Have suggestions for how we can be more sustainable? Please contact us at sustainability@ateliersociety.com.
Sustainable & Ethical Supply Chain
I founded Atelier Society as a student at the Yale School of Environment because I saw a need for clothing that is not only ethical and better for the environment, but for the people who wear it. Since the very beginning, Atelier Society's mission has been to provide our customer's with timeless, ethical, and sustainable clothes and to end size-tag frustration, singular clothing lengths and unnecessary returns.
I encourage you to read about more about our sustainability and social responsibility initiatives below.
Sincerely,
Sophie Friedfeld
Plastic
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.
Ethical Supply Chain
We are committed to ensuring that we have an ethical supply chain. 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
Climate Change
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.
Clothing Waste
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.
Protecting Our Forests
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.