Converse

Converse is owned by Nike.

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 Converse “Good”. These are a few factors influencing its score:

• It uses few lower-impact materials.
• To minimise waste, it reuses some of its textile offcuts.
• It’s set a science based target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in both its direct operations and supply chain but there’s no evidence it is on track.
• It’s set a target to eliminate hazardous chemicals by 2025 and claims it’s on track to meet its target.
• There’s no evidence it’s taking actions to protect biodiversity in its supply chain.

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 Converse “Good”. These are a few factors influencing its score:

• Its social auditing program is certified by Fair Labor Association (FLA).
• It received a score of 51-60% in the 2022 Fashion Transparency Index.
• It has a basic policy to support diversity and inclusion in its supply chain.
• It claims to have a program to improve wages but there’s no evidence it ensures its workers are paid living wages in most of its supply chain.
• During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, it disclosed some 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 Converse “It’s a Start”. These are a few factors influencing its score:

• It has a basic policy covering animal welfare but no clear implementation mechanisms in place.
• It appears to use leather, and wool.
• It doesn’t appear to use down, fur, angora, exotic animal skin, or exotic animal hair.
• There’s no evidence it traces any animal-derived materials to the first production stage.

Based on all publicly available information we’ve reviewed, we rate Converse “It’s a Start” overall.