Our mission has always been to empower women who have overcome extraordinary circumstances. As we have grown with you, our goals have evolved, deepened, and increased in ambition. This growth has lead to the development of accountABLE, a radical and disruptive reporting system that provides unparalleled transparency into the social impact of our employment and manufacturing practices, particularly the impact on women.
Our hope is that you, the consumer, drive a demand for accountABLE audits in other brands across the industry... that consumers are no longer comfortable buying products without understanding their impact on the people who make them.
These goals apply to all our employees both at our manufacturers and in-house. And while we may still be figuring out our path, we commit to being completely transparent with you every step of the way, no matter what the outcome. We want you to know the true impact of your purchase.
fashionABLE
IS NOW CALLED
ABLE
ABLE ties
together our
past and future.
INTRODUCING
accountABLE
THESE ARE OUR
accountABLE 2020 GOALS
Goals
2020 Vision
100%
True Living
Wage
True Living
Wage
In most countries, the minimum wage does not support a normal standard of living. At ABLE our goal is to go far beyond the government requirement and ensure all those working for our brand are earning a true living wage.
100%
Workplace
Without Fear
Workplace
Without Fear
Fashion manufacturing is notorious for unsafe working conditions and lack of support for employees, especially for women. We want 100% of workers surveyed to affirm their workplace as a safe environment, free of gender discrimination and sexual harassment.
100%
Health Care
Benefits
Health Care
Benefits
No one should ever have to put work before their health. We are working to ensure this never happens by providing quality healthcare benefits to all employees, including paid sick leave and maternal health support.
100%
Workplace
Equality
Workplace
Equality
We work with our manufacturers to ensure gender equality in the workplace by actively hiring women, ensuring equal pay for the same work, equal advancement opportunities, and allowing women to have families without sacrificing their career advancements.
We have to
do better.
We should not be able to enjoy the things we consume at the expense of those whose basic necessities are not being met. After researching certifications to audit the social impact of our work, we saw two major weaknesses in currently available audits that pushed us to develop our own.
Two major current audit weaknesses:
1
There was no audit we felt dove deeply enough into the manufacturer’s impact on women.
2
Many certifications do not require an auditor to even visit a manufacturer, let alone deeply vet factory conditions, to receive a seal of approval.
From retailers to consumers, we must demand transparency.
We have put in countless hours (more than two years’ worth), lots of money, and plenty of woman power to develop a social impact audit we can all believe in, which has given birth to accountABLE.
accountABLE is a radical and disruptive reporting system that provides unparalleled transparency into the social impact of your employment and manufacturing practices. accountABLE has a focus on worker rights and safety, with a particular emphasis on women in the workplace.
We invite brands to use this platform as a way to correct any challenges in their manufacturing, and then prove the impact they are having in the fashion industry while marketing to ethically-minded consumers. The platform itself will be licensed for brands to use free of charge, and we will help connect you with a third-party auditor to execute the audit.
If you’re interested in the audit process or would simply like additional information, please fill out the contact form. We’ll set a time to review the process with you and explain how accountABLE develops definite confidence in your manufacturers.
We invite brands to use this platform as a way to correct any challenges in their manufacturing, and then prove the impact they are having in the fashion industry while marketing to ethically-minded consumers. The platform itself will be licensed for brands to use free of charge, and we will help connect you with a third-party auditor to execute the audit.
If you’re interested in the audit process or would simply like additional information, please fill out the contact form. We’ll set a time to review the process with you and explain how accountABLE develops definite confidence in your manufacturers.
Please join us in our push to change the industry.
We are starting by publishing an audit of our jewelry manufacturing and home offices in Nashville, TN in early 2018.
Ending poverty: why women and why fashion?
1
The fashion industry is the third largest industrial industry in the world, employing over 60 million people, more than 75% of whom are women.
2
It’s been proven when you pay a woman, more of the money goes back to supporting her family, as compared to paying a man. Every dollar a woman earns, she invests 80 percent in her family. Men, on the other hand, invest around 30 - 40 percent.
3
Given these two facts, investing in women in the fashion industry is one of the most impactful strategies for lifting families out of generational poverty.
Women: Facts To Know
1
Women perform 66% of the world’s work, produce 50% of its food but earn merely 10% of its income, according to UN gender reports.
2
Globally, working women earn 24% less than men doing equivalent work. More disturbingly, 49.1% of the world’s working women are in vulnerable employment, often unprotected by labour legislation.
3
Studies show that when women have secure rights to their land, their families’ nutrition and health improve. In addition, women may be less likely to be victims of domestic violence and children are more likely to receive an education and stay in school longer.