TRANSPARENCY REPORT 2020
“We must know who is making our garments. We must care about that. We must ask questions, ask for a better way to create a sustainable environment for the people, places and things that inhabit our plant.”
shop smart, shop small, shop local
MEET THE FOUNDERS
hello and welcome to our family business we are rebecca and terence meyer—founders, husband-and-wife team, and proud parents!
We’re a locally run Australian family business passionate about the future of our family – our children’s children, whilst we may not be perfect we strive to transform the way fashion is not only produced but also consumed. We believe in good quality products that stand the test OF TIME and become a pillar towards a sustainable fashion industry.
Miann and Co was born in 2011, just after our second child was born, our firstborn began to have troubling complications with eczema. This was a turning point for us—we wanted to give ours and other parents’ kids the ability to be surrounded by wholesome, wellness-promoting fabrics and toys. We began our Miann & Co journey that same year by designing safe, handmade toys, and later evolved into natural clothing with synthetic-free fibres as well as natural homewares.
Our handmade toys are constructed from the finest cotton yarns; all safety tested to ensure a healthy and dependable product. We’re proud to say our toys are first in class for quality craftsmanship materials, design, safety, and ethical production.
Natural fibres are the cozy, touchably-soft element you feel in our garments. Natural fabrics, such as cotton, silk, and wool, are made of animal or plant-based fibres, while synthetics are man-made and produced entirely from chemicals. These man-made fabrics such as polyester, rayon, acetate, and nylon are treated with thousands of toxic, irritating chemicals during production. Our fibre range is predominantly made from cotton, which is hypoallergenic and is soft and soothing on sensitive skin. It’s also durable, making for stress-free laundering duties for moms and dads.
Our product lines have grown to serve the needs of our lovely customers—we now carry garments and home goods for women and grown-ups of the family. Our clothes are produced in small batches in partnership with an offshore, family-run business, which we take time to visit regularly. Every one of our handcrafted products is made in a co-op, giving women and men the opportunity to work from home with flexible childcare options—all while nurturing their creativity.
2018/19 SUSTAINABLE HIGHLIGHTS
PACKAGING
We started the process to move from plastic mailing satchel to using 100% biodegradable mailing satchels made from corn starch. The Better Packaging Co home-compostable satchels means a 60% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to traditional plastics.
LESS WASTE
Each and every collection has a very limited number of garments. A lot of strategical planning and decision making is made concerning each seasons drop, we aim to produce the right amount of product to eliminate waste, dead stock and wasted materials. Over production is one of the largest risks for any fashion business resulting in huge amounts of waste and the associated emissions.
MATERIALS
We are very proud to announce our very first 100 % organic GOTS cotton babies range will be released in February 2020. Organic cotton uses lower carbon due to lesser fuel and energy consumption as well as removal of excessive fertiliser and pesticides.
OUR ETHICAL & ENVIRONMENTAL MISSION
Our mission is to educate our consumers about what our clothes are made from and the environmental impact “fast fashion” has on the industry. We’re a locally run Australian family business with the aim to make a difference in the world to promote and encourage sustainable products as well as transform the way products are produced, consumed, worn and valued.
We’re passionate about the future of our family - our children’s children. We believe in quality products that stand the test of time and aim to become a pillar towards a sustainable industry.
2025 GOALS
PACKAGING
Miann & Co will eliminate the use of synthetic materials on our swing tags and any printed materials. By 2025 we will be using 100% home-compostable packaging satchels.
ENVIRONMENT
Miann and Co will continue to head towards a zero-waste business from production to the consumers door. By 2025 we aim to operate with the smallest environmental footprint possible.
COMMUNITY
Miann and Co will continue to give back to local and global communities and create a positive change by increasing our support to non-profit organisations and local community groups.
MATERIALS
Miann and Co will use 100% organic natural materials in all products, with fully supply chain traceability.
MATERIAL MATTERS
We are making a conscious effort in our design process about the environmental impact our business contributes. Our biggest impact comes from our products; from the way we design to the materials we choose. A key focus is on improving products through our material selection and moving towards organically sourced fabrics. We started our business with the belief that natural fibres are best , the raw materials impact the fibres longevity and also its recyclability .
SHOP SMART. CHOOSE WELL. MAKE IT LAST
Miann & Co are aiming towards a circular design model; that encourages us to create products that stay in closed loops and discourages waste. The Circular Design Guide was created from Ideo and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. “Effective circular design looks beyond a single product lifecycle for a single user.” (Chris Grantham)
We believe wholeheartedly that we produce original, heirloom pieces- soft toys and clothing that can passed from brother to sister, mother to daughter- pieces that carry love and joy with each generation they are given to. We aim to enable multiple usages and users of our materials.
BY DOUBLING THE USEFUL LIFE OF CLOTHING FROM ONE YEAR TO TWO YEARS REDUCES EMISSIONS OVER THE YEAR BY 24%
95% OF DISCARDED CLOTHING CAN BE RECYCLED OR UPCYCLED
EXTENDING THE LIFE OF CLOTHES BY A FURTHER 9 MONTHS WOULD REDUCE CARBON, WASTE AND WATER FOOTPRINTS BY 20–30% EACH
OUR GLOBAL FAMILY
Sometimes, small is an excuse to not know your own suppliers that you partner with to create a business. Especially now with the Internet at our disposal, it has been made even easier to not only source, but also communicate and stay in touch. As business owners we have a personal responsibility and obligation to know the parties we partner with in every area of our business.
At Miann & Co, we currently have three suppliers; two are based in China and one in India. We have been visiting our suppliers since we were a team of only one, as it was important to us from the beginning that good relationships were formed. We strongly believe these relationships matter the most and are the catalyst when it comes to the quality and the product that you put out into the world under a brand.
Our knit and crochet supplier was sourced after meeting at a tradeshow in China. Our supplier is an extension of our business based in the Nantong province in China. Our supplier works with cotton yarns and produces very small quantities of our handmade toys. Being a kids product, safety was super important, as was the quality of our products.
Our toys were made in a co-operation that allowed both men and women to work from home around their childcare and also farming needs. This group used to have around 200 women and men and is shrinking due to the shrinking handicraft economy in china .
Producing in these co-ops have long lead times as production is on their time and it normally means close to 9 months of the year in the making from initial concept to in our warehouse.
Our second supplier is also in China nantong region. This is our woven and jersey supplier, he makes all our other products that aren’t knits. We have trialled different methods with this production type and we have even had some of our woven items in our second season made in homes on domestic machinery (which is like your home machine). However, We saw the need to change this for quality concerns and have since started producing products on industrial machinery which has seen our woven and jersey products being made in a smaller family run businesses .
The Nantong area in China is well known for its yarn dyed fabrics and this has allowed us to design our own stripes and fabrics and to personally know the factories and also ensure we are producing at the highest quality and minimising our carbon footprint . By producing in the same area this allows us to join shipments and Minimise our carbon foot print with transportation . 90% of our deliveries are delivered by sea freight .