester and acrylic
fabrics, opting for natural or recycled alternatives e.g. recycled polyester.
TANNING: We are increasing the use of leather that is processed using
environmentally friendly dyeing and tanning techniques; chrome-free and vegetable
tanned.
VISCOSE: We are part of the Canopy Style initiative (ensuring no fabrics made
from dissolving wood pulp are sourced from ancient and endangered forest areas)
and have committed to only using FSC certified viscose by 2021.
WOOL: Currently 50% of our wool is from non-mulesed sources.
We are aiming to increase this to 75% by 2020 and 100% by 2021.
CANOPY COMMITMENT – Read Here
REIMAGINING WASTE
We are committed to tackling textile waste through our collections and aim
to make the most of the resources that go into our products, reusing, recycling and
reimagining as we go.
• We apply a waste hierarchical approach to unused resources; reducing, reusing,
recycling and recovering waste products, diverting as much as possible from landfill.
• We prevent waste at design stage where possible, using low waste experimental
pattern cutting.
• We are consolidating our labels and reducing the size of our collection as this
was the quickest way to reduce our impact; most of which lies in manufacturing
of products and materials. This is an on-going process that we aim to complete
by 2020.
• Our new Green Logistics Hub has full waste recycling and reclamation facilities.
• We seek out opportunities to reuse and upcycle leftover fabric, deadstock
and discarded materials.
Our Made in Africa accessories are created using recycled canvas, reused roadside
banners, unused leather off-cuts, and recycled brass cast, Dhow sails are upcycled
into our Africa Bags and excess shirting stock is reused for linings.
In 2018, we partnered with Italian social enterprise Project Quid, who provide
employment for vulnerable women, to create a limited-edition accessories collection
from leftover silk stock.
A part of the World’s End Collection, our iconic range of unisex limited edition
pieces, is designed around the re-use of left over production fabric from previous
seasons, creating unique pieces at more accessible prices.
GAIA
Activism and empathy have always been at the heart of Vivienne’s work.
Vivienne's voice gives strength to our brand, allowing us to share our values,
campaign to protect life on Mother Earth, Gaia and mobilise people around
Climate Change and Human Rights.
In 2012 Vivienne inaugurated the 'Climate Revolution' at the London Paralympics
closing ceremony and continues to rally charities, NGO’s and individuals to join
forces and to take action against disengaged political leaders and big business.
Vivienne is an ardent supporter of Cool Earth andtheir efforts to save the rainforest
and stop Climate Change.
Vivienne is an ambassador for Greenpeace and in 2013 designed their official ‘Save
the Arctic’ logo. In 2015, she along with Greenpeace, launched a global campaign to
stop drilling and industrial fishing in the area.
Over the last 20 years Vivienne has campaigned and fundraised for the
Environmental Justice Foundation, Friends of the Earth, Amnesty International and
War Child, amongst many other grassroots charities and campaigns. We have
dedicated a number of shows and products to raise money and awareness around
these causes.
Vivienne is a Trustee of human rights organization Liberty and patron of Reprieve.
She is also a patron of Battersea Arts Centre and donated money for its restoration
after the building was mostly destroyed by fire in 2016.
Fashion SWITCH to Green
Fashion SWITCH to Green is our flagship campaign to lead ambitious climate action
for a greener, safer future for all. We have joined forces with The British Fashion
Council and the Mayor of London in reaching out to fashion brands and businesses
to commit to SWITCH to a green energy supplier or to a green energy tariff by 2020.
The campaign intends to be a catalyst for global environmental change through
collaboration, with brands already committed including Christopher Raeburn,
E.Tautz, Harvey Nichols, Kering, Marks & Spencer, Oliver Spencer, Positive Luxury,
Selfridges, Stella McCartney, steventai & Teatum Jones.
Julie’s Bicycle, a global charity that supports the cultural and creative community
across the UK and internationally to act on Climate Change are monitoring the
impact of actions taken by brands signed up to the campaign. Results from Year 1
(2017 – 2018) estimate a total of 355 million kilowatt hours sourced from green
energy, which is the equivalent of 125 tonnes of CO2e avoided.
Animal Sourcing Principles
We are building a modern brand. We strive to make our clothes
with greater care and we are committed to designing with respect for people
and planet. Responsible sourcing is at the heart of this commitment.
The Vivienne Westwood Group Animal Sourcing Principles apply
to all animal derived materials used in products that we design
and manufacture. They are put in place to uphold the highest animal welfare
standards and we aim to implement them
throughout our own business and in our supply chain.
These Principles apply to the capture, maintenance, breeding, raising,
transportation, handling and slaughter of animals. They are mandatory
for all suppliers to ensure that we do not knowingly use any material in
our products that may inflict harm on animal welfare or have
a negative impact on biodiversity.
It is our suppliers’ responsibility to ensure that all animal derived materials
are sourced, processed and manufactured in accordance with these Principles and
suppliers should be able to provide evidence demonstrating their
compliance when required. We are always happy to provide support to
help our suppliers understand and implement these Principles.
GENERAL PRINCIPLES
1. We are committed to upholding the highest animal welfare standards, based on
the internationally recognised ‘Five Freedoms’ for animal welfare;
• Freedom from hunger and thirst, by ready access to fresh water and a
diet for full health and vigour.
• Freedom from discomfort, by providing an appropriate environment including
shelter and a comfortable resting area.
• Freedom from pain, injury or disease, by prevention or rapid
diagnosis and treatment.
• Freedom to express normal behaviour, by providing sufficient space, proper facilities
and company of the animal’s own kind.
• Freedom from fear and distress, by providing conditions and treatment that
avoid mental suffering.
2. We are committed to sustaining biodiverse ecosystems in areas
where we source. This includes maintaining species populations of wild animals
at sustainable levels and only sourcing only material of animal origin
from legal sources. We believe that local authorities’ use of robust
scientific assessment methodologies that ensure sustainable population levels,
such as the non-detriment finding methodology promoted by the
CITES agreement or the IUCN Red List Categories and
Criteria assessment, is critical to achieve this objective.
3. We believe that the capture, maintaining, breeding, raising, transportation,
handling and slaughter of animals must be undertaken with minimal environmental impacts,
and in compliance with applicable local animal welfare, human and labour rights
and environmental laws and regulations as well as internationally accepted standards,
for example World Organisation for Animal Health.
4. We believe that during the maintaining, breeding, raising, and handling of animals,
animals should have freedom of movement, be housed in clean and secure
conditions, and provided with food, water and care as well as have
appropriate lighting, temperature, humidity, air circulation, ventilation and other
environmental conditions. Further, animals should not be given food or
liquid in a manner which may cause unnecessary suffering or injury, and they
should be treated in a manner respectful of its species’ nature
and their physiological and ethological needs in accordance with established
experience and scientific knowledge.
5. We believe that animals should not be transported in a way that is
likely to cause injury or undue suffering to them, including that all
necessary arrangements have been made in advance to minimise the length of the
journey and to meet animals’ needs during the journey in line with
internationally accepted standards for transportation of animals in air,
at sea and on land.
6. We believe that animals should not experience suffering, pain or excitement during
all stages of the process of slaughter, and that, as appropriate, effective
stunning should be used in advance of slaughter.
SPECIFIC PRINCIPLES FOR ANIMAL DERVIVED MATERIALS
We do not permit the use of:
• Any endangered species; we will never knowingly source any species listed on the
CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna
and Flora) and IUCN (International Union for Conservation Red) lists
of endangered species.
• Animal fur including rabbit hair (e.g. Angora), Mongolian lambs’ fur, Karakul
(also referred to as Astrakhan/Broadtail/Persian lamb/Swakara/Krimmer) or
any other hair from animals reared in cages for their hair.
• Leather or skin from exotic and wild caught animals including reptile skins,
crocodile and alligator.
• Leather from cattle reared in the Amazon biome.
• Leather of kangaroo origin.
• Leather of horse origin.
• Hair from wild animals e.g. vicuña.
• Shell from vulnerable or endangered species
We permit the use of the following under the conditions outlined below:
• Certain types of leather; cow, sheep, goat, pig, buffalo and fish
• Virgin wool fibre and recycled wool fibre
• Virgin cashmere fibre and recycled cashmere fibre
• Yak fibre
• Mohair
• Feathers
• Silk
• Animal derived horn
LEATHER
• We only source leather originating from cow, sheep, goat, pig and buffalo
that is a by-product of the meat industry.
• All leather must come from farms with high animal welfare standards, preferably
accredited/certified by a recognised body.
• Suppliers of Brazilian leather should provide assurances that hides used for our
products are from cattle raised outside the Amazon Biome, due to deforestation
issues in the Amazon rainforest.
• Fish leather should be a by-product of the fish processing industry and
originate from sustainably farmed sources.
ANIMAL HAIR
• We aim to source all virgin animal hair from farms with high animal welfare
standards, preferably accredited/certified by a recognised body.
• Virgin animal hair used in our products must be gathered, clipped, shorn
or combed/groomed only.
• We encourage the sourcing of sustainable alternatives to virgin animal hair
e.g. recycled wool and recycled cashmere, to minimise the risk of animal
welfare and biodiversity issues.
• Fish leather should be a by-product of the fish processing industry and
originate from sustainably farmed sources.
Virgin Wool Fibre and Recycled Wool Fibre
• We are phasing out the use of wool from farms that practice mulesing. We
currently use 95% mulesing free wool. All wool originating from Australia must be
declared as ‘non-mulesed’ (NM) or ‘ceased-mulesed’ (CM) in
National Wool Declaration (NWD) documentation.
• We aim to source virgin wool fibres from farms certified to the Responsible
Wool Standard (a voluntary global standard that addresses the welfare of sheep
and of the land they graze on).
• Recycled wool fibres should be certified to the Global Recycled Standard (GRS)
or Recycled Claim Standard (RCS) or equivalent standard.
Virgin Cashmere Fibre and Recycled Cashmere Fibre
• We strive to limit the use of virgin cashmere and where possible
source recycled cashmere, due to the negative environmental and social impacts caused
by current cashmere production practices in Mongolia and other cashmere producing regions.
Yak
• We source yak as a sustainable alternative to virgin cashmere fibres,
due to biodiversity issues of goat overgrazing, leading to grassland degradation,
desertification and economic hardship for herders.
Mohair
• We aim to source all South African mohair from farms with high animal
welfare standards audited to the Sustainable Mohair Production Guidelines.
Feathers
• All feathers used in our products should come from fully traceable sources
and from farms with high animal welfare standards.
• We do not accept feathers produced using live plucking or force-feeding methods
or from endangered/wild-caught birds.
Silk
• Our silk comes from conventional sources. We are always looking for commercially
viable, innovative alternatives to conventional silk, so that we can reduce
the risk of animal welfare issues in processing..
Horn
• Horn used for trims should be a by-product of the meat industry only.
TRACEABILITY
We are working to source all virgin animal derived materials from farms that
uphold the highest animal welfare standards and are certified to
a credible standard.
We ask that suppliers support us in managing our supply chain impacts by
tracing the full route of animal derived materials from origin to
finished product. Where we cannot get information about origin, we try to find
a more sustainable alternative.
As a minimum, suppliers must provide all relevant information about the origin
of the animal derived material (name of species, country/region
of origin, and wild or farmed) and supporting certifications
when requested.
IMPLEMENTATION
We will implement guidelines, procedures, and resources to uphold these Principles
within our own sourcing and design teams and with
supply chain partners.
We will update these Principles in line with developments in
animal welfare best practice.
2018 GENDER PAY GAP REPORT
At Vivienne Westwood we employ just under 300 employees across the UK.
We promote equal opportunities for women and men at every level of the Group.
While we support diversity in all its forms, we are particularly committed to gender
equality in the workplace. We believe in fair pay, based on experience and merit,
as well as in a fair recruitment process that focuses on skills and capabilities.
Today, women at Vivienne Westwood account for 63% of our total headcount.
Our female workforce has seen the most significant increase over the last few years,
especially in leadership roles.
The report on our gender pay gap follows the methodology set out by the government. It provides
context for the key gender pay figures and outlines actions we are taking to improve them.
The table below shows the Vivienne Westwood mean and median hourly gender pay
gap to 5th April 2018 and bonus gap for the 12 months to 5th April 2018.
Pay & Bonus Gap (difference between men and women Gender Pay Gap)
Mean |
Median |
|
| Hourly rate of pay | 1.16% | 1.9% |
| Bonus pay | 24% | 34% |
Pay quartiles
Upper quartile |
Upper middle quartile |
Lower middle quartile |
Lower quartile |
| 42% male employees | 36% male employees | 30% male employees | 38% male employees |
| 58% female employees | 64% female employees | 70% female employees | 62% female employees |
Proportion of male and female colleagues receiving bonus pay
Male employees |
79% |
Female employees |
76% |
We will be working on the opportunities arising from gender pay reporting and our ongoing
analysis will ensure we are pro-actively managing our pay fairly and equitably.
I confirm that our data has been calculated according to the requirements
of The Equality Act 2010 (Gender Pay Gap Information) Regulations 2017.
Carlo D’Amario
CEO at Vivienne Westwood Group