The campaign #WhoMadeMyClothes? was instigated by Fashion Revolution co-founder Carry Somers after the deadliest garment factory collapse in history. The 1,138 workers that were found dead in the remains of Rana Plaza, a commercial complex in Dhaka, Bangladesh, had to stand for something and spark change. The social-media movement encouraged consumers to ask for greater transparency from brands, and for companies to keep the basic promise that their workers are seen, heard, paid properly and operating in safe conditions. Because, fundamentally, no one should have to suffer for the clothes we wear.
Six years down the line, there has been slow and steady progress. During Fashion Revolution Week 2018, 3.25 million people asked #WhoMadeMyClothes? according to Tamsin Blanchard, and the voices demanding answers are getting louder. The 2019 edition of the non-profit campaign group’s Fashion Transparency Index – which assesses brands on how much information on human rights policies, environmental practices and supply chains it will disclose to the public – saw participating companies receive an average score of 35 per cent (compared to of 12.5 per cent three years ago) for the data published on factory lists. These numbers are low but, as fellow co-founder Orsola de Castro said at the 2018 Copenhagen Fashion Summit, “the industry is built on secrecy, elitism, closed doors and unavailability. [Transparency] is disrupting the fabric of fashion as we know it.”
Until brands answer “I made your clothes” honestly and take accountability for every single person in its supply chain, an opaque shopping culture will prevail. “We can’t fix what we can’t see,” explained de Castro. “We need to make it as easy for us to see the clothes as it is to buy the clothes.”
The following five labels, who granted Vogue interview access to their garment workers, are by no means perfect, but they are progressive enough to show the talented individuals who are integral to their businesses, when countless others said no. “Transparency provides an open door,” de Castro pointed out. Here’s a look inside a micro sector of the industry in the hope that it will pique consumer curiosity, encourage visibility and raise awareness of the revolutionaries fighting to make #WhoMadeMyClothes? part of the fashion lexicon.
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