Designworks
OVERALL |
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Owned |
AUS |
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Clothing supplier
Established in 1993, Designworks is a designer, marketer and supplier of owned, licensed and private label and branded apparel.
Company Ownership
Designworks Pty Ltd | AUS | website | ||||
The PAS Group Pty Ltd ![]() owns 100% of Designworks Pty Ltd |
AUS | website | ||||
Clothing & sportswear Acquired and integrated 8 Australian apparel and accessories companies since 2004, when the company was founded. Designs locally and imports primarily from China. Now operates 23 brands which are sold throughout Australia, New Zealand and South Africa in major retail chains and over 1,000 independent retailers. Acquired by Queens Lane Capital in 2020 after getting into financial trouble earlier that year. | ||||||
Queens Lane Capital Pty Ltd ![]() owns 100% of The PAS Group Pty Ltd |
AUS | website | ||||
Private equity firm Australian private equity investment firm focused on mid-market leveraged buyouts, growth equity investments, consolidations, carve-outs and turnaround situations, with investments across multiple industries within Australia. Acquired PAS Group in 2020. | ||||||
» LK Group ![]() owns 100% of Queens Lane Capital Pty Ltd |
AUS | website | ||||
Company group LK Group is a Melbourne-based family of private companies with diverse interests across: property; technology; human resources; business transformation and outsourcing; digital animation and sports. LK Group operations span Australia, the United States, India, the Philippines, and the Dominican Republic. Established in 2009 by Dodo founder Larry Kestelman. Current investments include fashion & footwear companies PAS Group and Brand Collective, and a controlling stake in the National Basketball League (NBL). |
Company Assessment
PRAISE | CRITICISM | INFORMATION | ||
Designworks Pty Ltd | ||||
Oxfam Australia's 2019 Naughty or Nice list ranks the biggest and most popular clothing brands on what they are actually doing to protect and support the women making our clothes, especially on brands' commitment to paying a living wage. This company is on the 'nice' list.
Source: Oxfam Australia (2019)
This company has signed the Cotton Pledge with the Responsible Sourcing Network, signifying a public commitment to not knowingly source Turkmen cotton for the manufacturing of any of their products until the Government of Turkmenistan ends the practice of forced labor in its cotton sector. Each cotton season, Turkmen public sector workers are forced by the government to fulfill cotton picking quotas and private businesses are forced to contribute to the efforts financially or with labor. This places a huge burden on the health, education, and general well-being of Turkmen citizens.
Source: Responsible Sourcing Network (2021) |
According to Oxfam's 2019 report, "Made in Poverty - The True Cost of Fashion", this company sources from Bangladesh. Some of the many disturbing findings of the research in Bangladesh were that 100 per cent of workers interviewed were not paid a living wage, nine out of ten could not afford enough food for themselves and their families until their next monthly pay and seven out of 10 could not pay for medical treatment when they were sick or injured. Other findings include people sleeping on floors in overcrowded houses, spiralling debts, and mothers separated from their children.
Source: Oxfam Australia (2019) |
This company has corporate social responsibility claims on its website including a publicly available ethical sourcing code.
Source: company website (2015) |
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The PAS Group Pty Ltd | ||||
Oxfam Australia's 2019 Naughty or Nice list ranks the biggest and most popular clothing brands on what they are actually doing to protect and support the women making our clothes, especially on brands' commitment to paying a living wage. This company is on the 'nice' list.
Source: Oxfam Australia (2019) |
In 2020 Baptist World Aid Australia released The COVID Fashion Report, a special edition of their Ethical Fashion Report. The report is framed around six COVID Fashion Commitments that ask companies to demonstrate the steps and measures they are taking to protect and support the most vulnerable workers in their supply chains. This company showed no evidence of actions that it covered any of the COVID Fashion Commitments.
Source: Baptist World Aid Australia (2020)
Human Rights Law Centre's 2022 report, "Broken Promises: Two years of corporate reporting under Australia's Modern Slavery Act", examines statements submitted to the Government's Modern Slavery Register by 92 companies sourcing from four sectors with known risks of modern slavery: garments from China, rubber gloves from Malaysia, seafood from Thailand and fresh produce from Australia. Modern slavery statements are analysed to see if they comply with the mandatory reporting requirements, identify or disclose obvious modern slavery risks, and demonstrate effective actions to address risks. This company's modern slavery disclosure statement received a rating in the 21-30% range. The average score was 44% and the highest score was 89%.
Source: Human Rights Law Centre (2022)
Baptist World Aid Australia's '2022 Ethical Fashion Report' assessed 120 companies on their efforts 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: policy & governance, tracing & risk, auditing and supplier relationships, worker empowerment and environmental sustainability. This company received a score of 20/100.
Source: Baptist World Aid Australia (2022) |
Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) is a not-for-profit organisation leading the development of a circular economy for packaging in Australia. Each year, APCO Members are required to submit an APCO Annual Report and Action Plan, which includes an overall performance level from 1 (Getting Started) to 5 (Beyond Best Practice). This company received a packaging performance level of 2 (Good Progress) in its 2022 APCO Annual Report.
Source: APCO (2022)
This company signed the Uzbek 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. However the Pledge was lifted in March 2022 after the Uzbek Forum for Human Rights, who monitored the annual cotton harvest since 2010, found no state-imposed forced labor in the 2021 harvest.
Source: Cotton Campaign (2022)
This article called "5 Things You Didn't Know About PAS Group" reveals the extent of their holdings, including over 20 fashion brands plus Designworks, who make apparel under license and for Big W and Target private label brands.
Source: Ragtrader (2014) |
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Queens Lane Capital Pty Ltd | ||||
No assessment data currently available for Queens Lane Capital Pty Ltd | ||||
LK Group | ||||
No assessment data currently available for LK Group |
Company Details
Type | Wholly-owned subsidiary |
Employees | 100+ (2014) |
Contact Details
Address | 8-14 Hall St, Hawthorn East, VIC, 3123, Australia |
Phone | 03 9822 9888 |
Website | www.designwcc.com.au |
Products / Brands
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