Our take on Two thirds’s ethical and sustainable approach

Materials used by the brand Two thirds

*Non-exhaustive lists

Percentage of eco-friendly products in the whole collection

Information published by Two Third: Two Thirds uses eco-friendly materials in the vast majority of its pieces. Among them: linen, Tencel, organic cotton and recycled polyester. The brand doesn't use leather, preferring to replace it with cork. Although a few non eco-friendly materials are used, they make up very small percentages of the finished products' composition.

As for wool in particular, the brand tries as much as possible to use locally sourced wool, and for merino wool it uses certified mulesing-free wool. Finally, Two Thirds says it uses a plant-based dyeing process.

As for the other components of Two Thirds products, the buttons are made of corozo (vegetable ivory), whose producers try to take an eco-friendly approach ; the zips are made by YKK, a legendary company that manufactures in Europe, and the jacket padding is made of raw cotton (so-called untreated cotton).

Two Thirds uses non-harmful denim production techniques such as e-Flow, nanobubbles that fade the jeans. Production processes releasing heavy metals or formaldehyde have been eliminated, as has traditional bleaching with sodium hypochlorite, since it leads to the formation of toxic and sometimes carcinogenic halogenated compounds in wastewater.

Finally, the brand gives additional information on the pieces' composition using icons such as "Vegan" or "Durable". Below each piece, the brand also gives information on the characteristics of the materials it is made of.

💬 Our opinion

✅ The brand Two Thirds seems genuinely committed to using eco-friendly materials.

Approach to environmental labels

Information published by Two Third: The brand says it uses organic certification and the GOTS label where possible (for organic cotton). Two Thirds states that the vast majority of its pieces meet the Oeko-Tex 100 standard and that all of its production complies with the European REACH regulation, which certifies that products sold on the European market do not contain a number of chemical substances and are therefore not harmful to consumers' health.

💬 Our opinion

🔴 Although the brand uses a large number of eco-friendly materials, very few are certified or labelled. No reason is given. The brand could go further by using certified materials.

Other eco-friendly initiatives

Information published by Two Third: Two Thirds has taken several eco-friendly actions.

First of all, the brand lets you pre-order some pieces in exchange for a 20% discount, to avoid excess stock.

Clothes are shipped to buyers by sea and the brand's warehouses are located in Germany, to be closer to its customers, who are mostly in Northern Europe.

Two Thirds packaging is made from recycled paper, and the brand says its long-term goal is to become a company with zero negative impact on the environment (waste, environmental damage, GHG emissions).

The brand's website is rich in content. The Stories tab features content about sustainable fashion, the brand's innovations, and partnerships between Two Thirds and other brands or NGOs. The Sentinels tab brings together portraits of ambassadors of Two Thirds' slogan We are Ocean whose aim is to raise awareness of ocean protection. Finally, the Sustainability FAQ tab reflects the brand's transparency, answering consumers' questions.

💬 Our opinion

✅ The brand seems committed to an overall environmental approach.

Support for environmental NGOs or charities

Information published by Two Third: Two Thirds mentions a collaboration with the charity WeForest during Green Week in November 2019, which led to 5446 trees being planted in Brazil. The brand also mentions projects in partnership with EDMAKTUB, an NGO specialising in marine research, as well as beach clean-ups.

💬 Our opinion

✅ The brand seems committed to an overall environmental approach, beyond its own actions.

R&D efforts and laboratory testing

Information published by Two Third: The brand gives no information.

💬 Our opinion

🔴 The brand could go further and offer laboratory tests or durability analyses to back up its claims.

Transparency about production sites

Information published by Two Third: Two Thirds items are mostly made in Portugal, in the Braga region, and in Italy. The brand does acknowledge, however, that some items are made outside the EU, but the countries of manufacture in question are not mentioned. A few photos of factories are available on the website.

Before setting up production in a country, the brand says it checks the hourly minimum wage there, so that workers can make a living from their work.

💬 Our opinion

✅ The brand seems to be starting to commit to transparency about its production sites, and to European manufacturing.

🔴 However, Two Thirds could go further by giving access to the same information for all its products (some information is missing for certain products). Other information could also be added: the location of the factories, how many there are, and the working conditions in them. The production sites and working conditions outside the EU would also benefit from being named transparently.

Approach to labels and social audits

Information published by Two Third: The brand does not mention any information. We do not have public access to the brand's social audits.

💬 Our opinion

🔴 The brand does not seem to be committed to obtaining and publishing social audits. Its claims of good working conditions therefore rely on the brand's own judgement.

Traceability of the whole supply chain

Information published by Two Third: According to the information on the brand's website, the fabrics used seem to come mostly from Portugal and Italy, but also from Scotland, Belgium and non-EU countries, notably Argentina in the case of merino wool.

The brand says it is trying to find out more about where its raw materials come from, a stage over which it admits it has little influence. If you wish, you can ask questions about specific materials via an email address given on the website.

💬 Our opinion

✅ The brand seems to be starting to commit to the traceability of its raw materials and to transparency about its approach.

🔴 The brand could go further by trying to fully trace its value chain.

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

Information published by Two Third: The brand has worked with SUPerando, a Spanish association that aims to include people with functional disabilities and/or at risk of social exclusion through water sports. For every Children of the Ocean T-shirt bought, one euro was donated to the association.

💬 Our opinion

✅ The brand seems committed to an overall social approach, beyond its own actions.

Governance

Information published by Two Third: The brand does not mention any information.

Company capital

Information published by Two Third: There is no information about who owns the company or how its capital is structured.

💬 Our opinion

🔴 The brand could go further on transparency about its governance and funding, and make this information publicly available.

Sales and marketing

Information published by Two Third: The brand holds sales and offers discounts on pre-orders.

💬 Our opinion

🔴 Holding sales is not a problem in itself (unless they are excessive, aim to push overconsumption, or lead to lower pay for workers). However, the brand could explain why it discounts products given that it promotes pre-orders (where there is normally no overstock).

Awareness and education about overconsumption

Information published by Two Third: Two Thirds gives advice on making your clothes last, covering washing and recycling, and even recommends buying second hand over new. In the Materials tab, there are detailed explanations of the materials the brand uses and their environmental impact.

💬 Our opinion

✅ The brand seems genuinely committed to raising awareness about overconsumption.

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