We want to surf forever.
So we’re taking action now to secure a clean ocean future.
2021 Impact Report
We know urgent action is necessary and we are focused on contributing to solutions for clean oceans.
We believe scalable solutions are essential to tackle the immense environmental impact of our industry and the growing threats to ocean health.
Progress takes commitment. In July 2021 we made our target for every Piping Hot product to be made with a low impact material. This was the culmination of many moving parts - sustainable supply chain management, achieving certified traceability of materials, and demonstrating value in a challenging retail environment, all without compromise on design or quality. We are particularly proud that we have maintained affordable price points in all categories, with a head-to-toe offer for the whole family.
2021 HIGHLIGHTS
We are committed to circularity.
Tackling the global waste issue by increasing the recycled content in our products.
In July 2021 we eliminated virgin polyester from our supply chain. 100% of our synthetics are made with recycled materials, which use 62% less energy than virgin polyester.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
We are implementing circularity throughout the product life cycle.
In 2021 we did a deep dive investigating our impact of the dyes, prints and washes techniques we use across our collection. The report highlighted the immense water and chemical use in the wet processing of our garments.
We set a roadmap for reducing our water and chemical use, and have trained our design team with a dyes, print and wash hierarchy to tackle environmental impact in the design phase.
Our boyswear designer led a print project, developing alternatives to water-intensive tie-dye prints using digital design and new techniques to reduce water, energy and chemical use.
We are committed to low impact materials.
We prioritise low impact materials for all our products to significantly reduce the environmental impact in every product we produce.
As of July 2021, 100% of our products are made with low-impact materials that are recycled, recyclable, renewable or biodegradeable.
We are saving water and energy.
Conserving resources that threaten ocean health.
We are committed to certified traceability.
We have mapped our supply chain from fibre to end product.
All of our Tier 1 suppliers are published on the open apparel registry.
The Global Recycled Standard (GRS) verifies recycled material and tracks it from the source to the final product. Piping Hot has achieved GRS certification to the highest level, meeting best case practice all the way through from raw material source to retail. The GRS includes strict social, environmental and chemical requirements that are audited annually.
Towards a more responsible supply chain.
We’re taking steps to improve and manage our social impact.
At Piping Hot we believe transparency is an essential element for sustainability. By being transparent we can be sure that the sustainable claims that we are making have been verified, providing integrity and accountability to our customers.
In 2021 we developed our Responsible Sourcing Policy. The policy outlines key requirements including audit procedures, corrective action plan processes and goals focused on effective grievance mechanisms. Developing specific requirements and clear processes for onboarding suppliers gives us the ability to make meaningful change happen. This includes audit requirements, corrective action plan management and a plan to implement a worker’s grievance mechanism by end 2022.
Piping Hot supports the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact in the areas of Human Rights, Labour, Environment and Anti-Corruption.
We have published our Communications of Progress, reporting on the actions to continually improve the integration of the Global Compact and its principles into our business strategy, culture and daily operations.
We are committed to making sustainability affordable for families.
We believe that investing in scalable solutions is essential to change the industry and improve accessibility for all.
We focus on scalable solutions to help families save money. We can significantly reduce environmental impact by making sustainability affordable.
HOW THE MODEL WORKS
MEASURABLE IMPACT WITH EVERY PRODUCT
Textile Exchange
Textile Exchange fosters cross-sector collaboration and shared learnings to minimise the fashion industry’s impact on the planet. The member-based organisation sets out global standards for the responsible use of fibres, and the best practice in relation to farming, materials, processing, traceability and reducing carbon emissions.
We participated in the Textile Exchange Corporate Fibre Materials Benchmark since 2018 and will continue to do so each year. This initiative enables us to measure our progress alongside 200+ global fashion brands from an environmental perspective. The combined data supports industry advances in sustainable fibres, sharing information to collectively navigate complex supply chain issues.
We have been actively seeking sustainable textile alternatives to synthetic fibres so that we can better protect oceans for future generations.
The shedding of microplastics from polyester fabrics is a major obstacle to our clean oceans mission. With no immediate options currently available to tackle this issue, we have been actively pursuing viable solutions by contributing to microfibre research and investigating biomaterial alternatives.
We have partnered with climate scientists at the University of Technology Sydney to develop a textile made from seaweed. Seaweed is a biobased material that is sustainably farmed, with positive environmental benefits to ocean ecosystems.
We have commissioned this innovative biomaterial research, as a crucial investment in our mission for clean oceans. Our ambition is to create a sustainable alternative to polyester, to sever our dependence on fossil fuels, a textile solution that is from the ocean, for the ocean.
Better Together.
We support those taking action to protect oceans and advocate for our community.
Algae are the most efficient organisms on Earth. They absorb pollution, sequester carbon and can improve ocean ecosystems.
In 2021 we partnered with Bloom to add harvested algae into every pair of Piping Hot shoes.
Bloom is a material containing algae that helped clean polluted water and air.