Scotch & Soda

Scotch & Soda partners with several producers across 14 countries, including China, India, Turkey and Bangladesh. To ensure these partners produce ethically, Scotch & Soda is a member of Amfori BSCI. This organisation helps companies build an ethical and transparent supply chain. Any producer who agrees to the code of conduct has to comply with social standards.

Scotch & Soda says that over 80% of all apparel producers in their supply chain comply with these social regulations. However, the brand wants to map this out further for other parts of the supply chain, such as textile producers.

In addition, Scotch & Soda also works with organic cotton that has been certified by GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard). GOTS checks the production of organic cotton not only for environmental standards but also the working conditions. This is also the case with BCI cotton, where you can be sure that production occurs under ethical working conditions.

Scotch & Soda has an extensive collection and therefore uses many different materials. The most commonly used material is cotton, with the brand using a range of organic, recycled and conventional cotton. Its recycled cotton is often combined in a garment with conventional cotton for better quality. 

Scotch & Soda, as mentioned before, use partly GOTS-certified organic cotton. This certificate sets high environmental and social conditions for producing organic cotton. For example, no chemicals may be used, much less irrigation water is applied in cultivation, and the cotton must be separated. The Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) requires less strict compliance. However, certain chemicals may still be used in small quantities, and organic cotton may also be mixed with conventional cotton.

In its collections, Scotch & Soda also uses non-sustainable materials such as polyester, nylon, and elastane. The brand is taking steps to reduce this. By 2024, they want 70% of all clothing to comprise at least half recycled and renewable materials.

Different types of viscose are also used in the collections. Viscose is made from wood pulp, usually from eucalyptus trees or beech. Scotch & Soda uses Ecovero, Tencel modal, Tencel lyocell and Refibra made by Lenzing, among others. This company confirms that all wood pulp has the FSC label and thus comes from sustainably managed forests (Forest Stewardship Council). In doing so, Lenzing also uses a closed-water-loop production system so no chemicals can be released. Still, these materials are not entirely sustainable. Tencel, for example, came into disrepute due to the link between eucalyptus forests and forest fires in southern Europe.

A brand’s circularity largely depends on the materials they use in their products. Scotch & Soda often uses one single type of material in a garment, a mono-material. This makes it easier for the garment to be recycled after use. Garments made from a combination of different materials are more difficult to recycle because the materials must be separated first. 

In addition, Scotch & Soda also wants to incorporate circular principles into its business model. That is why they are setting up a repair service in Amsterdam in collaboration with Makers Unite. Here, you can hand in damaged jeans for repair. This way, you extend the life of your jeans, and they are less likely to end up in landfills.

Scotch & Soda has a long supply chain as the brand works with a global network of numerous manufacturers. Production occurs worldwide, so your purchase, unfortunately, travels a long way to get to you. The brand does want more sustainable means of transport and therefore uses as little air travel as possible.

Scotch & Soda uses various materials of animal origin. To ensure that these materials are produced under animal-friendly conditions, the brand has drawn up a code of conduct based on the basic principles of The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). 

A big part of the animal materials used is sheep’s wool. Scotch & Soda only use mulesing-free wool. Mulesing involves the removal of skin folds from the sheep to prevent parasite infections such as flystrike. Unfortunately, this is often done unanaesthetised and is painful for the animal. A small proportion of Scotch & Soda’s wool is certified by the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) label. 

The Dutch brand also uses leather in its designs. All leather originated as a co-product of the meat industry and is an attempt at preventing animals from solely being raised for their hides.

The brand has also banned several materials from its collection to avoid animal suffering, such as fur, angora wool, feathers and exotic animal skins. The brand also forbids animal testing in its cosmetics line.

Scotch & Soda is a global fashion chain that has adopted several practices related to fast fashion. For instance, the brand releases new collections regularly and often holds sales or discount offers. The designs are modern and slightly on trend, although the brand also has a range of timeless essentials. Scotch & Soda makes stylish clothing for women, men and children, including several unisex designs.

The brand provides extensive care instructions on the label to help consumers prolong the garment’s life cycle. These wash and care instructions help customers care for their purchases sustainably. 

Finally, the brand is exploring offering a repair service. This service is currently only available in Amsterdam, in collaboration with Makers Unite for denim.

Scotch & Soda is working on its sustainability and the transparency of its production processes. The brand disclosed a list of all their tier 1 and 2 producers. These are all manufacturers and suppliers responsible for the final stages of the production process. Scotch & Soda plans to disclose the rest of its suppliers soon. 

Moreover, the brand publishes an annual sustainability report sharing information on the materials they use, ethical and ecological measures they take and the company’s calculated CO2 emissions.