Innovation

[core value]

THE LAST TEN:

Expanded from a scarf line to a full fashion brand -- leather, jewelry, apparel and shoes

After starting as a small line of scarves woven in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, ABLE has expanded to include footwear, apparel, jewelry and leather from all over the world. Our jewelry is handmade in our Nashville, TN studio and our other products are made in Ethiopia, Brazil, Mexico and India. We’ve come to be known for our classic leather pieces, iconic denim jacket and dainty jewelry.

THE NEXT TEN:

The household name for ethical fashion

We want to be known around the world as the top choice in ethical fashion, so we can show it can be done the right way.

Humility

[core value]

THE LAST TEN:

Shared our weaknesses in transparent manufacturing audits

If we are to move the fashion industry to paying fair wages to its workers, we must first acknowledge where we are, and how far we have to go. In publishing our lowest wages and audit reports that showed both our strengths and weaknesses, we took the risk to become completely transparent. We believe you do not have to be perfect before you are honest.

THE NEXT TEN:

All manufacturers to have updated audits by 2022

Our future is to do this work better, and more clearly. While transparency of the good and bad matches our core value, it also demands we continue to improve in the pursuit of getting information in the hands of consumers. We must communicate through word and deed that we believe in progress over perfection. Our plan is to have all our manufacturers to have newly updated audits, with greater clarity on impact data, by 2022.

Collaboration

[core value]

THE LAST TEN:

Collabrotion was our key to growth, and still is

We believe that ABLE has grown because of our commitment to genuine collaboration. We define this as the exhaustive pursuit of valuing and understanding every person’s ideas, making decisions only once the most patiently vetted idea rises to the top. This requires a focus on mission, a willingness to be wrong, and a discipline of celebrating your co-workers. This characteristic is the core of what has made ABLE special, both in creating beautiful products and a committed mission.

THE NEXT TEN:

Offering more collaboration to you, our community

With this mindset, creativity flourishes. The future is offering more collaboration to you, our community. Our best ideas have come from our community - whether it be a design contest yielding our best selling scarf of all time, or collaborations with ABLE community members who share their talents. Our plan is to engage you more, both on product and mission, to amplify the truth that our greatest wins always come from you. So when you see opportunities like these arise, participate!

Accountability

[core value]

THE LAST TEN:

Published lowest wages in 2018

In an industry where only 2% of manufacturing labor earns a living wage, and an estimated 75% are women, ABLE believed that publishing the lowest wages protects the most vulnerable workers, and empowers consumers to demand change. By beginning to publish our lowest wages in 2018, we ask consumers to join us on the journey to challenge the industry to get to 100% living wages in our supply chains.

THE NEXT TEN:

All laborers to 100% living wage by 2030

In co-launching the Lowest Wage Challenge, we asked brands to join us in publishing their wages as well with the belief that nothing changes corporate behavior like consumer demand. Our plan is to have all laborers to 100% living wage by 2030, and our goal is to have a standardized label that includes wage information adopted by the entire industry.

Openness

[core value]

THE LAST TEN:

Women-first company, with 96% women employees and top-of-the-line benefits

We are a women-first company. With 96% of our employees being women, and more female executive leadership then male, ABLE began with an openness to building a very different business. Our mission began with employing 3 women who desired to leave the commercial sex industry, and has grown into a company with top-of-the-line benefits, including: full maternity coverage, infertility and adoption assistance, $0 pay healthcare options, ownership awarded to every employee, and more.

THE NEXT TEN:

Implementing company-wide education on justice, equity, diversity and inclusion

While our women’s focus makes us unique, we have to be open to doing much better, and we recognize we can do so with our efforts in justice, equity, diversity and inclusion. We are working with an lifelong expert, MaryAnne Howland, in going through deep education and discussion on our biases, with the goal to build a better and more intentional internal program. Our plan is to publish in March 2021 ABLE’s fully articulated plan to include better community engagement, more rigorous hiring practices built to attract diversity, and ongoing education and training with the internal staff.

Impact

[core value]

THE LAST TEN:

Created jobs, especially for women

ABLE has been a leader in using jobs as a solution to poverty. It is not a charitable model - we don’t sell product and then give money or product to charity. Instead, our model was created based on this belief - if you are to be serious about solutions to poverty, you have to do two things: create jobs, and do so for women. Through this, ABLE has grew from 3 to 90 employees in 5 years, and helped several businesses start with the purpose of working with ABLE.

THE NEXT TEN:

Improve our environmental impact by becoming carbon neutral and plastic free by 2024

A people focus, particularly with empowering women, was the beginning. The future is to continue to go deeply into that work, and also grow in our environmental impact work. We plan to bring our supply chain to 100% living wage by 2030, and to become Carbon Neutral by 2024, including efforts to become plastic free by 2024.