Our commitments

Cooperation is the way forward. Responsible fashion means taking responsibility for the entire chain – from manufacturing to recycling. One of the advantages of our business is that it gives us opportunities to contribute to the development of society. Many times together with our industry colleagues, because we know that collaboration is the way forward.

Organisations we are active members of:

Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) is a leading alliance for businesses, trade associations and NGOs campaigning for worker rights. Kappahl has been a member since 2016. We comply with the ETI’s guidelines and engage within its network for joint action on manufacturing-chain challenges though social dialogue, the right to collective bargaining and the rights of migrant workers.

Read more about Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) here.

Textile Exchange is a global non-profit organisation dedicated to driving industry transformation in textile fibres, integrity and standards and responsible supply networks. They identify and share best practice on agriculture, materials, processes, traceability and lifespan in order to reduce the textile industry’s adverse impact on people and the environment. Kappahl has been a member since 2018 and uses Textile Exchange’s standards in product development.

Read more about Textile Exchange here.

Stica, Swedish Textile Initiative for Climate Action, was launched jointly by Peak Performance, H&M, Sustainable Fashion Academy, Elco and Kappahl in 2018. Any Swedish textile and fashion organisation can join Stica, on condition that it commit to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions in line with the 1.5°C target and the Paris Agreement. Stica is committed to serving as an action learning network, where members are allied in sharing knowledge and implementing solutions for achieving sustainable change. At Kappahl, we have produced a roadmap for our future strategy to reduce carbon emissions in our value chain by half by 2030. Our progress can be followed in our annual sustainability report.

Read more about Stica here.

SAC, Sustainable Apparel Coalition, is an organisation working for a sustainable fashion industry. SAC’s Higg Index is a suite of tools for measuring and scoring supplier and product sustainability performance and contributes to long-term sustainable improvements for factory workers, communities and the environment. Through harmonised working methods and processes, the industry will also provide the transparency that is increasingly being demanded by consumers. We joined SAC in 2018.

Read more about SAC here.

Better Cotton Kappahl is a proud member of Better Cotton. Better Cotton is sourced via a chain of custody model called mass balance. This means that Better Cotton is not physically traceable to end products, however, Better Cotton Farmers benefit from the demand for Better Cotton in equivalent volumes to those we ‘source'. Kappahl is committed to sourcing 30 percent of our cotton as Better Cotton by 2025.

Better Cotton's mission is to help cotton communities survive and thrive while protecting and restoring the environment. Better Cotton trains farmers to use water efficiently, care for soil health and natural habitats, reduce use of the most harmful chemicals and respect workers' rights and wellbeing.

Learn more about Better Cotton here: https://bettercotton.org/.

Canopy works with brands globally to protect the world’s forests, species and climate. The aim is to create sustainable supply chains for viscose and other textile materials from forests, and to promote innovative solutions to environmental challenges. Kappahl has been a member since 2016 and is working towards exclusively using viscose fibre from sustainably managed forests.

Read more about Canopy here.

Organic Cotton Accelerator (OCA) unites key industry players committed to taking collective action to grow a prosperous organic cotton sector that benefits everyone – from farmer to consumer. It does this by working for increased transparency, methods for measuring environmental impact and social aspects and new work processes linked to agriculture and purchasing. Kappahl has been part of this network since 2016.

Read more about Organic Cotton Accelerator here.

Renewcell is a Swedish company that recycles and regenerates cotton fibers so that they can become clothes again. Kappahl has been a partner since 2019 as we see that it contributes to our ambition to create solutions for a more sustainable and circular fashion industry.

Read more about Renewcell here.

SIPTex stands for "Swedish Innovation Platform for Textile Sorting" and will constitute the link that is currently missing between textile collection and high-quality textile recycling. In the project, IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, together with a number of other actors, will develop and test automated sorting of high-quality textile recycling. The goal of the project is to increase textile recycling. Kappahl has been involved in the research project since 2019 because we see that it contributes to our ambition to develop solutions for more sustainable and circular fashion consumption.

Read more about SIPTex here.

International Accord for Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry was established to guarantee occupational health and safety for millions of textile and garment industry workers in Bangladesh, and in future, in additional countries. Since 2013, Kappahl has been part of the movement in alliance with more than 200 international counterparts representing our sector, trade unions and employee organisations. Since 2022 Kappahl is part of the Pakistan Accord.

Read more about the International Accord for Health and Safety in the Textile and Garment Industry here.

The Chemical Group at RISE is a knowledge-building network offering guidelines on chemicals restrictions and strategies. Experts share legal requirements and break down complex information to make it easily understood for use in a company’s day-to-day work with chemicals. Our affiliation with this group makes Kappahl better informed in laying down strict requirements regarding chemicals management for sub-suppliers and in responding to questions from both consumers and news media.

Read more about The Chemical Group at RISE here.

Agenda 2030 i Väst is an open network forum for trade and industry, academia, the public sector and non-governmental sector in West Sweden established in support of the UN Global Goals.

Read more here (in Swedish).

Regulations we follow:

United Nations Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Since 2016, Kappahl has based its sustainability efforts on the UN Agenda 2030 and its 17 goals for sustainable development. The goals have been adopted by member states around the globe to reduce poverty, protect the planet and bring prosperity to all as part of a new sustainable development agenda. As a global company within the private sector, Kappahl is working to achieve the UN goals.

Read more here.

ILO – Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work
Our Sustainability Commitment (previously Code of Conduct) is based on the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work: promoting rights, fair employment prospects, improving welfare protection and strengthening dialogue on work-related concerns. The rights are universal and apply to people worldwide, regardless of their national economy. The declaration emphasises that economic growth alone is no guarantee of non-discrimination and social progress. Kappahl commits to respecting human rights in our Human Rights Policy.

Read more here.

Global Reporting Initiative (GRI)
GRI is an international organisation that helps businesses and governments understand and communicate their impact on critical sustainability issues such as climate change, and human rights. Kappahl reports annually on its sustainability in accordance with GRI’s standards core.

Read more here.

OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
OECD has laid down guidelines on responsible corporate conduct for multinational enterprises. Kappahl abides by the guidelines and takes actions to detect and prevent any adverse impacts in our activities and processes.

Read more here.

Transparency Pledge
is a wide-ranging coalition of large global organisations (Human Rights Watch, IndustryAll, Clean Clothes Campaign and more) that works to promote transparency in the fashion industry’s supply chains. Here at Kappahl, we have been publishing our lists of suppliers on our website since 2013 and we are also working on a range of solutions for increased transparency. To make our commitment clear, we joined Transparency Pledge in autumn 2019, which means that we comply with their transparency requirements relating to the supply chain.

Read more about Transparency Pledge.

Swedish Fashion Ethical Charter
is an initiative for common values and guidelines on body ideals, diversity and work environment issues for those working in the fashion industry. Kappahl, together with around 180 other companies, has signed the policy and follows the guidelines that it constitutes. By being part of the Swedish Fashion Ethical Charter, we undertake, among other things, to ensure a healthy working environment during photo shoots. Behind the Swedish Fashion Ethical Charter are the independent industry organization Swedish Fashion Council and the Association of Swedish Fashion Brands.Read more about Swedish Fashion Ethical Charter.

Science-Based Targets Initiative
In January 2022, Kappahl committed to setting a long-term target in accordance with SBT (Science-based targets), a global organization for climate goals, to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in the value chain by 2040. The SBTi provides companies with a clearly defined path to reduce emissions in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Read more about SBTi here