- SKIMS received a zero in a 2024 Remake report on accountability
- Criticized for unethical labor practices and environmental harm
- Transparency and sustainability goals are lacking, despite rapid growth
Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS has grown to be a popular high-end shapewear brand around the world, but a shocking study has revealed the company’s dark side.
Remake, a worldwide advocacy group, gave the $4 billion apparel company a zero in its 2024 accountability report, which evaluates firms’ transparency, employee compensation and wellness, environmental impact, and sustainability goals.
The zero-ranked SKIMS is dead bottom, alongside quick fashion behemoth Temu, which has been accused of forced labour and selling products deemed hazardous to human health.
The audit chastised Kardashian’s company for high carbon emissions, the usage of hazardous materials, and unjust working conditions at a Southeast Asian supply facility.
Even before the audit was revealed in March, Kardashian’s company faced criticism for unethical working conditions in a Myanmar manufacturer.
Bogart Lingerie (Yangon) Limited, a Myanmar-based garment supplier with whom SKIMS worked until at least April 2022, has been accused of terrible working conditions (including unpaid overtime), pay theft, and gender-based harassment and abuse.
The supplier has rejected the allegations, and the SKIMS website states that ‘all of our warehouse and factory workers are given fair wages, safe workplaces, and healthy working conditions.’
It’s unknown whether Kardashian continues to deal with this supplier or others in Myanmar because the firm has never provided a complete list of its vendors.
According to the Remake study, SKIMS does not provide openness about supplier chain traceability.
However, the corporation has previously asserted that its items are purchased from Thailand, China, and Turkey and manufactured in Thailand and China.
In 2022, SKIMS was accused of greenwashing after falsely labelling its packaging as plastic-free, compostable, and plant-based.
On each packaging, the words ‘I AM NOT PLASTIC’ appear in bold letters.
“I am a plant-based biodegradable material. I’ll biodegrade in both your home compost and an industrial compost plant.
In actuality, the packaging is composed of type-4 plastic, or low-density polyethene (LDPE), which is recyclable but non-biodegradable.
SKIMS is one of 15 firms listed in Remake’s study that have yet to commit to setting science-based carbon reduction objectives.
SKIMS is also one of ten companies in this category that have yet to disclose information on their carbon emissions or establish emission-reduction targets.
The paper goes on to demonstrate that SKIMS clothing is predominantly constructed from materials that directly contribute to environmental pollution, deforestation, and greenhouse gas emissions.
Kardashian has been sued by members of her gardening and maintenance team, who are not affiliated with the SKIMS brand but are her employees.
The staffers said that the singer never paid on time, did not allow for food breaks, and dismissed one on the spot for inquiring about overtime compensation.
Remake’s study also identified a significant need for more transparency around supply-chain traceability, employee compensation and wellbeing, environmental effects, and sustainability goals.
“They don’t disclose anything,” Alexa Roccanova, senior advocacy manager at Remake and co-author of the report, told Sourcing Journal.
They make a few assertions about working with suppliers who share their ethical convictions, but statistics support nothing they say. Not to mention that everything they do is primarily reliant on fossil-fuel-based products,” she explained.
SKIMS products are mostly made of regular cotton and rayon (a synthetic fabric manufactured from wood pulp), according to the research.
Conventional cotton growing is related to the widespread use of pesticides and other agricultural chemicals, which pollute rivers, lakes, wetlands, and groundwater. This method also causes severe soil degradation and erosion.
Rayon has been marketed as an environmentally beneficial material because it is derived from trees, a renewable resource. However, wood harvesting contributes to deforestation, and pulp production necessitates the use of vast amounts of acid and harmful chemicals, which pollute the air and water.
SKIMS manufacture is also primarily reliant on oil-derived ingredients like polyester and spandex, both of which create significant amounts of greenhouse gasses.
According to the most recent data, polyester manufacture for textiles generated around 1.5 trillion pounds of greenhouse gases in 2015, equivalent to the annual emissions of 185 coal-fired power stations.
The only information SKIMS has published about its dedication to sustainability is a statement on its website.
‘At SKIMS, we are dedicated to maintaining the highest ethical standards and legal compliance in all parts of our operations and product supply chain. We only work with suppliers and vendors who share our values of sustainability, accountability, and openness,’ the statement continues.
Remake’s yearly studies examine critical concerns about the ethics of the world’s largest fashion businesses, such as whether they set and meet carbon emissions targets, pay their employees fairly, and promote diversity inside the company.
As with any company it examines, Remake requested that SKIMS share details about its operations ahead of the assessment to ensure that its evaluation was as fair as feasible.
Out of 52 companies evaluated, SKIMS was one of 28 that refused to give this information.
As a result, Remake had to compute its grade using publicly available information regarding the company’s operations.
According to the report, scores are based on public filings and represent a company’s transparency level.
Remake-rated companies on a scale of 0 to 150.
A score of zero represents the lowest level of transparency, goal setting, and progress toward those goals, while a score of 150 indicates the highest level of transparency and action.
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Everlane, an American clothes retailer, received the highest score (40).
This is still far from the maximum potential score. According to the survey, Everlane and other top-tier organizations have proved a commitment to ethical and sustainable business practices.
However, the report adds that there is still “a lot of room for improvement.”
This scrutiny does not appear to be preventing SKIMS from developing permanent storefronts in the United States and around the world or from expanding its menswear collection.
However, Roccanova believes that the company’s tarnished social and environmental reputation may limit its capacity to appeal to more morally conscious customers.
I am not sure that the SKIMS consumer is concerned about climate change, but other prospective customers are. So, if they want to stay leaders in this field, I believe they will need to change,’ she said.
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