PRODUCTION LOCATIONS
- Bangladesh
- China
WORKING CONDITIONS & LIVING WAGES
Stanley/Stella is a Fair Wear Foundation member, with a ‘Leader’ status, and aims to continue improving working conditions in their partner factories through revised audit documents, enhanced processes, and Corrective Action Plans. They work with 11 partner factories in Bangladesh which are GOTS and GRS certified, and 1 partner factory in China, which is GRS certified.
The brand states that the manufacturers in their partner factories in Bangladesh are paid the legal minimum wage. They recognise that this wage does not correspond to a living wage as defined by the Global Living Wage Coalition, and state that they continue to explore the best ways to bring worker remuneration closer to the living wage.
The brand states that in 2023, they visited key supply chain actors in Turkey, India, and Tanzania to strengthen their understanding of organic cotton sourcing, and inspect ginning factories. Stanley/Stella has collaborated with Remei Tanzania, which partners with 2,000 smallholder organic cotton farms in the Simiyu region. Through this ‘direct-to-farm’ project, the brand aims to ensure fair payments for their organic cotton, and ongoing support for organic farming practices.
In 2023, the brand began a collaboration with Drip by Drip, a non-profit organisation that focuses on addressing water issues caused by the fashion and textile industry in Bangladesh. Through Drip by Drip, they have financed a mobile hospital to support the communities where workers in their partner factories live. As of March 2024, they have given over 40,000 people from 35 villages access to free medical care.
The brand’s work with communities extends beyond the locations they manufacture in, to those close to their headquarters in Belgium. They have partnered with four Brussels-based associations that support refugees, migrants, homeless people, and asylum seekers.
MATERIALS
- Organic cotton
- Recycled polyester
- Recycled nylon
- Recycled cotton
Stanley/Stella states that their entire collection is made from Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified organic cotton, Global Recycled Standard (GRS) certified recycled polyester, nylon, and cotton. The majority of their material consumption in 2024, 90.1%, was organic cotton, whilst 7.3% was recycled polyester, and 2.6% recycled cotton.
To ensure the traceability of their recycled polyester, Stanley/Stella travelled to China in 2023 to meet with actors at different levels of the supply chain, including visits to collection points for post-consumer plastic bottles. This action, alongside the GRS certification, ensures that their products actually contain the recycled content they claim to have.
PACKAGING
Stanley/Stella does not disclose what packaging materials are used on their website.
WATER USAGE & CHEMICALS
Stanley/Stella ensures that the chemical management polices at their production sites comply with high standards such as GOTS and OEKO-TEX Standard 100. This ensures that every component of their products is free from harmful substances. Additionally, the brand mostly uses GOTS certified organic cotton, which is grown organically without the use of genetically modified seeds or harmful chemicals. Organic cotton requires less water to grow than conventional cotton too.
To reduce the contamination of water from their dyeing processes, Stanley/Stella’s partner factories have on-site Effluent Treatment Plants, in line with legal requirements, and have in-house specialists and testing facilities. This ensures that their wastewater can be treated and then released back into nature without harming the environment.
CIRCULAR PRODUCT DESIGN
Stanley/Stella recycles the cotton cutting waste from their production by shredding it into yarn and blending it with virgin organic fibre to create high-quality fabric. They state that in 2024 alone, they recycled 226 tonnes of cotton. The brand also uses recycled polyester, helping to give new life to waste. Unfortunately recycled polyester itself is difficult to recirculate, meaning that these garments are more likely to become waste at the end of their lifespans. You can read more about the environmental impact of recycled polyester here.
Stanley/Stella recognises that material blends are difficult to recycle at end-of-life. Consequently, in 2024, they transitioned 14 of their sweatshirt styles (representing 50% of their sales) from an 85% organic cotton cotton/15% recycled polyester blend to a new 100% organic cotton fabric.
CIRCULAR BUSINESS MODELS
Stanley/Stella doesn’t disclose any circular business models on their website, such as a repair service or return scheme. An initiative such as this would take their sustainability practices further as it would ensure that their products are kept in use for as long as possible.
DISTANCE & COMPLEXITY OF THE SUPPLY CHAIN
Production locations:
- Bangladesh
- China
Stanley/Stella has a long and relatively complex supply chain. They source their organic cotton from Turkey, India, and Tanzania, their garment factories are located in Bangladesh and China, and their warehouses are located in Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. This means that their associated transportation-related emissions will be higher.
TRANSPORTATION
Stanley/Stella does not disclose what transportation methods are used in their supply chain, which will impact how high their related emissions are.
Stanley/Stella is a PETA-Approved brand, ensuring that their products are made from 100% vegan materials, and are never tested on animals.
PRODUCT DESIGN
As Stanley/Stella serves a B2B audience, their main collection is relatively stable, with timeless products and colours that often remain available for several years. They offer a selection of t‑shirts, hoodies, and jackets, with a selection of styles to suit different preferences. The sizes range across their products, with some items available in sizes XXS to 3XL, and others in sizes S to 5XL.
SLOW FASHION PROCESSES
Stanley/Stella releases a spring/summer and autumn/winter collection every year. The brand states that these new collections are developed around 1.5 to 2 years in advance, in full alignment with their suppliers, to ensure realistic deadlines and maintain their focus on quality and improved sustainability.
TRANSPARENCY ON PRODUCT
On each product page, Stanley/Stella details what materials the garment is made from, and all the applicable certifications with the option to download their certificates too. Although the majority of their production takes place in Bangladesh they also manufacture in China, so it would be ideal if their product pages stated the production location too.
TRANSPARENCY ON PROCESSES
As Stanley/Stella strives to ensure high social standards in their production, they conduct field trips. For example, in 2023, their Sustainability and Sourcing teams travelled to China to trace the origin of their recycled polyester and observe all the steps of its transformation into the final material. They have therefore been able to share detailed information, and pictures, on this process.
The brand has also published a detailed Sustainability Report on their website, which provides further information about their processes for further consumer transparency.
