People are so important, and at the end of the day, nothing is ever worth another person’s mistreatment. As a brand, we are very focused on putting people first throughout our supply chain. As the brands founder, I am very passionate about this subject, these words you read below are mine, but as a brand they are mirrored.
The recent news covering every post and paper referring to boohoos mistreatment and pure neglect in their supply chain is very upsetting and frankly disappointing. As shoppers we are trusting the brands we buy from, the last thing we should be expecting is for them to mistreat their workers so badly. One subject I am so passionate about is people’s wellbeing in the fashion supply chain, I have lived in Asia and have spent weeks and weeks on the factory floor’s building relationships with the people working there. It’s easy to not think about that side of things when buying something cheap, but once you’ve hugged the lady who rethreads the machines, the thought of her not earning enough to feed her family is simply not acceptable.
“clearly, they have been cutting extreme corners.”
Seeing brands like this, promote extremely cheap clothing has been a subject I’ve been pretty obsessed with for years now. Simply just asking myself, how can they make clothing at those prices? It’s just not possible. Knowing the fabric price, trim price and minimum wage, not to mention their marketing budget, head office salaries and insane management bonuses. It’s simply not possible. I started TOBEFRANK as proof that fashion when made properly doesn’t need to be expensive, but it simply cannot be that cheap. And clearly, they have been cutting extreme corners.
“ The brand is a UK brand, buying from UK factories, they know how much they are spending on each piece and they know what the minimum wage is. it’s simple maths,”
They apparently didn’t know anything about what was happening, which is simply not true. The brand is a UK brand, buying from UK factories, they know how much they are spending on each piece and they know what the minimum wage is. it’s simple maths.
They have now defended themselves by proudly stating that they will stop working with the factory. But for me this makes it worse, instead they need to work with the current factory to pay the current hardworking staff a fair wage, not just delete the situation and repeat somewhere else.
So, what can we all do to change this?
I know money can be tight sometimes, we do all need clothes and sometimes seeing a new dress is hard to resist, but if we can all make a stand and refuse to buy cheap clothing then these brands will be forced to change the way they work. If you are ever a bit confused when it comes to shopping better, give each brand or retailer a bit of a google to find out more about their supply chain. I know it can be a bit of a pain, but it really will make a huge difference.
Peace and love
Frankie xxx
