Continental Clothing Company

PRODUCTION LOCATIONS 

• India
• Turkey

WORKING CONDITIONS & LIVING WAGES 

Continental Clothing Co. has been a member of the Fair Wear Foundation since 2005, enforcing strict social compliance across all of its facilities. It is currently operating in only three factories, which it has worked with for at least 15 years and which it regularly audits. The EarthPositive range is additionally audited for social compliance by BSCI. The company is actively supporting and monitoring a living wage project in its primary factory, which produces for the EarthPositive range.

MATERIALS

• Organic cotton 
• Tencel Lyocell
• Bamboo and ECOVERO viscose 
• Recycled polyester 
• Polyester
• Modal
• Elastane (Lycra)

The majority of products currently available on Continental Clothing Co.‘s website are from their EarthPositive collection, and are 100% Indian organic cotton. The company is licensed by the Soil Association and the Control Union, and is the largest organic textiles licensee in the UK. This is a more environmentally friendly choice for your wardrobe, as organic cotton is produced without toxic chemicals. Read more about organic cotton.

The Continental collection uses over 40 fabric qualities across its product range, including Aegean cotton, Tencel, modal, bamboo-derived viscose, polyester and Lycra elastane. Continental Clothing Co. also offers a small selection of tops from their Continental collection made from a material blend of 70% bamboo-derived viscose with 30% organic cotton.

The company also offers a Made-to-Order service where customers can choose from a selection of alternative materials, including man-made plant-based materials such as Lyocell and ECOVERO.

According to the company, the EarthPositive product range achieved a 90% reduction in its manufacturing carbon footprint. This has been certified by the Carbon Trust, and EarthPositive was granted the first Carbon Reduction Label for textile products.

PACKAGING 

Continental Clothing Co. does not disclose what packaging materials are used. 

WATER USAGE & CHEMICALS 

All Continental Clothing Co. products are certified Oeko-Tex Standard 100 and REACH compliant. All fabrics in the Continental collection are reactive dyed to enable discharge printing and to ensure colourfastness.

According to the company, all the wastewater from the EarthPositive factory is treated and purified, and then re-circulated in a closed-loop dye house system. This means that there is no external discharging, pollution, or water waste.

As Continental Clothing Co. designs and manufactures specifically for garment decorating, it strongly advises the use of ink types and printing processes which are compliant with environmental and organic standards.

CIRCULAR PRODUCT DESIGN 

The vast majority of products currently available on Continental Clothing Co.’s website are 100% cotton. They are therefore easier to recycle and less likely to generate excess waste at the end of their lifespan. However, other garments are produced from a material blend. 

CIRCULAR BUSINESS MODELS 

Continental Clothing Co. does not currently use any circular business model initiatives. 

DISTANCE & COMPLEXITY OF THE SUPPLY CHAIN 

Production locations: 

• India
• Turkey 
• Its headquarters are based in London. 

The EarthPositive collection of products are produced at Continental Clothing Co.’s main manufacturing facility in India. The company also works with another factory in India, which mostly supplies their organic cotton and recycled fibres. Their final facility is located in Turkey, and this is where the Continental collection is produced. 

TRANSPORTATION 

Continental Clothing Co. transports by both air and road, but does not disclose any further details on this. 

Continental Clothing Co. does not use any animal materials in its supply chain. All products are certified PETA approved vegan. 

PRODUCT DESIGN

On Continental Clothing Co.‘s website, they have a wide selection of products which are currently available to order from stock, ready to print. The largest selection of products are for men and women, and include a range of t‑shirts, polo shirts, hoodies, and sweatshirts, with sizes from XS to 5XL. The EarthPositive range also includes tote bags. The company also offers a small selection of t‑shirts and hoodies for children, with sizes ranging from 3 – 4 years to 11 – 12 years. They even offer a choice of items for babies, including jumpsuits and bibs!

SLOW FASHION PROCESSES 

Continental Clothing Co. offers a Made-to-Order service, allowing customers to create custom garments and accessories. This service has been running for over a decade, and offers short lead times with low minimum order quantities. This service allows you to choose from a selection of 36 fabrics in stock, including organic cotton and lyocell. You can then personalise even further by selecting from 134 colours, and adding customisable screen-printing, embroidery, bespoke labelling, tagging, bar-coding, or packaging.

TRANSPARENCY ON PRODUCT 

On each product page, the certifications and materials are clearly listed. The website also states whether the item is part of the Continental or EarthPositive collection. From here, customers can discover further information about the specific facility that produced their product. 

TRANSPARENCY ON PROCESSES 

Continental Clothing Co. publishes a Social Report annually. This provides detailed information on their facilities, including when they were most recently audited and what the outcomes of this were.