G-Star Raw Responsible Denim: Respecting people and planet

We love our denim and know that a good pair of jeans will never go out of fashion. Jeans have formed the basis of every man’s wardrobe since the 20th century and their popularity will, no doubt, continue far into the 21st century and beyond.   As a popular product, more often that not, it can be categorised as fast fashion – cheap and mass produced with seriously detrimental effects on the environment through massive water consumption and pollution.  Additionally, workers are often exposed to toxic chemicals and poor working conditions. 

So, what can we do? Well, here at Genius we are passionate and committed to sourcing brands that respect both people and planet in the production of high-quality fashion denim. One such brand is G-Star Raw. Their Raw Responsibility initiative outlines their commitment to people, planet, and philanthropy. 

“Our ambition is to improve the social and environmental impact of our products by designing for re-use and giving back to the communities in countries where we produce.  We collaborate with expert partners to accelerate change and develop sustainable solutions for the future of fashion”.

The G-Star Raw Responsibility initiative has 3 key pillars: 

People:  

They continuously monitor the conditions of the people involved throughout the value chain and collaborate with expert partners to continuously improve them.

Planet:  

Denim is designed for re-use, is produce responsibly and continuously measured for impact on the PLANET.  In 2013, Greenpeace exposed that Chinese factories working for renowned fashion brands discharged wastewater containing traces of hazardous chemicals into rivers and oceans. Like many others, G-Star signed a DETOX Commitment with Greenpeace to address this issue and ban the use of hazardous chemicals from its products and production processes by January 2020.  Now signed up to the Roadmap to Zero campaign, an industry wide programme working towards zero discharge of hazardous chemicals for a better future.

Philanthropy:

G-Star aim to make a positive and lasting impact on the lives of people in countries where G-Star produces through philanthropic efforts, providing education and stimulating entrepreneurship through training and coaching.  Check out the GSRD Foundation here.  

“We focus on minimizing the environmental impact of our products by taking a circular approach to how denim is both made and used, and are increasing the use of materials, washings and finishes that contribute to a sustainable future without compromising on quality, comfort and design. We believe it is also our responsibility to take leadership within the industry and continuously experiment and develop new sustainable design innovations using denim as our canvas”.