On my road to being a more conscious fashion consumer, I’ve discovered many ethically produced brands. (Tonlé, Alabama Chanin and Loud Bodies are some of my favorites.) On my conscious fashion journey I’ve come to realize it’s hard to find clothing brands that are serious about their mission to create garments ethically and sustainably. So when I find a company that does so, I take note!
When I learned of Pact from The Conscious Closet: The Revolutionary Guide to Looking Good and Doing Good by Elizabeth L. Cline, I took note. Not only is the book a fantastic read that I will write more about later, but it reinstates the importance of shopping only from ethical brands.
I’m eternally grateful for Ms. Cline – Pact is one of the few fashion brands truly deserving of support. They make organic cotton goods from only fair trade factories! Their high-quality items are available in nearly every category: women’s, men’s and baby apparel plus bedding and kitchen goods.
Not only do I want one of their quarter-zip sweatshirts, but I wouldn’t be mad at a waffle knit kitchen towel either!
Image courtesy of wearpact.com
It’s a bold claim to be ”Earth’s favorite clothing”. But, Pact lives up to the phrase. Let’s see how:
Pact’s Ethical Practices
It’s not hard to want anything from Pact since they take responsibly produced fashion seriously. Firstly, their range in items is small enough to not be suspect. Often times the first red flag of a fast fashion company is offering more than 100 different styles in dozens of categories using cheap fabrics.
With Pact, while they have a wide range of categories, each section only has up to 30 items. While that still may seem like a lot, you must also consider the materials used in production and their manufacturing standards. In both considerations Pact excels.
- Materials used: Every item on Pact’s site is made from organic cotton and non-toxic dyes. In fact, their cotton is certified organic by the Global Organic Textile Standard. This is commendable since organic cotton uses 81% less water than conventionally farmed cotton! Only using non-toxic dyes is also a big deal – textile dyeing is the second largest water polluter in the world. Pact’s dyes at least don’t harm animals living in the water and irrevocably pollute our water supply. This brand is serious about producing goods with as small of an impact on Earth as possible.
- Manufacturing Standards: Pact is a proud supporter of only Fair Trade factories. This means the factories in which their products are produced are held to rigorous standards in ”safe working conditions, environmental protection, sustainable livelihoods, and community development funds”. This is comforting to learn since so many other fashion companies are murky about where their production takes place and whether their employees are paid and treated responsibly. Factory regulation is essential to make sure workers have the high quality of life they deserve. Only by strict and constant regulation can we can reduce horrors like the 2013 Rana Plaza collapse and many others.
Why Support Pact
Companies like Pact take ethically produced apparel seriously. They care about where their products are produced, the quality of life for their workers (outsourced especially), and the impact of their manufacturing processes. By supporting Pact and companies like it, we are making a conscious effort to change the fashion landscape.
It shouldn’t be about patronizing brands that release new products weekly or even daily simply to follow trends instead of quality. It should be about buying apparel we need, fewer of it and caring that each garment is made with ethics in mind.
In today’s age of fast fashion, every clothing purchase we make matters to break vicious cycles of waste and greed. Pact defies this by holding high standards for every good they offer.
We need to support brands with these ethics. Only then can we attempt to lessen some of the massive negative impact we’ve had on Earth and among the millions of underpaid, overworked, unsafe garment workers in Asia.
Final Word
Pact makes ideal basics. Their elegant color palette and expertly designed pieces are worth buying simply for their style. What makes their products ideal is the ethics behind their creation.
Pact only partners with Fair Trade factories, uses certified organic cotton and does not use toxic dyes in any of their products. They’re serious about being sustainable.
Pact’s mission is to be “Earth’s Favorite Clothing Company” and from where I’m standing, they’re well on their way!
More Good Reads on Ethical Fashion
- Fashionopolis: The Price of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothes
- Alabama Chanin
- Good On You’s Brand Search