The company will continue to be a trade only supplier to the printwear and corporate markets, as well as being the uniform supplier for some Co-operative groups, but the change will position it with more strength, not just from the allegiance with the Co-operative name but also the values the group is associated with.

"The Co-operative Group aims to be among the elite when it comes to ethics," explains The Co-operative Clothing's sales director Mark Wilkinson. "So, in line with the values and principles of the group, the Co-operative Clothing has a general commitment to improve labour standards, with a view to achieving 'ethical leadership' status and becoming the UK's preferred ethical supplier within the next five years."

 As such, the company follows the Group's Sound Sourcing Code of Conduct, developed in line with the Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) Base Code and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions.The code states that the Group's aim is to "develop an effective working partnership with suppliers in order to secure decent working conditions for anybody involved in the production of our range of Co-op brand products". With this in mind, the Co-operative Clothing will arrange independent social audits of all its principal direct suppliers by June 2008, and has signed up as a member of the Supplier Ethical Database Exchange (Sedex), which allows members to share social audit information on manufacturing premises and thus help the management of labour standards.

In addition to its commitment to sound sourcing and labour practices, the company also follows the Group's Sustainable Development Policy, which sets clear priorities and targets for all material activities in its pursuit of sustainable development.

The Co-operative Clothing Company's initiatives in this area include a commitment to offset 333 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions from its UK operations in 2008; recycling all of its cardboard waste; and printing its catalogue with vegetable oil-based inks on 80% recycled paper (60% post consumer waste and 20% from a Forest Stewardship Council certified source), which is manufactured in a totally chlorine free process. In addition, the company plans to introduce an electronic picking system to reduce environmental impact from paper use (as well as improve efficiency), and is investigating packaging reduction and using packaging with a high recycled content. 

The re-branding has coincided with a move to brand new premises in Washington, Tyne and Wear, which with around 40,000sq ft of warehouse space is double the size of the old site. Heavy investment in the site and in computerisation and control systems will significantly improve turnaround times on orders, says Wilkinson, who adds: "We aim to be on a par in terms of service levels with the UK's major garment distributors."

From this summer, customers will be able to place orders online and from early 2009 they will be able to track the process of their orders through picking, packing, dispatch and delivery.  All of these changes will help drive the company towards its goal of doubling turnover in the next four years, as set out by managing director Paul Slocombe.

As a clothing supplier, it is only natural that the fabrics themselves are included in these initiatives, and as such the company is investigating the use of Fairtrade cotton in the supply chain. But, this isn't as easy as you might think, as Wilkinson explains: "Because the shirt thread is much finer than that used for T-shirts there are more technical issues involved, which makes Fairtrade status more difficult to achieve."

However, you can't help thinking that with the backing of one of the companies most associated with Fairtrade in the UK, it will find a way.

Email: sales@co-operativeclothing.com

Tel: 0845 521 0051

Web:  http://www.co-operativeclothing.com/

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