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How sustainable is Hollister ?

Hollister & sustainability


Hollister

2 out of 17

Sustainability summary

Based on our sustainability criteria, Hollister has achieved the E-label. This is our lowest possible sustainability score, and Hollister has earned it by communicating nothing concrete about the policies for environment, carbon emissions or labor conditions in low-wages countries. For us as consumers, it is unclear whether Hollister is committed to sustainability or not.

Brand owner: Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
Head office: New Albany, OH, USA
Sector: Denim & jeans
Categories : Male, Female
Free Tags: Hollister, Bags, Caps, Shirts, Pullover, Jackets, Jeans, Dress

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Hollister sustainability score report

Last edited: 2 April 2013 by Mario
Last reviewed: 2 April 2013 by Mario

Questions about Climate Change/ Carbon Emissions

1 out of 4
1. Is there a policy for the brand to minimize, reduce or compensate carbon emissions?? Abercrombie & Fitch, brand owner of Hollister, has taken several policy measures to reduce carbon emissions, such as analyzing and implementing a control system that allows to maintain tighter temperature set points and reduces boiler, chiller and air handling unit operations (see link) Source
2. Has the brand (company) disclosed the annual absolute carbon footprint of its 'own operations' (Scope 1 & 2) and has the brand already reduced or compensated 10% of these emissions in the last 5 years? Abercrombie & Fitch decreased its Scope 1&2 carbon footprint from 134,341 tons CO2 in 2008 to 133,928 tons CO2 in 2011, which represents a reduction of only 1,3%. Source
3. Has the brand (company) set a target to reduce the carbon footprint of its 'own operations' by at least 20% within the next 5 years? Abercrombie & Fitch does not communicate any information on target reductions for its carbon emissions on its website (see link). Source
4. Does the brand (company) also have a policy to reduce/compensate carbon emissions generated from the product supply chain that is beyond own operations? Abercrombie & Fitch states that it is advocating for reduction in carbon emissions in its supply chain (p. 20), but does not mention any concrete targets or results on its website. Source

Questions about Environmental Policy

0 out of 4
1. Does the brand (company) use environmentally 'preferred' raw materials for more than 5% of its volume? Abercrombie & Fitch mentions reduced reliance on non-sustainable materials on its home campus (p. 25). However, the A&F does not provide any information about preferred materials used in production. Source
2. Does the brand (company) use environmentally 'preferred' raw materials for more than 10% of its volume? See remark for environmental question 1. Source
3. Does the brand (company) use environmentally 'preferred' raw materials for more than 25% of its volume? See remark for environmental question 1. Source
4. Is there a policy for the brand (company) to eliminate all hazardous chemicals from the whole lifecycle and all production procedures? Abercrombie & Fitch states that it is "currently developing a water stewardship program for our manufacturing partners through which we endeavor to ensure that there is “zero discharge” of toxic chemicals resulting from our processes" (p. 5). Source

Questions about Labour Conditions/ Fair Trade

1 out of 9
1. Does the brand (company) have a supplier Code of Conduct (CoC) which includes the following standards: No forced or slave labor, no child labor, no discrimination of any kind and a safe and hygienic workplace? All standards mentioned in Abercrombie & Fitch's Code of Conduct (see link). Source
2. Does this CoC include at least two of the following workers rights: 1. to have a formally registered employment relationship 2. to have a maximum working week of 48 hours with voluntary and paid overtime of 12 hours maximum 3. to have a sufficient living wage? 1. Not explicitly stated; 2.No, only mention of reasonable work hours in compliance with local laws and standards with no regularly scheduled work weeks in excess of 60 hours (or lower if prescribed by local law or local industry standards). 3. Abercrombie & Fitch only refers to minimum law or industry wages. Source
3. Does this Code of Conduct include the right for workers to form and join trade unions and bargain collectively; and in those situations where these rights are restricted under law, the right to facilitate parallel means of independent and free association and bargaining? Freedom of association is mentioned, but in the case where the local labour laws restrict these freedoms, the supplier is only encouraged (but has no obligation) to facilitate parallel means of independent and free association and bargaining for the employees. Source
4. Does the brand (company) have a published list of direct suppliers, that have collectively contributed to more than 90% of the purchase volume? Abercrombie & Fitch does not have a significant published list of direct suppliers on its website. Source
5. Is the brand (company) a member of a collective initiative that aims to improve labor conditions, or does the brand (company) purchase its supplies from accredited factories with improved labor conditions? Abercrombie & Fitch is a member of Better Work and Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), but information about a code of conduct, monitoring/auditing, and reporting on audit results is not found on the webistes of these two initiatives. Source
6. Do independent civil society organizations like NGO's and labor unions have a decisive voice in this collective initiative or in these certification schemes? BSR works in cooperation with several NGOs, but they are not represented in the Board of Directors and it is, thus, unclear how much say they have in decision making. Better Work has some representatives of civil society organizations and the academia in its Advisory Committee, but the decisions are made by the Management Board. Source
7. Does the brand (company) annually report on the results of its labor conditions policy? Abercrombie & Fitch reports that it typically audit factories once a year and provides only very limited information on these audits (p. 18). Source
8. Has the brand’s labor conditions policy resulted in a ‘compliance level’ of at least 30% of the purchase volume, or a ‘monitored level' of at least 80%? See remark for labor conditions question 7. Source
9. Does the brand (company) have a clear and effective health and safety policy for the workers in the finishing process of jeans, at least covering the ban on sandblasting? Abercrombie & Fitch does not communicate about a health and safety policy for denim finishing or the ban of sandblasting. Source