Arket, Cos, & Other Stories check up on Sustainability.
Shifting shopper preferences toward sustainable, quality-driven brands are transforming the fashion industry. As awareness of fast fashion's environmental and ethical issues grows, consumers favor Nordic/Scandinavian inspired minimalistic style. This obsession over more minimalistic style started already a few years ago together with natural makeup trends and attention to our natural features. This shift was influenced by the fact that mental health was brought up to the surface, when people started sharing and opening up about their experiences, insecurities and self-love and acceptance became a big part of the internet to break trough the long lasting beauty standards. With overall shifting mentality people started paying more attention to their consumption behaviour and became more sensible and aware of happening changes around them. As the consumption habits started shifting new brands started sowing up more and more that lean towards more sustainable ones. Nordic/Scandinavian style inspired brands like Arket, COS, & other Stories have gained quite some attention in the past 2-3 years, for their timeless, minimalistic and better quality than fast fashion items. These brands have a charm of making their costumer look effortlessly chic in monochromatic, well put outfits. As this behaviour is a start in changing society towards better tomorrow, I wanted to dive in a little deeper to really see on which sustainability level these brands actually are. I find it very uplifting when people consciously choose to shop more sustainably, but as the label “sustainable” is still quite broadly understood it can be easy to mix it up when it is actually the case. So the 3 brands I decided to check on are: Arket, COS, & other Stories, all these 3 brands are part of h&m group.
Arket was developed by H&M and launched in 2017. Known for its Scandinavian-inspired, functional designs, focuses on simple, functional, and sustainable fashion, alongside homeware and a café concept.
Brand’s own representation on their sustainability:
The brand prioritizes long-lasting, purposeful design as a foundation of sustainability, emphasizing products that go beyond trends. Their goal is to create garments and goods that are both visually inspiring and functional, intended to be cherished, used for many years, and eventually passed down. This approach supports a sustainable lifestyle by encouraging longevity and reducing waste in fashion.
On their environment report they try to be open about the suppliers they work with, so there’s a full list of brand’s suppliers in 2023 over the world. Main providers are: China, Turkey, Bangladesh,
Arket's recycling initiative encourages consumers to bring in unwanted textiles, promising that these items will enter a recycling loop for reuse. This program extends to the packaging materials used by the brand as well. Their website provides comprehensive information about the various fabrics used in their garments, detailing the production processes and offering care instructions for maintaining the quality of the items sold.
So, overall from their website and first glimpse it looks like the brand is focused on a great path with sustainable mindset and willingness to be open. After this I did a check up with website Good on you, which has merged with Rank a brand site in 2019, specialist of this website are working to provide a detailed analysis of brands sustainability and actions towards it.
By an trusty sustainability app Good on you Arket is not ranked as it’s best. The brand is rated as "Not Good Enough" overall. Here’s a breakdown of the reasons behind this rating:
Labour: Arket is criticized for not ensuring a living wage for workers in its supply chain. None of its supply chain is certified by standards that ensure worker rights, including health, safety, or living wages. There is also no evidence that Arket supports diversity or inclusion in its supply chain.
Environment: While Arket uses some lower-impact materials, such as recycled fabrics, it follows an unsustainable fast fashion model with frequently changing trends. It has set a science-based target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but there is no clear evidence it is on track to meet these goals. It also eliminates some hazardous chemicals but hasn’t committed to eliminating all.
Animal Welfare: Arket fares slightly better here with a "It's a Start" rating. It aligns with the Five Domains of animal welfare and uses Responsible Wool Standard certified wool. However, it still uses leather and exotic animal hair and traces animal-derived materials only to the first stage of production.
In summary, while Arket has made some efforts, particularly in animal welfare and using recycled materials, the brand still lacks sufficient policies on worker wages, transparency in its supply chain, and achieving meaningful environmental goals.
COS was launched by H&M in 2007, it was created to offer a more premium line focusing on minimalist, timeless fashion inspired by Scandinavian design at a higher quality than H&M’s main line.
Brand’s own representation on their sustainability:
COS claim to focus on reshaping the fashion industry by adopting a circular approach—moving away from the traditional linear model. Their sustainability efforts emphasize using organic, recycled, and regenerative materials while designing timeless products. They also prioritize extending the life of their products, aiming to maintain their value beyond the initial purchase.
COS focuses on circularity in fashion by designing their clothes to be reused, repaired, or recycled. Their Full Circle program encourages customers to donate pre-loved COS garments, which are then restored and resold through their Restore collection or recycled if beyond repair. They also offer a Resell marketplace for customers to buy and sell second-hand COS pieces, extending the lifespan of their designs. Additionally, COS partners with The Seam for garment repairs and alterations to further support longevity.
The brand adheres to a timeless design philosophy, with collections crafted in their London atelier that prioritize longevity and quality. COS is also working on ways to fully integrate circular design principles into their collections, inspired by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's vision for a circular economy. They are educating their product teams on these principles and testing circular initiatives with key products before expanding to their entire range.
COS's sustainability efforts extend to material sourcing, with 95% of their materials being more sustainably sourced or recycled, including Regenerative Organic Cotton and NATIVA™ Regenerative Wool. The brand also focuses on reducing environmental impact through renewable energy in their manufacturing process and has set ambitious goals to cut emissions by 56% by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2040. Finally, COS emphasizes fair labor practices by working to improve wages and gender equality in their supply chain, supported by their partnerships with non-profit organizations.
COS Sustainability Report by Good On You: brand is rated across three categories: Planet, People, and Animals.
Planet: COS receives a "Good" rating for its environmental efforts. The brand uses some lower-impact materials like recycled fabrics and has set science-based targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It has also implemented a biodiversity protection policy for part of its supply chain. However, it lacks full commitment to eliminating hazardous chemicals and shows no clear evidence of being on track to meet its emission reduction goals.
People: COS is rated "Not Good Enough" in this category. The brand lacks certifications that ensure workers' health, safety, and living wages across its supply chain. Although it scored moderately well in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index (71-80%), there is no evidence that it actively promotes diversity or pays living wages in its supply chain. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it failed to implement adequate worker protection policies.
Animals: COS is rated "It’s a Start". The brand has an animal welfare policy aligned with the Five Domains and uses some recycled wool and down. However, it still uses materials like leather, exotic animal hair, and silk, though it avoids fur, angora, and exotic skins. It traces some of its animal-derived materials only to the first production stage.
Conclusion: COS has made progress in environmental and animal welfare policies, but it falls short in addressing workers' rights and fully implementing sustainability goals. Overall, it is rated "It’s a Start", signaling room for improvement, particularly in labor conditions and transparency.
& Other Stories – This brand was launched by H&M in 2013. It was developed in-house with a more eclectic, fashion-forward, and feminine style compared to COS, and aims to offer diverse styles from different ateliers across Europe.
Brand’s own representation on their sustainability:
& Other Stories emphasizes sustainability in both its operations and product designs, with a goal to balance creativity with environmental responsibility. Here are the main points of their sustainability vision:
Circular Fashion: The brand aims to create high-quality, durable fashion that extends beyond seasonal trends, with a strong focus on circularity, meaning products are designed to be reused, recycled, or regenerated.
Materials: By 2030, the brand is committed to using 100% sustainably sourced or recycled materials. As of now, they are already at 90% of their target for sustainable materials in their collections.
Animal Welfare: By 2025, the brand aims to use only chrome-free leather and ensure all animal fibers (such as cashmere, alpaca, and yak) come from farms certified for good animal welfare, from recycled sources, or replaced by sustainable non-animal fibers.
Packaging: They plan to make all packaging reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2025, with a goal for all packaging to be made from recycled or sustainably sourced materials by 2030.
Innovative Materials: The brand is exploring alternatives to animal leather, such as MIRUM®, a bio-based, vegan-certified material.
In essence, & Other Stories is striving to lead with sustainable practices by focusing on circular fashion, improving material sourcing, and ensuring both packaging and animal welfare meet strict sustainability standards by 2030.
& Other Stories Sustainability Report by Good On You: brand is rated across three categories: Planet, People, and Animals.
Planet: & Other Stories received a "Not Good Enough" rating for its environmental efforts. The brand incorporates some lower-impact materials like recycled fibers, but its fast fashion model—with frequent style changes—limits sustainability. While the brand has reduced certain hazardous chemicals, it lacks a comprehensive commitment to eliminating all such substances and does not show evidence of meeting its emission reduction goals, despite having set science-based targets. The brand also has a biodiversity policy covering parts of its supply chain.
People: Also rated "Not Good Enough" for workers’ rights, & Other Stories does not ensure that suppliers meet labor standards for health, safety, or living wages. Although it scored 71-80% in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index, there is no evidence of policies supporting diversity or living wages within the supply chain, nor sufficient COVID-19 protections.
Animals: In this category, the brand scored "Good" for its alignment with the Five Domains of animal welfare. It uses some recycled animal materials, such as wool and down, and avoids fur, angora, and exotic skins. However, it still uses leather, exotic animal hair, and silk, and traces animal-derived materials only to the first stage of production.
Conclusion: While & Other Stories has made efforts in animal welfare, its overall sustainability practices are rated as "Not Good Enough", with significant areas for improvement in environmental impact, supply chain transparency, and workers' rights.
The analysis of these brands indicates a dedicated effort towards sustainability, showing significant progress compared to traditional fast fashion brands. While they have made notable advancements, it remains clear that they are not yet fully sustainable. Among the three brands evaluated, COS stands out as the leader in addressing environmental and animal welfare concerns, demonstrating substantial improvements. However, the challenge of maintaining healthy labor standards persists across all brands. They set ambitious goals for ongoing improvement, but the journey toward true sustainability is still lengthy. This evaluation highlights the disparity that can exist between a brand's self-presentation and its actual practices. It is essential for consumers to critically assess these factors and draw their own conclusions based on the findings presented.
To collect all this information I used publicly available sources, evaluations, indexes. All the main ones I have covered in my previous article “Tools to Check a Brand's Sustainability for Yourself”.
