A few months ago I shared information on my Instagram about a more "sustainable" product coming to the market through Walmart. (the plant-based bra pad).
I was excited and hopeful but skeptical.
Now I'm not so sure.....
Walmart has introduced a new clothing line called Free Assembly.
Walmart has left me more cautious about sustainability claims and disappointed (but honestly not surprised), that yet another brand is putting profits above people and the environment.
I feel this new Walmart Free Assembly fashion line is greenwashing. Why? Many reasons...
They describe “sustainable fashion” as "...taking into account the full lifecycle of the product...."
Yes, it is about taking the full lifecycle of products into account. But after that, it’s about what companies decide to do differently to make a change in the right direction of a more responsible, scalable and yes more, sustainable product development process. Walmart says “Free Assembly is committed to sustainability with responsible sourcing and considered design.” They leave out the part about what they’ve decided to do differently from a production and worker standpoint!
Their standards are as follows:
In this description, Walmart addresses aspects of the product development process and it sounds good at first, but when re-reading it and thinking critically….I feel it mirrors greenwashing. The words sound good and comforting at first but after knowing what greenwashing is, and tactics companies use like buzz words to appear better or more transparent than they really are...coupled with the lack of concrete, significant commitments, information, or changes…..yes...I’m skeptical.
Additionally, Walmart leaves out other factors. They do not address production workers or sourcing workers making a living wage. This can be conveyed clearly by their advertising of “.....styles as low as $9.....” How can a factory worker make a living wage if the end product is only $9 dollars…..?? They also do not address overconsumption. And why would they? They’re a multi-billion dollar company. Seeing declining sales through advertising “slow fashion” or consuming less isn’t in their best interest. Instead, they take the route countless other companies have chosen by advertising “clothing that looks as good as it is for the planet” or even more “your wardrobe doesn’t have to suffer.”
Stepping back from consuming less. Let’s say you are in need of a specific item of clothing (because we are a consumer-driven society, we are humans that need clothing to keep us warm or cool, clothing that fits, etc). Let’s say that you don’t have this item in your wardrobe currently, you couldn’t find it second-hand, (assuming you’re a conscious consumer), Walmart is your only place to possibly find it and you need it today.
(Side note- is it ridiculous and laughable or confusingly intriguing for Walmart to even consider creating a “sustainable fashion” line. Does the Walmart customer know what “sustainable fashion” is or do they care?) But for argument’s sake, let’s say you check all these boxes and are ready to buy.
In the advertising of Free Assembly, Walmart says “...only available at Walmart.com or select Walmart stores.”
So either you are lucky they have it at your closest store or you have to wait for it to ship.
Going further in this hypothetical scenario, if this conscious Walmart shopper is considering buying a “sustainable” item of clothing from the Free Assembly brand, would they check the label or tags for information on HOW or WHY that garment is better for the environment and communities? For argument’s sake, let’s say yes, they’d vet this information.
When looking at the product description for all of Free Assembly’s clothing online, there is an addendum at the bottom of every item: "We aim to show you accurate product information. Manufacturers, suppliers, and others provide what you see here, and we have not verified it. See our disclaimer."
And what does the disclaimer say? "Product packaging and material may contain more and/or different information from the website, including the product description, country of origin, nutrition, ingredient, allergen, and other information.....etc"
AND under specifications for every SKU for information on where the garment was made, (country of origin) it says: Imported.
THAT’S IT! Just imported. Not only is Walmart using buzz words with beautiful models and pretty clothes to portray this line as “sustainable,” they outright state that they cannot verify any of the information being given! Consumers have no idea where any of these garments are actually made! Even other brands in this industry who truly have been or are greenwashing at least disclose the country of origin. Walmart doesn’t even have the decency to do that.
I decided to dig deeper to try and find any garments that meet their “sustainability standards.” I found one (there may be more but I only found one- this button-down blue plaid shirt below).
This shirt is made out of 100% organic cotton.
Ok great! At least there’s that. It’s better than conventional cotton. From what I know, organic cotton produces about 46% less CO2e compared to conventional cotton. There are many other rabbit roles or debates I could go down about whether organic cotton is truly a more sustainable and scalable fiber than conventional cotton but again, for argument’s sake in this particular post, we’ll say that it is.
At the end of this product description, it reads: This item meets one or more of our sustainably-made standards. Visit our sustainability style shop to learn more:
So I went to that URL. (Which I’ll add is not a clickable link…...how convenient…..)
This page takes you to their More Style, More Sustainable page.
Right off the bat, they obviously don’t support the notion of consumers taking into consideration their purchasing habits and realizing we are raised in a traditional thoughtless over-consumption society. Again, this is obviously in their best interest, as they are a multi-billion-dollar company that has no intention of doing anything to drive sales down. (But they’ll go as far as to advertise a “sustainable” line to get on the “sustainable fashion” train before getting canceled or called out online).
To top all this off, when finally locating info on denim, (which was difficult to find), it gives details about “mostly organic cotton.”
MOSTLY organic cotton? What are the other materials? Which fertilizers and pesticides does organic cotton avoid? How much and what type of energy and resources have you "saved?" There is no information for the consumer on this.
Walmart says ...."Our denim factories are also Fair Trade certified, which means they aim to produce safe working conditions and build sustainable livelihoods for workers...." They AIM.
But then, my interest is peaked….
I see below the More style, More sustainable info on the prior page: (https://www.walmart.com/cp/sustainable-style-shop/7552000
And find: “Shop pre-owned styles.” Walmart is offering second-hand items for sale online? Huh…….?
And once again my interest ensued after I saw the statement below:
Ok….so what does that really mean? “...aims to source 100% more sustainable cotton…”
And below are images that are frankly questionably arranged hahaha and look like screenshots from google images. These images are surrounded by more buzz words and phrases like “chemistry,” and “details make a difference.” They say: “We support products that have been tested by OEKO-TEX….” We support. Not we make, but we support. Along with “...The amount of BCI cotton in each product varies.” It varies…..
This link, https://www.walmartsustainabilityhub.com/sustainable-textiles (AKA their "sustainability information or transparency page"), wasn’t terribly difficult to find but it certainly wasn’t easy and not on the front page of Free Assembly.
This video was what made my mind start rationalizing everything I’d seen and read prior. The video cues comforting, thoughtful, and somewhat peaceful music with clean images of production processes, while high-up corporate Walmart employees begin discussing the company’s goals. Jason Kibbey, Walmart’s CEO of Sustainable Apparel Coalition admits that the textile and apparel industries leave one of the biggest environmental footprints, in turn making sustainability critical to the future.
The page goes on to give more information like this graphic of their Textile Value Chain:
In their value chain graphic, they AGAIN leave out the sourcing and production workers! So they want to address the production process but not the people who work throughout the entire production process??
Below that is this statement:
They BARELY address workers by saying “....Walmart is also actively working to promote worker dignity through responsible sourcing…” So they care about their worker’s dignity but only through responsible sourcing…? Not through paying them a living wage?
I continued to scroll down that page, and finally found information on what they consider more sustainably sourced fibers:
It goes through cotton, polyester, manmade cellulosic fibers, preferred fiber reporting, sustainable chemistry, and mills. This finally provided a not so bad rundown for information on fibers. (Whether they claim to only support it, use it or aim to use it in the near future.)
I scrolled further and found “Supporting Worker Dignity through Responsible Sourcing."
Ok, FINALLY some information on how they treat their workers. It’s vague but there’s a link to their responsible sourcing program: https://corporate.walmart.com/responsible-sourcing
Through this home page partially states: “.....Given Walmart’s size and international footprint, we have an opportunity to improve supply chain conditions and bring about positive change at scale.”
Below that are three articles titled “Our Responsible Sourcing Journey,” “Using our Size and Scale,” and “Fostering Worker Dignity and Safety.”
From the “Using our Size and Scale” article, Walmart addresses some of their practices for handling questionable events by responding with any or all of the following: Governance and Monitoring, Auditing, and Grievance and Investigations. Each section goes into depth on what they address.
Whew!..... That was a lot of work just get some information on workers, supply chain management and sourcing....
Now it’s time to play devil’s advocate…..for a second ;)
Should we be so quick as to label them with greenwashing? Should we give them credit for creating a clothing line geared towards or advertised as “sustainable fashion” even though it clearly isn’t truly more sustainable or responsible? Even though there is no transparency?? Or would that just be adding to how advertisers and marketers don’t want consumers to think critically? Don’t want us to address our personal consumption?
Should we applaud or tip our hat to them for at least starting? Is this a bix box retailer making an effort? I agree with the sentiment of “We are not perfect, so we cannot expert our endeavors to be.” With that in mind, should we call it a win- that a for-profit, money-making machine is even addressing involvement in a more responsible future? Despite the buried information, should we slap a good job sticker on them?
Stepping back, for a moment-
Looking at the bigger picture- Walmart has always been and will continue to always be about low prices. That’s why people shop there. Cheap prices for all your stuff all in one place. Should we ever expect arguably the biggest retailer to hop on the “sustainable fashion” train (which I hope will transform into an actual movement with transparency and education)? I don’t think they ever will. They know what they’re good at. It’s a well-oiled machine.
Greenwashing is conveying or advertising a false impression or providing misleading information about how a company's products are more environmentally or socially sound. It is considered to be an unsubstantiated claim to deceive consumers into believing that a company's products are environmentally friendly.
I believe right now, Walmart is greenwashing.
This post, in particular, was cringy for me to write because my family and I just moved to an area of Utah where the only store to buy household items are...you guessed it Walmart. I try to buy our household items on Amazon but the reality is with two kids, two dogs, and a full household to run there are days where I need to jump in the car and grab whatever I need at freaking Walmart. I hate it. But on the other side, am grateful there’s a store very close to us, as neighboring communities have to drive what most would consider a far distance for a trip to the store. My friends, family, and especially my husband ;) know how much I miss Target and other shopping options back in Salt Lake City. Not that Target isn’t a money-making, consumption driving machine but they at least have style, a much calmer, more tastefully designed store :)
I hope and believe Target will take charge of implementing transparent sustainable advertising and practices in their products.
I don’t think Walmart will ever be fully transparent about their processes. But I’m glad there is at least some information regarding this online. (Despite the digging consumers have to do).
I miss you Target.
I resent you Walmart
Love
Me, a fashion-forward, mom of two, FIDM alum who is a conscious shopper, and begrudgingly sometimes walks into your scattered store for baby food, laundry detergent, or binky’s.
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