We’re aware of our responsibility to employees and people manufacturing our products worldwide. International manufacturing processes and supply chains are exceptionally complex. Therefore, we want to understand our impact on society too and advocate safe, fair, legal, and people-friendly working conditions. This approach applies to both our own factory in Isny, Germany, as well as to any overseas.
We have a long history, a character of our own, many ideas, and great goals—we have something that defines us as EDELRID and sets us apart from others. Of course, this is a feeling of belonging, mindset, and shared values. We took a good look, twisted and turned things around, to finally put into words what we live every day—in our interactions with each other, with our customers, and with our business partners—our values:
Innovation is EDELRID’s driving force. We’ve been producing our core products here in Isny in the Allgäu for over 160 years. Today, approx. 60% of our sales are due to products made in Germany. This figure represents our core business with ropes and assembly of some products, with single components made in other countries across the globe. Nevertheless, we inspect all our products again before they reach the market.
It goes without saying that safe and fair working conditions are important to our suppliers. And the same applies to us here in Isny where we have a direct influence. This facility has EMAS and ISO 14001 certification.
To us, products made in Germany is so much more than just a label. It’s our brand’s commitment to this country as a production hub. It also guarantees that we can keep a close eye on the products we sell.
We believe that garments should be fair for everyone. And Isny, where we can monitor working conditions directly, isn’t the only place our items are produced.
Which is why we’ve been an official member of the Fair Wear Foundation (FWF) since mid-2021. The FWF is a multi-stakeholder initiative, in other words, a voluntary group of public-sector bodies, NGOs and companies that aim to improve working conditions at garment manufacturers the world over.
Its work is underpinned by Fair Wear’s Code of Labour Practices, which is based on the conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As a result, the production facilities are scrutinised, as well as the FWF brands and their purchasing behaviour at these sites as part of an annual brand performance check.
The Fair Wear Foundation offers the opportunity to progressively improve social sustainability and supply chain transparency. To make specific improvements in working conditions, it also provides the chance to learn and to network with other brands producing at the same site.
EDELRID has been a member of the Fair Wear Foundation (FWF) since mid-2021. We have taken our accession to FWF as an opportunity to formulate internal goals for the development of social conditions along our supply chain. We are pleased to present our work in the area of social performance and working conditions as transparently as possible in the second EDELRID Social Report.
We are immensely proud that we were able to complete our second Fair Wear Brand Performance Check with a “GOOD”. It feels good to receive confirmation from an independent body that our measures to fulfill our due diligence obligations to promote responsible working conditions in the supply chain are going in the right direction and that we have worked effectively on our weaknesses. We were able to improve in particular with regard to our risk assessment in accordance with OECD guidelines and the follow-up and root cause analysis of complaints in supplier audits, as well as the systematic development of our supplier monitoring. However, we do not want to rest on our laurels, but continue to focus on action, learning and authenticity in order to work towards becoming a more socially responsible company and to prove this again in the next Brand Performance Check in 2025.