Zara

Ah fast fashion. You allow the average person the opportunity to wear the latest trends at a reasonable price but at what cost to the greater good? I've written about Forever 21's unethical practices and it seems that another fast fashion retailer is now being investigated.

Zara, a Spanish company, is being investigated by Brazilian authorities after being tipped off about alleged slave labor practices. Different company, same structure/policies/pressure as other fast fashion retailers (see: Forever21). You can read all about it on Forbes.

Have you ever shopped at Zara? I've been in one but didn't buy anything at the time and now don't intend to until the investigation is complete.


- A

World Fair Trade Day

Hi folks, just wanted to drop in and let you guys know that today is World Fair Trade Day. What better time to see the wonderful variety of beautiful and tasty items you can buy knowing that the talented people that produced these items were paid fairly! Ebay has a wonderful fair trade store and that's just a start! Other places that carry fair trade goods:

Ten Thousand Villages

Fair Indigo

Grounds for Change

Major retailers have begun to carry a limited supply of fair trade products as well. Check your local Whole Foods, Target, even (I say this begrudgingly) Walmart. If you don't see any fair trade items, ask for them! Use that consumer power folks!

You can find more retailers, companies, and websites that carry fair trade goods at Fair Trade Federation.



- A

Gap, inc.

Ah the Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy. Three of my favorite stores to shop at. I love their styling, great sales, and commercials (the Gap holiday commercials are always super fun!).

I haven't been there in a couple of months, since before the 30 for 30 challenge as I wanted to investigate their business practices before I went back.

The Gap brand was founded in 1969 and experienced tremendous growth in a short amount of time. Like many retailers, it turned to factories overseas to meet demand. It was not until 1992 that the company outlined a code of sourcing guidelines to ensure ethical practices. The responsibility for enforcement of these guidelines, however, was up to the suppliers so Gap did not have a direct hand in controlling the factories (like many large companies). In 1996, after finding violations in several factories, Gap decided to make their own compliance team that oversees the application of their guidelines (but the factories still remain independent contractors). Since then, Gap, inc has been identified as the most ethical company by the Ethisphere Institute several times (2007-2009, 2011).

To be honest, as I was researching this I was skeptical. My skepticism grew when I couldn't find one negative piece of information regarding Gap's practices. I mean, come on, this is big business we're talking about here! Surely they have done something wrong at some point!

Then, aha! I found it! Gap, like many retailers (see: Forever21) put pressure on factories to produce at a rapid pace, which in turn caused the factory owners/managers to put pressure on the workers through unethical means (long hours, low pay). Where did I find this information? Why Gap's Social Responsibility report! So wait, they called themselves out? That is unheard of in big business. Adding to Gap's halo is the fact that every time concerns have been raised (such as child labor) they have responded immediately but not by denying or letting legal take over but by being honest and dealing with the situation by sending out their compliance team to resolve the issue.

Bottom line: I'm pleased that I can continue to shop at my favorite retailer, however, as an enlightened consumer (as I endeavor to be) I know that public pressure/demand for ethical practices counts for a lot so I feel that we should applaud Gap, inc but also remain vigilant about any problems as they arise. CEOs will change and with them business practices may as well so keep apprised of the situation folks!

Resources:

CSRWire

Ethical Corporation

How wonderful is it to be able to shop at a mainstream store and know that the money you are spending is contributing to fair practices! How about you? Do you shop at any one of the Gap, inc stores?


- A

Fast is not fab

I think we can all agree that sweatshops are bad. Working people long hard hours while paying them little and forcing them to work in uncomfortable conditions is deplorable. How lucky are we that we live in the United States where we don't have to deal with this issue, right? Wrong. Today, in continuation of my retail series, I'll be talking about Forever21, the 'fast fashion' giant that has garnered criticism of the treatment of its workers.

The garment production industry is big business in California. Forever21 has been accused of (and documented through interviews with employees) running sweatshops in the state. According to 39th & Broadway, Forever21 employs Mexican immigrant labor because it is cheap. With this comes the sub par conditions in which they are working: no running water, no bathroom, rats, and cockroaches. Apparently paying them very little and abusing their workforce in the United States is not even, oh no. Forever21 employs millions of employees around the world, like India, where the labor is even cheaper and the ethical violations even greater.

As we all know, Forever21 constantly updates its offerings; in the world of 'fast fashion', you've got to be the quickest, with the newest, shiniest thing, and Forever21 certainly delivers. The result of this is their workforce is forced to work overtime, unpaid! Workers may even have to take work home, again, unpaid! Forever21 is the bad guy here, but the store is really a symptom of a greater problem: our insatiable appetite for new things fast.

Like many retailers, Forever21 can certainly afford to pay their workers better and provide more comfortable working conditions, but as is always with corporate greed, the goal is to minimize spending, which starts at the bottom: the workers. The pyramid below illustrates this well.

(Source)

Again, unionizing is very important and the documentary Made in L.A. follows three women who fought for years to get Forever21 to change their labor practices. Has anything changed? Forever21 would like to say yes but there is still a long way to go. Change is not going to come out of the goodness of their heart as it is a business, it has no heart. Change has to be demanded and I choose to not shop there until significant progress is made.

Additional Resources:

39th &  Broadway

Forever Unfair

The Garment Worker Center

- A

Finito

Day 30 and I'm done!!!!!! I had two variations on this outfit today. I wore the scarf version out but I still can't decide which one I like more.

So I went shopping today but didn't buy anything because I'm still not allowed to....talk about a steel will ;). OK OK, if I'm going to be honest, I slipped up and purchased two items in Raleigh. What can I say? Dillard's was having an amazing sale! Believe me when I say I saved big and only purchased two items. One of the items you see above: the scarf. Tres lovely, no? I wish I could say I feel guilty but I don't mwahahaha!!! Look at me flaunting my disregard of the rules...classic sociopath behavior. Uh oh. First the talking clothes and now this. Either I need to talk to someone or I need to stop reading my DSM-IV for fun.

- A

29 is so fine

Day 29..woo hoo! February was a difficult month to do this challenge. First, my brain cells were depleted due to focus on other things. Second, weather here in Texas can't make up its mind.

Look at my last picture there. Even subconsciously, I'm counting down the days...one day to go (as indicated by my finger).

- A

Light at the end of the tunnel

Day 28...so its over now, right? I know the challenge is 30 for 30 but I think the spirit of the challenge is to do this for a month and its not my fault that February is only 28 days!

All right all right, I'll be honorable and see this through to March 2nd. The light is getting brighter...the voices from my closet are getting louder...harder to ignore. I know what you're thinking but it's only dangerous if I talk back. Hopefully I can hold out until the challenge is over....

- A

Day 22 and only one picture. For some reason, these pants don't photograph well. They appear bright and shiny, something that isn't there visible to the naked eye...maybe they're haunted. Must call TAPS, stat.



Well friends I shall be out of town for the next few days with unreliable Internet access as well as unreliable motivation to blog ;).  If I have the time, I shall post. If not, expect a pictorial essay of my trip on Monday.

Don't worry, I'm abiding by the 30 for 30 rules while away. If I'm one thing, its honest. If I had to pick two things: honest and amazing. Three: honest, amazing, and modest.

- A

Fast forward

Day 20...oh snap, where's day 19? I fast forwarded past it...just like Adam Sandler in Click.

I'm just kidding. I don't have a super cool remote to fast forward (or rewind) my life. If I did, I would have fast forwarded to March, duh. The past couple of weeks have been hectic and I apologize for my lack of (substance filled) posts. For now, bear with me as I post pretty pretty pictures (not of me, the clothes people! I'm not that superficial all the time) until my brain can expend enough energy to write an intelligent post.

- A

Cuh-razy

Day 18...a crazy mix of patterns and colors but somehow it works, no?



I have many scarves (if you hadn't already noticed). Since I am of South Asian descent, our colorful ethnic outfits (called salwar kameez) each come with a matching scarf. While I will get rid of outfits, I usually hang on to the scarves for repurposing. How green of me ;-).

Now if only I could figure out that darn sewing machine, I could save even more items from being thrown away....I swear it hates me :(.

- A

Once is enough

Day 17. I believe that all items have finally made their appearance with the exception of a new pair of jeans that have yet to be hemmed. I felt sheepish admitting yesterday that I stapled my pants so do not wish to do that again because I'm sure I won't be forgiven for this fashion faux pas twice.

Is it March yet? For so many reasons.....


-A

Blast from the past

Day 16 and the new pants finally came out! The reason for the delay was they needed to be hemmed. I set out to do that this past weekend and as you can see....it didn't happen. Yes my friends, sewing machines perplex me. I reverted to a supa cool trick from middle school: hemming pants with a stapler. Remember that? Wow, did that bring back memories! Errr...not good ones though. May need to rethink this strategy....

Can you see the teeny tiny staples? You can? Whoops. Hopefully my coworkers didn't notice. How unprofessional. Notice the other blast from the past? The neon hair tie as wrist accessory? As you can see, I was super nostalgic today.

-A

Flaky

30 for 30 challenge, day 15. Where, praytell, are days 12-14? Lost to history folks. (AKA I forgot to take pics but I promise I adhered to the limited choices!)



While I haven't felt the urge to shop yet, I am growing bored with my limited choices. All the other pieces in my closet are calling out to me. I miss them.

-A

Day.....?

I've completely lost track of how many days its been in the 30 for 30 challenge. I'm sure not mentioning which day I'm on in the posts is not helping. This is day 11:



This outfit was a bit of a stretch for me with the tights showing. I kept getting weird looks like 'hey...your pants are too short' but I of course responded with my 'no they're not too short, this is fashion' look. You know that look don't you?

*You didn't notice that day 10 is missing, did you? You didn't? Until I mentioned it? Darn.*

-A

This again?

So it is now freezing in Houston, again. I thought Texas got that out of his system (yes his, Texas is obviously a guy. For many reasons I won't go into now) but he had one more suprise up his sleeve. When I left the house this morning I had no idea it was going to get this cold so what did a silly Texan like me take to keep warm? A trench coat of course!

Day 9, done!

-A

Behind the times

So as I'm sure you've noticed, I'm behind on posting my 30 for 30 pictures. I apologize; finding time to take these pictures has proved difficult. My outfit from Tuesday:

You might ask why I'm even posting pictures but its really to keep me honest! Without some accountability, I'm likely to stray and start wearing whatever I want. So I guess what I'm trying to say is thank you for holding me accountable. It's not easy keeping me honest ;).

-A

Hidden Costs

So I've alluded to this in a previous post but the primary reason I'm participating in the 30 for 30 challenge is my desire to increase my awareness of consumer related issues. We are all consumers; it can't be avoided and I feel that the biggest power we all hold in our lives is our money, regardless of how much you have. Every time you buy something you are casting a vote, telling the industry that you like this item and they will in turn keep doing what they're doing.

However, with great power, comes great responsibility (yeah, I went there) and I want to be aware of where my money is going and what it is supporting. What are the hidden costs of my purchase? After learning of Walmart's unethical business practices, I swore off Walmart three years ago. Sure, I've been in a Walmart since (tagging along with people) but I have probably spent no more than $50 at Walmart in those three years. ($50? Don't judge. Walmart happened to be the only store open {surprise surprise} on NYE 2011 when I desperately needed food for unexpected {the best kind :-S} guests) Here is a summary of why, as stated by Green America, Walmart is the epitome of unethical big business:

"Wal-Mart, which has become both the face of big box retailers and of corporate irresponsibility, has been found guilty of violating federal and state wage laws by forcing employees to work unpaid overtime and child labor laws in the United States; Wal-Mart does not provide health insurance for its workers, forcing many to seek government assistance and costing taxpayers millions of dollars; Wal-Mart also closed a Canadian store whose workers were on the verge of becoming the first ever to win a union contract from the company. " Source

Do I really want to help support that? More recently, I've sworn off Forever21. I have also begun to research my favorite brands to ascertain whether I should continue supporting them (and looking cute in their stuff). While I love a good deal and retailers such as Walmart and Forever21 can certainly deliver, the overall cost of the product goes far beyond what comes out of my pocket. How are the workers producing these products being treated? Are they being paid fairly? Do they have benefits? If companies can't answer these questions favorably or don't want to answer them, then they should not get my money.

You can visit the Green America website where they have graded major retailers based on their ethics. As I said, this is a work in progress for me and I'm learning something new every day. I will say that phasing out unethical companies is difficult when I feel like there aren't enough ethical retailers to replace them with. I do think that as consumers start demanding fair treatment for retail workers (especially overseas) then more options will present themselves.

 What about you guys? Will the unethical behavior of companies stop you from giving them your business?

-A

Perspective

It's 31 degrees right now...have I mentioned that I'm in Texas? C'est la vie...in Texas. I had to really bundle up this morning with about 5 layers on, yikes!

What do you see when you look at the picture below? Don't worry, this is not a projective test. There is a right and wrong answer.

That's an action shot. I had just jumped off the mini-wall I was standing on. It was a moment, let me tell ya. For those few seconds after I jumped off that 3 foot high wall, I felt like I was flying. Unfortunately, the moment captured by the camera is an altogether different one. It's all about perspective, ay? Kind of like Northerners scoffing at 31 degrees?

-A

Mindful Me

We all do it. It’s a fact of life. Consumption.  As a nation, we all spend a lot of money (debt crisis anyone?). While some of it we have to spend (i.e. housing, transportation) what about the rest? I want to become a mindful consumer; aware of what I’m buying, why I’m buying it, and where my money is going (not to unethical sweat shops!). This is quite a task and so, as a step in that direction, I am challenging myself to a 30 for 30 day challenge, a la Kendi. Clothing is one of my top discretionary spending categories and while I don’t plan on (or want to) stop spending completely, I would like to become more mindful and thankful for what I have. This challenge is intended to increase use of items already present in your closet by restricting use to only 30 items that are chosen before the challenge begins. Oh and there is no shopping for the month! (I can feel the cold shakes comin’ on already)

Here are my 30 items:

Dear readers, this is an example of balancing your beliefs and goals. Mine would be to balance my passion for fashion with my financial goals and ethical trade beliefs.

Wish me luck! February 1^st is go time! 


-A