With the fast-fashion boom that has taken place in the last few years, it seems as though everywhere you look there are brands trying to jump on the bandwagon and pass off their goods as fast fashion.
Fashion has always been a game of make-believe, an illusion of luxury and wealth like the clothes which are being sold in fancy boutique shops, department stores, and even online stores.
Karen Millen used to be one of the best-respected fashion brands in the UK. But over the past few years, it has become known as “fast fashion”.
Is Karen Millen ethical?
Karen Millen sells fast fashion. Fast fashion is a relatively new phenomenon where companies produce cheap clothing that can be sold at high or low prices.
Fast fashion makes it possible to sell clothes at a fraction of their original price.
After Boohoo acquired Karen the quality and standard of this brand declined significantly.
Even Karen Millen herself expressed disappointment in a statement: “With the decline of high street fashion, it makes it easier for me to accept that I would rather be out of it due to whatever has happened to Karen Millen.”
Currently owned by Bohoo, Karen Miller uses recycled clothing, which is bad for the environment as it requires more energy and water to make recycled clothing than normal fabric.
Karen miller also manufacture their clothes from countries where there are no protections for workers rights and they get paid very little money for their work.
In addition, these countries are accused of using a large amount of water in their manufacturing processes.
Is Karen Millen owned by Boohoo?
Karen Millen started off in 1981 as a fashion brand that targeted working women. It was previously owned by Karen Millen. In 2017, the company was bought by Boohoo Group, a British retailer.
The company is now known as Karen Millen by Boohoo.
Boohoo said it would continue to operate Karen Millen as a standalone brand with its own website and stores, but would also take advantage of Boohoo’s “significant scale” to increase distribution and reach more customers.
Karen Millen launched its first website and then expanded into other countries such as Australia, France and Germany.
Over the years, the company has continued to grow but has also faced some challenges due to competition from other brands such as ASOS and Topshop.
Boohoo is one of the largest online retailers in the UK and has been criticised for its fast fashion business model and unethical practices.
In addition to this, there have been concerns about the quality of products offered on Boohoo and it has been accused of using sweatshop labour.
Where are Karen Millen clothes made?
The majority of Karen Millen clothes are made outside the UK – about half are made in China and half in eastern Europe.
The company also sources products from other countries including Turkey, Morocco and India.
Does Karen Millen sweatshops?
Karen Millen has been called out for its supply chain practices many times.
It has no public policy on ethical trading and none of its supply chain is certified by labour standards which ensure worker health and safety, living wages or other labour rights.
It received a score of 11-20% in the Fashion Transparency Index.
As recently as 2017, it was accused of using factories that exploit workers and produce unsafe products after an explosion at one of its supplier’s factories killed seven people.
In 2016, a BBC investigation found that Karen Millen garments were being produced in unregulated subcontracting factories in China and India where workers were forced to work long hours without breaks or overtime pay.
These factories were also found to be operating without occupational health and safety checks, which meant they could be dangerous places to work.
Is karen millen sustainable?
Karen Millen is owned by Boohoo Group. Its environment rating is ‘not good enough’.
It uses some eco-friendly materials including organic cotton. But also uses recycled and low quality fabric.
Karen Millen and its parent company Boohoo both have been rated ‘not good enough’ for its environmental performance, according to Women in Climate Action (WCA).
This means the company is not taking sufficient action to reduce its impacts on the climate and environment.
Boohoo has been given a score of 2/10 for its environmental performance by WCA, who said that it had failed to respond to requests from them for information about how it was reducing its impact on the environment.
Conclusion:
It’s not just about how a brand is run, it’s about the people who work for them and how they are treated.
The Environment Rating is a measure of how well a company treats its workers, and how good it is for the planet.
Fast fashion is essentially the anti-thesis of slow fashion.
It’s one of the worst problems we’re facing in today’s society of over consumption, and is among the key causes why so many people are trying to quit fast fashion.
With that said, just because something was ethically made, and just because it shows more care toward sustainability, it doesn’t always mean it will last.
Do your research, and make an informed choice about what you want to wear and what you want to support.
