Sustainable & Ethical Supply Chain

We strongly believe that animals should be treated with dignity and respect. That is why we are committed to only selling properly certified fabrics. Our wools are all Responsible Wool Standard or recycled wool. Our down is all Responsible Down Standard or recycled down. Our mohair is all Responsible Mohair Standard or recycled mohair. Our Alpaca wools are all Responsible Alpaca Standard or recycled Alpaca wool. All our leather is by-products of the meat industry, and we never purchase leather that has been slaughtered just for the leather trade. 

Critically, we never sell furs or exotic animal skins.

We have eliminated single-use plastic from all the products we sell. This means that our garment bags, consumer packaging (boxes, bags, tape, etc.), hang tags, and hang tag fascinators do not contain plastic. 

We plan to reduce other plastic in our supply chain 50% by 2030.

Did you know that many chemicals used in creating fabrics are so hazardous to human health, that the E.P.A regulates many textile manufacturing facilities as hazardous waste generators? Read more here.

We believe there should be significantly stricter federal regulations in the United States on what chemicals are allowed to be used in the making, dyeing, and treating of fabrics in relation to human health.

That is why we have committed to only selling virgin fabrics (meaning fabrics that come from non-recycled sources) that meet specific chemical safety standards. That means all the virgin fabric sold on Atelier Society's storefront is certified bluesign®, STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® , Cradle to Cradle®, organic, or meets the bluesign®, STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® or Cradle to Cradle® standards. We've intentionally chosen not to subject apparel made of deadstock or recycled fabrics to these standards, given their origin from recycled materials and their distinct role in mitigating the toxic hazards often associated with virgin fabrics.

We are committed to ensuring that we have an ethical supply chain and we work everyday to try to live up to that promise. To us this means ensuring our workers are paid a living wage and treated fairly, and we have a transparent supply chain.

We have a transparent and accessible Supplier Code of Conduct which we require all our direct cut, sew & finish manufacturing partners to adhere to. Our Supplier Code of Conduct references the FLA Workplace Code of Conduct and Compliance Benchmarks which are based on International Labor Organization (ILO) standards and internationally accepted good labor practices

We also commit to having no cotton sourced from Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. This is because of documented reports of industry-wide, systematic human rights violations, including the use of child labor and forced labor in the harvesting of cotton.

Did you know that the fashion industry is responsible for 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the United Nations Environment Program?

That's why we're taking action to address emissions in every aspect of our operations, including sourcing, manufacturing, shipping, waste, returns, and the garment lifecycle. We prioritize local production to minimize our carbon footprint and source materials locally whenever possible.

We're focused on selling clothes that fit our customers perfectly the first time, because around 70% of returns are due to fit issues. Returns in the United States generate 5 billion pounds of waste and 15 million tons of carbon emissions annually (BBC). Our goal is to increase fit and fit transparency to reduce returns, waste and greenhouse gas emissions. We also are committed to providing clothing with higher quality to increase the garment lifecycle and the number of times a garment is worn before it is discarded or recycled.

Moreover, we have committed to being 100% carbon neutral by 2035 and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, in line with the goal of keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Did you know that the average American throws away 87 pounds of clothes a year (BBC)? 85% of America’s discarded clothes ends up in landfills or is burned (EPA). This astronomical number of discarded garments is because the world is producing more clothes than ever before, but the quality of the clothes has decreased. Nowadays, the materials used in clothes is thinner, flimsier and of lower quality materials than ever before and the seams of garments are stitched together hastily and haphazardly.

At Atelier Society we believe it is our duty to only sell clothes that are made to last. Our clothes fit better, are made with higher-quality and sustainable materials, and are sewn with the highest attention to detail. The style of our clothes are also produced with longevity in mind. We do not follow trends. We sell clothes in classic styles so that the clothes will become staples in our client’s wardrobes, as they are in ours.

The fashion industry generates an extraordinary quantity of waste due to returns, and reduced garment lifecycle. Currently, 40% of all clothing bought online is returned with 25% of returns discarded by brands. The vast majority – 70% –of returns due to issues with fit. Returns produce 15 million tons of carbon emissions annually (BBC). Clothing that is kept by consumers does not fare much better. The average American throws away 87 pounds of clothes a year (BBC). We produce clothes that fit better and are made to last.   

One common question we get asked is: what do you do with all the fabric you cut off when you hem? This is a great question! We send all of these scraps to a textile recycling facility.

We are committed to protecting our forests. That is why all the paper and cardboard we use either comes from recycled sources or is FSC™ certified.