How we do our bit for the planet
Given that Stolen Goat was founded on the basis of wanting to help more people get out into the great outdoors to find their freedom and Adventure More, sustainability is always going to be an important consideration for us.
But it’s also important to recognise that working with technical, man-made fibres presents a fundamental sustainability challenge. We don’t attempt to pretend otherwise. Instead, what we do as responsible producers is focus on the areas where we can make an impact.
Stolen Goat’s sustainability and social responsibility initiatives
Sustainability and social responsibility is an ongoing area of focus. Here’s what we’re currently doing at Stolen Goat to make a difference wherever we can.
Supplier choice and material sourcing
Before our products reach us, we do what we can where we can to reduce the carbon footprint of our production process.
- We predominantly use European suppliers
- Our primary European supplier is a family-run business who use green energy, adding back to the grid in the summer months. We visit them on a regular basis to maintain visibility of our European supply chain.
- Wherever possible, we ensure fabrics and trim are sourced locally to the supplier to reduce transportation mileage
- When it’s suitable we source and use recycled fabric, even though is a much more complicated sustainability proposition than it would seem at first sight*.
*Recycled materials come with limitations, including energy intensive processes and reduced durability (particularly important in sportswear). This makes the sustainability of using recycled materials much more of a complex consideration. Take a look at this article to learn more about the pros, cons and challenges.
Shipping and packaging
As an e-commerce business, we know that transportation and packaging materials come with a carbon footprint. Here’s how we do our best to reduce ours:
- We use paper packaging for outbound shipments instead of plastic, and we work with a 1% for the Planet supplier.
- For our imports and overseas shipments, we are also signed up to green initiatives with our carriers – particularly DHL GoGreen Plus.
We say no to fast fashion and focus on making products that will last
At Stolen Goat, we want our products to be something that our Herd can wear year after year. We’re not about fast fashion or throwaway items, and we encourage a circular economy to extend every item’s lifecycle. Here’s how:
- We focus on product high quality, long-lasting items. We’re not about cheap and cheerful. It we don’t believe a product will last, we won’t make it.
- Out of principle, we don’t produce huge quantities of stock and we never destroy good stock. We are not, and never will be, fast fashion.
- We have lifetime and crash guarantee policies. We want to keep our products functional for as long as possible. We do this by supporting local repair solutions, or offering our own repair service.
- Excess items that can’t find a home, even those with minor damage or which are unsellable for other reasons, all go to charity where useable.
- If excess items are not useable, the fabric is either reused for repairs or we donate it to a local school to use for their art and craft projects.
Supporting charitable causes
We’re a small business, but we always want to do our bit to support charitable causes and pay it forward. We regularly work with, and donate to, charitable causes. This has ranged from direct high-profile collaborations and revenue share projects, to quietly supporting both national and local community events with raffle prizes and awareness.
Recent examples include:
World Bicycle Relief, Cycling UK, Rainbows Hospice, Cure Leukaemia, Helping Homeless Veterans, Myeloma UK, Planets Charity, Little Miracles, Pseudomyxoma Survivor, Candlelighters, Hook Schools Community Association, Stop Hunger and many more…
At Stolen Goat we want to do what we can, wherever we can to take care of our environment and operate responsibility. After all, what good is adventure-ready kit if we can’t get outdoors and use it! Sustainability and social responsibility will always be an ongoing area of focus and we’ll keep looking for viable ways as a small business to do our bit.