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Human Rights Watch Report on Abuses in the Pakistani Textile Industry

There is an appalling report by Human Rights Watch,  released on  1/23/19,  called “Unfair and Abusive Labor Practices in Pakistan.” There are approximately 15 million garment workers in Pakistan and many are working in abysmal conditions with no real protections. The piece makes truly sobering reading. You can also watch a brief video released along…

Shame on Badger Sportswear

The Associated Press and NPR/Frontline and the New York Times and other news outlets are reporting that Chinese internment camps are forcing inmates to make apparel including for Badger Sportswear, the North Carolina based company. Ethnic Uighurs and Kasakhs who are discriminated against in Western China are forced into internment camps and for no pay…

What’s a T-shirt Worth?

Today’s column is by my buddy Bill Mooney. He has an entertainment and music industry merchandising company. called Tannis Root. He’s a good guy with a great business. He also has had the most kick ass industry parties to celebrate his decades in business and I got to see Sonic Youth, the Condo Fucks, Mudhoney…

Corporate Social Responsibility at Hanes: Chris Fox in the News

PPAI media focused today on Chris Fox who is in charge of corporate social responsibility at Hanes. The article outlines the commitments he leads there in terms of treatment of workers, community development, and environmental responsiblity. Lo and behold, some of the initiatives not only were the ethical but actually made good business sense.

Where was your shirt made? How was your shirt made?

There is an article in the New York Times  this past Sunday about the human toll and the environmental toll of the international garment industry in Savar, Bangladesh. That’s the location where the Rana Plaza factory collapsed and killed at least 1,129 workers and injured over 2000 others, many permanently. Today will mark the fifth…

Polyester Maybe Isn’t the Greatest Thing: Polyester Microfiber Legislation

There is a bill currently in the CA legislature on the topic of polyester microfibers. They have proposed legislation mandating by 2020 that garments with 50% or more polyester or other synthetic fiber warn you to wash them by hand and not wash them by machine. This is on the heels of studies indicating that…

Hanes is Buying Alternative Apparel

Hanes bought Alternative Apparel as the garment industry continues to consolidate. It makes sense for Hanes to buy a straight ahead top fashion brand in the decoration world giving them a wider range of products.  I find it encouraging that they actually mention social responsibility, a term not bandied about so much lately. Rachel Newman:…

Voodoo Oktoberfest II !!!

SGIA Expo is a time to learn some things, see new products, connect with vendors, and see old friends. It also in New Orleans is a great place to have some fun. It also is good to do some good while we all convene in a city. During the SGIA Expos in New Orleans we…

Thieves and Companies that Enable Them

I proudly printed the Farm Aid 2017 shirts this year, most of them organic cotton and some also union made and nearly all USA made. So it is extremely disturbing to see a host of companies selling designs stolen from Farm Aid printed and embroidered on a bunch of crappy shirts. Repeated emails and filings…

Misprint Monday: Copyright Violation Frenzy

Recently I wrote some thoughts here about rampant copyright and trademark violation, which is aided and abetted by lax policies of on-line services. It is easier to put up some BS product blatantly stealing the artwork and design of others than it is to get them to stop. This week I’m in the middle of…

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