Ireland-based budget fashion chain Primark has been criticised for its record on workers’ rights and the effect of its low-cost, high-volume model on the environment.
But its chief executive Paul Marchant does not agree. “I don’t buy the
story that we can’t be ethical buying from Asia,” he told AFP in an interview
in Dublin.
In the world of low-cost fashion, Primark — a fixture on the high street
in the UK, Ireland and beyond — is a one-off.
The brand produces its garments in Asia and sells them cheaply in Europe,
but ships them by boat rather than by plane, does not sell online, prepares
its collections more than a year in advance and does not build up stock.
It has been a lucrative formula, with Marchant boasting recently that the
retailer had hit the billion-pound ($1.3 billion) profit figure for the first
time.
Primark, though, still has to bat back critics including environmental
campaigners who argue that the brand’s “throwaway” fashion is a drain on
resources.
Human rights groups meanwhile accuse it of relying on suppliers in
countries where workers are afforded little protection.
Primark maintains that it trains Indian farmers in regenerative agriculture
and that it conducts regular audits of its suppliers to ensure workers and
land are not exploited.
Nonetheless, its model relies on policing of regulations in India, Pakistan
and Bangladesh, where its garments are mainly produced.
“Providing you have the right partners… and have the right guards and
measures and controls in place… I don’t see any reason why you can’t have a
very robust ethical supply chain at source,” said Marchant.
The company, he added, complies with the International Labour
Organization’s code of conduct.(AFP)
