Spell 2019 Impact Report

Year in Focus


1ST JANUARY - 31ST DECEMBER 2019

Spell 2019 Impact Report

Year in Focus

1ST JANUARY - 31ST DECEMBER 2019


Notes: This report spans the calendar year 2019. Moving forward, we will be publishing our report to sit within our financial year 2020 - 2021. In the aim of transparency we have released a bridging statement to share our six-month status - January 2020 - July 2020.


Our vision is to inspire, beautifully - in harmony with people and planet.

 

Each year we set targets to be more responsible in our business and this report tracks our progress in these efforts. We share it with you guys in the name of accountability and transparency. The findings in this report have been independently audited by Control Union.

Our sustainability work consists of three pillars:


Each year we set targets to be more responsible in our business and this report tracks our progress in these efforts. We share it with you guys in the name of accountability and transparency. The findings in this report have been independently audited by Control Union.

Our sustainability work consists of three pillars:


Spell 2019 Impact Report

In 2019 we adopted the universal framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (or SDGs) as a way of harmonising our efforts with the rest of the industry and hopefully, from our little corner of the world, contribute to driving outcomes that lead to meeting the goals by 2030.


Spell Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report

People

 

In 2019 we directly employed 66 people at our Spell Headquarters, and our Tier 1 supply chain employed over 3000 people globally.

Spell 2019 Impact Report

People

 

In 2019 we directly employed 66 people at our Spell Headquarters, and our Tier 1 supply chain employed over 3000 people globally.



Spell 2019 Impact Report

Here’s a breakdown of the regions in which we manufacture our garments.


Spell 2019 Impact Report

Here’s a breakdown of the regions in which we manufacture our garments.



Of the 1.3 million factories and mills involved in garment supply chains around the world, just over 2% are certified or part of a scheme that encourages good environmental practices, labour rights, or fair trade standards*. It’s been our goal to ensure our partners become part of, (and hence improve!) that percentage.

* Source: Common Objective, Mapping the Industry 2018


Spell 2019 Impact Report

One of the most important steps we can take is to work with suppliers that have conducted a social and environmental audit.


Our main standards of choice are SA8000, GOTS, WRAP, BSCI, FAIRTRADE. Our other preference is for our partners to undertake a SEDEX SMETA P2 & P4 audit.



Tier 1 - Garment Manufacturers | Tier 2 - Prints & Dyes | Tier 3 - Inputs, Buttons, Zips & Embroidery | Tier 4 - Fabric, Mills & Spinners | Tier 5 - Yarn Suppliers | Tier 6 - Raw Materials


SUMMARY

 

2019 was a big year for us and it saw us expand our supply chain from 15 partners to 19. Consequently this saw us fall behind on meeting our social auditing goals so this is something we are working hard to remediate by empowering our partners to obtain relevant audits at the beginning of our working relationship.


WHERE TO 2020/2021:

100% of Tier 1 Code of Conduct signed

100% of Tier 1 socially audited

10% of Tier 2 socially audited

70% of Tier 1 environmentally audited

100% of Tier 1 mapped

95% of Tier 2 mapped

25% of Tier 3 mapped

WHERE TO 2020/2021:

100% of Tier 1 code of conduct signed

100% of Tier 1 socially audited

10% of Tier 2 socially audited

70% Tier 1 environmentally audited

100% of Tier 1 mapped

95% Tier 2 mapped

25% Tier 3 mapped


2019 Impact Report
2019 Impact Report

2019 Impact Report

Planet

The textile industry draws on an enormous amount of resources each year including water, energy, agricultural land, fossil fuels and animals; at the raw materials stage of the process.

Planet

The textile industry draws on an enormous amount of resources each year including water, energy, agricultural land, fossil fuels and animals; at the raw materials stage of the process.


Given the reality of our planet’s finite resources, the old linear model of take → make → waste is no longer a valid model, and let’s face it, it never was! When it comes to climate, it’s circular or bust.


Spell 2019 Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report
Spell 2019 Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report

Preferred

Fibres

When circular fibres are not available, our aim is to use fibres that minimise the impact on our natural environment, or are regenerative and renewable.

 

51%

of our overall fibre portfolio contains preferred fibres

 

We take the following into account when choosing our preferred fibres:


Spell 2019 Impact Report

LAND USAGE AND

MANAGEMENT

Spell 2019 Impact Report

WATER, ENERGY,

AND CARBON FOOTPRINT


Spell 2019 Impact Report

CHEMICAL USAGE

Spell 2019 Impact Report

CLOSED LOOP ATTRIBUTES

Spell 2019 Impact Report

Preferred Fibres

 

When circular fibres are not available, our aim is to use fibres that minimise the impact on our natural environment, or are regenerative and renewable.

 

51%

of our overall fibre portfolio contains preferred fibres

 

We take the following into account when choosing our preferred fibres:


Spell 2019 Impact Report

LAND USAGE AND

MANAGEMENT

WATER, ENERGY,

AND CARBON FOOTPRINT


CHEMICAL USAGE

CLOSED LOOP ATTRIBUTES


Here’s a breakdown of how preferred fibres were used across our collections in 2019:


Spell 2019 Impact Report

WHERE TO 2020/2021:

60% of forest fibres to be responsibly sourced

80% of cotton sourced to be organic

60% of synthetics to be made from recycled sources  

WHERE TO 2020/2021

60% of forest fibres to be responsibly sourced

80% of cotton sourced to be organic

60% of synthetics to be made from recycled sources


Animal Welfare

 

In 2019 we developed our Animal Welfare policy and from January 2020 have committed to never using:

 

Angora | Mohair | Exotic animal skin | Fur


Spell 2019 Impact Report
Spell 2019 Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report
Spell 2019 Impact Report


Carbon


Footprint


We understand the climate crisis needs to be addressed urgently. Carbon emissions are one of the biggest contributors to global warming so we’re prioritising lowering our emissions and offsetting what can’t be reduced.

 

 

To offset the carbon from our Australian operations in 2019 we calculate usage of water, energy, waste, fleet, air travel, staff travel, events and office consumables across our operations:

 

 

390.59 Tonnes

of CO2-e were generated in our Australian operations in 2019.

 

 

We have offset this carbon through The Aboriginal Carbon Foundation - an Indigenous run not-for-profit that supports carbon farming projects led by Indigenous rangers.

 

 

By offsetting our carbon footprint through the purchase of ACCU's from the Tiwi Islands carbon abatement project, we have contributed to:

 

 

63,018 tCO2

abated in 2019


WHERE TO 2020/2021:

Reduce domestic carbon emissions by 10%

Offset all domestic operations


Spell 2019 Impact Report

 

We understand the climate crisis needs to be addressed urgently. Carbon emissions are one of the biggest contributors to global warming so we’re prioritising lowering our emissions and offsetting what can’t be reduced.

 

 

To offset the carbon from our Australian operations in 2019 we calculate usage of water, energy, waste, fleet, air travel, staff travel, events and office consumables across our operations:

 

 

390.59 Tonnes

of CO2-e were generated in our Australian operations in 2019.

 

 

We have offset this carbon through The Aboriginal Carbon Foundation - an Indigenous run not-for-profit that supports carbon farming projects led by Indigenous rangers.

 

By offsetting our carbon footprint through the purchase of ACCU's from the Tiwi Islands carbon abatement project, we have contributed to:

 

63,018 tCO2

abated in 2019


WHERE TO 2020/2021:

Reduce domestic carbon emissions by 10%

Offset all domestic operations


WHERE TO 2020/2021:

Reduce domestic carbon emissions by 10%

Offset all domestic operations



Spell 2019 Impact Report
Spell 2019 Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report

 

DYES + PRINTS

 

 

 

Dyeing and printing is a big part of our production process and from an environmental perspective, fabric dyeing is one of the biggest polluters of clean water after agriculture so we are working hard to address this across our business operations.

 

This year we finalised our
Restricted Substances List (RSL) and Manufacturing Restricted Substances List (MRSL), in 2020/2021 our goal is to implement our RSL across 14% of our Tier 1 suppliers.

Spell 2019 Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report

 

DYES + PRINTS

 

 

 

Dyeing and printing is a big part of our production process and from an environmental perspective, fabric dyeing is one of the biggest polluters of clean water after agriculture so we are working hard to address this across our business operations.

 

This year we finalised our

Restricted Substances List (RSL) and Manufacturing Restricted Substances List (MRSL), in 2020/2021 our goal is to implement our RSL across 14% of our Tier 1 suppliers.


Spell 2019 Impact Report

CIRCULARITY

 

We continue to champion the circularity of our garments, training our team in circular design, celebrating re-sale and swap meets within our Spell community, and initiating garment care and end of life conversations.

 

This year our circular initiatives included:

 

2

Spell Buy Swap Sell events focused on

increasing the lifecycle of garment.

 

Launched

Spell Renew - products reducing waste

by making use of deadstock.

 

2

Circular workshops with our design team.

 

CIRCULARITY

 

We continue to champion the circularity of our garments, training our team in circular design, celebrating re-sale and swap meets within our Spell community, and initiating garment care and end of life conversations.

 

This year our circular initiatives included:

 

2

Spell Buy Swap Sell events focused on increasing the lifecycle of garment.

 

Launched

Spell Renew - products reducing waste by making use of deadstock.

 

2

Circular workshops with our design team.

 


WHERE TO 2020/2021:

2 Spell Buy Swap Sell Events

Continue Spell Renew category

1 recycling option


Spell 2019 Impact Report
Spell 2019 Impact Report

CIRCULARITY

 

We continue to champion the circularity of our garments, training our team in circular design, celebrating re-sale and swap meets within our Spell community, and initiating garment care and end of life conversations.

 

This year our circular initiatives included:

 

2

Spell Buy Swap Sell events focused on increasing the lifecycle of garment.

 

Launched

Spell Renew - products reducing waste by making use of deadstock.

 

2

Circular workshops with our design team.

 

WHERE TO 2020/2021:

2 Spell Buy Swap Sell Events

Continue Spell Renew category

1 recycling option


Spell 2019 Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report

Giving Back

For us, a key metric of success is being able to give back. We are proud to contribute to a range of organisations whose mission is to make a positive impact on people + planet.

Spell 2019 Impact Report

Giving Back

For us, a key metric of success is being able to give back. We are proud to contribute to a range of organisations whose mission is to make a positive impact on people + planet.



OUR 2019 PHILANTHROPIC PILLARS:

 

Local: contribute to and strengthen the social fabric of our local community

International: be a responsible global citizen

Global: 1% for the Planet - conserving our planet

 

 

In 2019 we donated

$290,326


Where this money went:

 

Global = 76.9%

Local = 15.8%

International = 7.3%

 

This represents:

 

Social contributions: 53.16%

Environmental contributions: 46.84%

 

Spell 2019 Impact Report

Spell 2019 Impact Report
Spell 2019 Impact Report

Where this money went:

 

Global = 76.9%

Local = 15.8%

International = 7.3%

 

This represents:

 

Social contributions: 53.16%

Environmental contributions: 46.84%

 

Spell 2019 Impact Report


Spell 2019 Impact Report

 

There are many giving back moments that haven’t been measured here, from the gift vouchers and garments regularly donated to local charities for fundraising, to the mentoring we offer the next generation within our local community, to our team participating in ‘adopt a family’ at Christmas time, providing gifts and hampers to local families in need, to our team opening donation drop points and sewing joey pouches in the wake of the bushfires – philanthropy is a cultural mindset at Spell.

 

This figure also excludes in-kind activities just shy of $50k that was donated as part of our 1% for the planet giving.

Spell 2019 Impact Report

 

There are many giving back moments that haven’t been measured here, from the gift vouchers and garments regularly donated to local charities for fundraising, to the mentoring we offer the next generation within our local community, to our team participating in ‘adopt a family’ at Christmas time, providing gifts and hampers to local families in need, to our team opening donation drop points and sewing joey pouches in the wake of the bushfires – philanthropy is a cultural mindset at Spell.

 

This figure also excludes in-kind activities just shy of $50k that was donated as part of our 1% for the planet giving.


Spell 2019 Impact Report

The Final Say

Now to take a look at how we fared against our commitments and our 2025 vision:

Spell 2019 Impact Report

The Final Say

Now to take a look at how we fared against our commitments and our 2025 vision:


Spell 2019 Impact Report
Spell 2019 Impact Report


Seriously committed to lifting our accreditation numbers and supply chain mapping


Spell 2019 Impact Report


Excelling Excelling in our preferred fibres program! Working to further measure, analyse and neutralise our carbon footprint is a big focus for us in 2020.

 

Achieving our circular work. We’re really keen to find a solution when it comes to recycling our deadstock and this is a priority.

 

We’re going to be introducing more circular work into our strategy in 2021, looking for ways that technology can enhance our efforts.


Spell 2019 Impact Report


We are proud of our giving back achievements and our partnership with 1% for the planet (July 2018 - July 2020).

 

We believe in profit for purpose and giving back to our local and global community is part of the DNA of our business.

 

Moving forward our aim is to continue to give 1% of our global online sales to philanthropic causes.

Seriously committed to lifting our accreditation numbers and supply chain mapping.

Excelling in our preferred fibres program! Working to further measure, analyse and neutralise our carbon footprint is a big focus for us in 2020.

 

Achieving our circular work. We’re really keen to find a solution when it comes to recycling our deadstock and this is a priority.

 

We’re going to be introducing more circular work into our strategy in 2021, looking for ways that technology can enhance our efforts.

We are proud of our giving back achievements and our partnership with 1% for the planet (July 2018 - July 2020).

 

We believe in profit for purpose and giving back to our local and global community is part of the DNA of our business.

 

Moving forward our aim is to continue to give 1% of our global online sales to philanthropic causes.





Notes: This report spans the calendar year 2019. Moving forward, we will be publishing our report to sit within our financial year 2020 - 2021. In the aim of transparency we have released a bridging statement to share our six-month status - January 2020 - July 2020.