Our take on American Vintage’s ethical and sustainable approach

Eco-friendly materials used

Percentage of eco-friendly products and materials

Information published by American Vintage: American Vintage offers a number of items containing linen, modal, lyocell or cupro. Some of these items are made of 100% lyocell, while others contain around 50% eco-friendly materials. Recycled cotton, however, is found in only a very small number of items.

💬 Our opinion :

✅ It's worth noting the use of innovative eco-friendly materials such as modal, cupro and lyocell. Offering 100% lyocell items is a very good step.

🔴 However, the vast majority of items are made of cotton that is neither certified organic nor recycled (apart from a tiny proportion of items in organic or recycled cotton). In addition, non-responsible materials such as polyamide, acrylic, viscose and all kinds of wool are found in a very large number of American Vintage items.

Approach to environmental labels

Information published by American Vintage: The brand mentions no environmental label.

💬 Our opinion :

🔴 Although the cost of a label can be high for young brands, American Vintage has existed since 2005 and, according to Société.com, its turnover in 2018 was 21 444 200 euros (up 9.7% on the previous year). The brand could go further in its environmental commitment by sourcing certified materials.

Other eco-friendly initiatives

Information published by American Vintage: In 2019, American Vintage began selling pieces made from a so-called eco-friendly denim. It is made from raw cotton canvas whose production reportedly uses less water than conventional cotton. At the same time, the brand launched its Vegiflower T-shirt, made with natural dyes. Both types of item can be found in American Vintage's eco-friendly range .

The same year, at the Festival d’Hyères, American Vintage teamed up with the French manufacturer Whole to offer a limited-edition series of pieces dyed with avocado stones.

In spring 2020, American Vintage launched a collection of Berber rugs made by a cooperative of women weavers in Morocco. It was created as an upcycling project, using fabric offcuts the brand had accumulated over the years.

💬 Our opinion :

✅ This is a very good initiative from American Vintage. More information on the characteristics of the cotton mentioned above would be welcome.

Support for environmental NGOs or charities

Information published by American Vintage: The brand mentions nothing.

R&D efforts and laboratory testing

Information published by American Vintage: The brand mentions nothing.

Transparency about manufacturing sites

Information published by American Vintage: The brand gives no information on its website about where its items are made. In its shops, however, it seems you can find out where items come from by checking the labels.

💬 Our opinion :

🔴 The website gives no information about where the factories are, the workers' working conditions, let alone where the raw materials come from. This is fairly unusual.

Approach to labels and social audits

Information published by American Vintage: The brand gives no information.

💬 Our opinion :

🔴 The website mentions nothing on this subject. The audits are not available online.

However, if you search for « American Vintage Audit » online, you come across a statement the brand posted on its Facebook page on 4 November 2019 about its use of angora. In this statement, the brand says it was « targeted by animal rights groups » over its use of angora. American Vintage says it called on two external audit firms to get to the bottom of the situation. Among the words used, the brand says it puts « animal welfare at the heart of [its] concerns ». It is worth knowing that angora production is highly controversial. The Futura Sciences website explains that the fur can be collected by shearing or by « plucking »: the first can lead to the animal's death from the cold, and the second can cause terrible pain.

Traceability of the whole supply chain

Information published by American Vintage: The brand gives no information, and the website makes it impossible to know which suppliers the brand deals with directly.

💬 Our opinion :

🔴 The brand could be more transparent by providing this information.

Support for NGOs or associations working to improve workers' social conditions

Information published by American Vintage: In 2010, American Vintage partnered with Cent pour Sang la Vie in the fight against leukaemia, and to mark the occasion offered T-shirts featuring children's drawings. Four euros from each T-shirt sold went to the association. In 2011, after the explosion at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan, the brand teamed up with Médecins du Monde and offered T-shirts with five euros going to the association.

💬 Our opinion :

✅ This is a very good initiative from American Vintage.

Governance

Information published by American Vintage:

In 2013, the brand received the AMO « Habitat, Architecture, Environnement » award, which honours the best architectural projects each year, for its offices in SIgnes.

In 2019, AMV Camp opened in Signes, between Toulon and Marseille. Designed on the model of large multinationals, the brand's headquarters has a gym with a coach, a spa and a hammam. It is the brand's campus, the idea being to train the teams in the American Vintage spirit and bring them together.

In an interview for the podcast Entreprendre dans la Mode, Michaël Azoulay, the founder of American Vintage, shared his wish to keep up this training momentum in order to obtain a label for good corporate governance.

💬 Our opinion :

✅ This is a good initiative from American Vintage, and team wellbeing seems to be central to the brand. But what about the wellbeing of the workers ?

Sales and marketing

Information published by American Vintage: American Vintage holds sales and offers discounts. The Outlet range has over 1200 items from past collections, sometimes reduced by more than 50%. The brand also runs a loyalty programme giving access to special statuses (New, Friend, Addict, Ambassador), discounts, gifts and invitations to events organised by the brand.

💬 Our opinion :

🔴 The sometimes heavy sales suggest that the brand is not committed to helping us spend less on clothes.

It is worth pointing out the use of the terms Friend and Ambassador in the brand's loyalty programme. Customers are invited to join the big American Vintage family and move up in status by buying.

The message « Free delivery. Your loyalty points doubled » can also seem to encourage consumption.

Raising awareness and educating about overconsumption

Information published by American Vintage: American Vintage mentions nothing.

💬 Our opinion :

🔴 The brand does not seem committed to promoting more mindful consumption, even though it promotes timeless basics made from natural materials.

This article was written by: Anna Demont, Sawsane Djazouli, Victoria Adjanohoun and Marie Nguyen.