From sweatshops to ‘shoe miles’, the issues around what goes into the clothes we wear are a many.
Worn Again takes a transparent approach to communicating the real ingredients that go into our products, including materials, labour standards and energy use, while addressing the impacts of our activities on trade and climate change.
Our aim is to create good-looking products, for good-looking (inside and out) people, without a guilty conscience.
The trainer business isn’t pretty. From finding the materials, to the treatment of the people who put them together, to transporting the finished product – making shoes is one of the most resource-intensive, polluting and toxic industries there is. So, making a perfectly ethical trainer isn’t easy.
But Worn Again is working step-by-step to show that it can be done – and that people want it to be done. And the fact that you’re reading this page means it might just be possible.
Environment
In order to produce shoes and bags with the least environmental impact, Worn Again uses recycled materials, sources regionally and works to reduce waste and carbon emissions.
Recycling
Recycling materials reduces the need for landfills and saves on virgin resources.
Our original Worn Again collection kept old men’s suits, car seats, granddad shirts and prison blankets from ending up in landfill. And since then, we’ve been discovering more and more unexpected things that can be made into fantastic shoes and bags: surplus military tents, bicycle inner tubes, airline seat covers and car seat belts.
Regional Sourcing
Worn Again aims to source materials closest to the place of production to cut down on ‘shoe miles’ traveled by materials, thereby reducing carbon emissions.
All of our bags are manufactured in the Porto region of Portugal, using the most fashionably disused seat belts, bicycle tires and military tents from the European region.
Visit our gallery to see Maria sourcing seat belts in Portugal.
Environmentally Responsible Manufacturing and Transport
From production to packaging, Worn Again works with factories to improve environmental standards and practices. We seek to work with factories that comply with international certification ISO 14000 for environmental standards.
But some of our factories (more accurately ‘workshops’) in Portugal are so small-scale (4-5 employees) that they do not have the capacity/ resources to apply for international certification.
We are working with Apiccaps, the Portugese Footwear Association, to make it easier for them and also to advance standards and certification around making products out of recycled materials in Portugal.
Goods are transported primarily by land and sea rather than flying.
Energy used at factories during production and transport of our products is calculated and offset through Climate Care. Although offsetting is not ‘the’ answer, it is a positive step towards a solution.
Eventually we aim to create THE 100% climate positive shoe.
People and Places
Worn Again products are designed by Mike Corbett one of the UK’s most experienced and successful footwear designers, working with international brands such as Timberland, Merrell and Clarks. Mike is extremely passionate about making achingly stylish things out of rubbish.
Read an interview with Mike and see his eco-friendly home in Bath where he walks his talk…
Production
80% of the world’s shoes are made in China.
Since our beginning, we’ve been dedicated to finding more diverse production models, supporting local economies – and minimising the miles travelled by our trainers before they reach our feet.
Autumn ’08 will be our last season producing footwear in China. Looking forward, all footwear will be produced, together with our bags, in Portugal.
Meanwhile we’re hatching further plans to launch a range of “locally grown” shoes made from recycled materials found and made here in the UK.
Labour standards
Worn Again believes that those who make our shoes should benefit rather than be exploited by their involvement with Worn Again. Factories should provide good working conditions. Worn Again also works to create a connection between producer and consumer and to improve social conditions for people making its products.
Worn Again expects factories to meet local and international labour legislation – based on the International Labour Organisation Conventions as encapsulated in the Ethical Trading Initiative Base Code and/or the SA8000 Standard, ISO 9000 for manufacturing and ISO 14000 for environmental practices.
In the case of small factories, for instance in Portugal, some may not have the scale of production to justify the costs associated with applying for international standards.
With these factories, our policy is to:
- ensure that they meet regional labour and environmental standards and are working towards international standards
- have a close working relationship with the manager(s) to communicate the values of Worn Again
- get to know some of the staff to understand what improvements they’d like to see in their working conditions and to communicate the purpose behind the Worn Again project.
Visit the photo gallery to see them at work…