Boden

Our “Planet” rating evaluates brands based on the environmental policies in their supply chains, from carbon emissions and wastewater to business models and product circularity. Here we rate Boden “Not Good Enough”. These are a few factors influencing its score:

• It uses few lower-impact materials.
• There’s no evidence it’s taking meaningful action to reduce or eliminate hazardous chemicals in manufacturing.
• There’s no evidence it’s taking actions to protect biodiversity in its supply chain.
• There’s no evidence it’s taking meaningful action to reduce water use.

Workers’ rights are central to our “People” rating, which assess brands’ policies and practices on everything from child labour to living wages and gender equality. Here we rate Boden “It’s a Start”. These are a few factors influencing its score:

• It sources its final stage of production from countries with extreme risk of labour abuse.
• There’s no evidence it supports diversity and inclusion in its supply chain.
• It audits some of its supply chain including all of the final production stage.
• There’s no evidence it ensures workers are paid living wages in its supply chain.
• During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, it disclosed adequate policies to protect workers in its supply chain from the virus.

Brands’ animal welfare policies and, where applicable, how well they trace their animal-derived products are the focus of our “Animals” rating. Here we rate Boden “Not Good Enough”. These are a few factors influencing its score:

• It has a formal policy aligned with the Five Freedoms of animal welfare but no clear implementation mechanisms in place.
• It appears to use leather, shearling, exotic animal hair, and silk.
• It has a policy to source wool from non-mulesed sheep but doesn’t provide any evidence to verify its claims.
• It doesn’t appear to use down, fur, angora, or exotic animal skin.
• It traces some animal-derived materials to the first production stage.

Based on all publicly available information we’ve reviewed, we rate Boden “Not Good Enough” overall.