Kathmandu

OVERALL
Owned	NZL
Rating

Adventure clothing and equipment retailer

Founded in New Zealand in 1987. Kathmandu shifted manufacturing offshore during the 1990s and does not currently produce any products in-house. In 2006, founder Jan Cameron sold Kathmandu, comprising 46 stores in Australia, New Zealand and Britain, to private equity firms Goldman Sachs JBWere and Quadrant Private Equity. In 2009, Kathmandu was floated on the Australian and NZ stock markets. Approximately 80% of Kathmandu products are manufactured in China. The company currently operates 162 stores, with 47 in New Zealand, 114 in Australia and 1 in the UK.

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Company Assessment

PRAISE	CRITICISM	INFORMATION
Kathmandu Holdings Ltd
A grade in 2019 Ethical Fashion Report A grade in the Baptist World Aid Australia's 'Ethical Fashion Report 2019', which grades companies, from A to F, on the strength of their systems to mitigate against the risks of forced labour, child labour and worker exploitation in their supply chains, as well as protect the environment from the harmful impacts of the fashion industry. Assessment criteria fall into five main categories: policies, transparency and traceability, auditing and supplier relationships, worker empowerment and environmental management. [Source 2019][More on Workers Rights] Certified B Corporation Certified B Corporations use the power of business to solve social and environmental problems. B Corps meet comprehensive and transparent social and environmental performance standards; meet higher legal accountability standards; and build business constituency for good business. [Source 2019][More on Governance] Packaging Award 2014/6/7 This company won award in 2014, 2016 and 2017 from the Australian Packaging Covenant, for demonstrating their commitment to environmental sustainability by performing 'above and beyond' in their efforts to minimise waste. This company achieved the highest overall score in their category, large Clothing, Footwear and Fashion company. [Source 2017][More on Packaging] CDP Climate Change Score of B In 2019, the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) asked companies to provide data about their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate climate change risk. Responding companies are scored across four key areas: disclosure; awareness; management; and leadership. This company received a CDP Climate Change Score of B. [Source 2019][More on Climate Change] Australian Packaging Covenant signatory Signatory to the Australian Packaging Covenant, a voluntary agreement to encourage waste minimisation. [Source 2020][More on Packaging] Uzbek cotton commitment This company has signed the Cotton Pledge with the Responsible Sourcing Network, signifying a public commitment to not knowingly source Uzbek cotton for the manufacturing of any of their products until the Government of Uzbekistan ends the practice of forced labor in its cotton sector. The Uzbek government uses local government officials, hospital directors, and school presidents to mobilize workers; and detains and tortures human rights defenders seeking to monitor the harvests. [Source 2019][More on Human Rights] Banksia Sustainability Award 2016 This company won a Banksia Sustainability Award in 2016 for demonstrating leadership through fully integrating sustainable principles and practices into operational activities, reducing the organisations' footprint and influencing and educating suppliers and customers. [Source 2016][More on Governance] 30/100 in Fashion Transparency Index The 2020 Fashion Transparency Index reviewed 250 of the world's largest fashion brands and retailers and ranked them according to how much they disclose about their social and environmental policies, practices and impacts. Brands owned by this company scored 30%, signifying it is publishing suppliers lists as well as detailed information about their policies, procedures, social and environmental goals, supplier assessment and remediation processes, and is more likely to be addressing issues such as living wages and collective bargaining. The average score was 23% and the highest score was 73%. [Source 2020][More on Sustainability Reporting]		CanopyStyle member This company is a member of the CanopyStyle initiative, which came about when research found that millions of trees are used every year to produce dissolving pulp, a key ingredient for fabrics such as rayon/viscose. The campaign seeks to phase out the use of endangered forest fibre in fabric. [Source 2018][More on Forests] Fairtrade products This company sells Fairtrade Certified products. [Source 2019][More on Workers Rights] FLA Participant This company has made a sustained corporate commitment to the Fair Labor Association (FLA) by bringing their entire supply chain into the FLA program. This commitment to fulfilling the 10 FLA company obligations includes submitting to unannounced independent external monitoring (IEM) audits, and enforcing the FLA Workplace Code of Conduct in their supplier facilities. [Source 2016][More on Workers Rights] Cruelty free down commitment This company has committed to stop using down from geese and ducks who have been subjected to force feeding and live plucking. The outdoor industry uses hundreds of tons of down that come from millions of geese and ducks. Much of this comes from Hungary and China, where force feeding and live plucking of geese and ducks is permitted. [Source 2016][More on Animal Rights] Use of RWS-certified wool This company has committed to making products with RWS-certified wool. The Responsible Wool Standard (RWS) is a voluntary global standard which ensures that sheep are treated with respect to their five freedoms and also ensures best practices in the management and protection of the land. However PETA claim the RWS is a kind of greenwash. (http://bit.ly/2oH56o6) [Source 2018][More on Animal Rights] Fur free retailer This retailer has committed to being a fur free retailer, as recognised by the International Fur Free Retailer Program. [Source 2019][More on Animal Rights] Use of RDS-certified down This company has committed to making products with RDS-certified down. The Responsible Down Standard (RDS) is an independent, voluntary global standard which ensures that down and feathers come from ducks and geese that have been treated well, with no live plucking or force feeding. However the RDS has been criticised by PETA, who claim live plucking still occurs at RDS farms. (http://bit.ly/2cYTtoJ) [Source 2019][More on Animal Rights] Sustainability Report The report was guided by and accredited through the Global Reporting Initiative and fulfils the requirements of Application Level C. It includes governance, sustainability and human rights initiatives with a number of outcome measures including factory audits. [Source 2012][More on Sustainability Reporting] Sustainable Apparel Coalition member This company is a member of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, a multi-stakeholder initiative launched in March 2011 by a group of global apparel and footwear companies and non-profit organizations (representing nearly one third of the global market share for apparel and footwear). The Coalition's goals are to reduce the apparel industry's environmental and social impact, and to develop a universal index to measure environmental and social performance of apparel products. [Source 2020][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives] Better Cotton Initiative member This company is a member of the Better Cotton Initiative, a voluntary initiative which encourages the adoption of better management practices in cotton cultivation to achieve measurable reductions in key environmental impacts, while improving social and economic benefits for cotton farmers, small and large, worldwide. [Source 2019][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives] Make Fashion Traffik Free Protocol signatory This company has signed the Make Fashion Traffik Free Protocol, an initiative of Stop the Traffik Australia. Fashion companies that sign the Protocol commit to fully tracing their supply chain and to work to ensuring better working conditions. [Source 2016][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives] Textile Exchange member This company is a member of the Textile Exchange, a global non-profit that works closely with its members to drive textile industry transformation in preferred fibres, integrity and standards and responsible supply networks. They identify and share best practices regarding farming, materials, processing, traceability and product end-of-life in order to reduce the textile industry's impact on the world's water, soil and air, and the human population. [Source 2019][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives] Leather Working Group member This company is a member of the Leather Working Group, a multi-stakeholder group who's objective is to develop and maintain a protocol that assesses the compliance and environmental performance of tanners and promotes sustainable and appropriate environmental business practices within the leather industry. [Source 2019][More on Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives] Fined for misleading discounting In 2006 Kathmandu was fined $28,000 plus costs in the Auckland District Court for breaching New Zealand's Fair Trading Act by advertising goods as being "on sale" when they had been available at the discounted price for months prior to the sale and, in some cases, when they were also available at the same "sale" price afterwards. [Source 2006][More on Irresponsible Marketing] Green Outdoor Gear profile Cam Walker from Friends of the Earth Melbourne has created a website which profiles outdoor gear companies and rates them according to a range of sustainability criteria. Follow the link to see this company's profile. [Source 2011]

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