What Does Ethical Manufacturing Mean?

Do you wonder where your clothes came from? We wear clothing every single day and it’s a big part of our identity and of who we are. But many of us don’t know. I am not here to judge, I am simply here to tell you where your House of Koopslie clothing came from.

As a brand owner, this can be hard to do. It feels very exposing to talk about how your items are made and where.

I started out as a maker. I made most items myself and hired local people to help me when things got busy. There were also areas that I was not the best at (I wrecked a lot of hats trying to learn how to silkscreen!), and at those times I hired people to help me also. But as a maker, I always felt a bit of shame in getting help. I thought that I should be able to do it all.

The truth is that I could not. I had two small kids at home and my daughter at the time was dealing with very serious health issues. This made running a business and making products really hard. The other thing is that even if I didn’t have these commitments, there would be no way to actually do it all on my own because I wanted to grow my business.

I didn’t want House of Koopslie to be a small side hustle. I wanted to grow it into something bigger than me. And it has. We are now a company that has an adorable 1000 sq ft. office that I love coming to every day. I have been able to find a superstar team consisting of an office manager, a fashion designer/production coordinator, a social media manager and a large sales team across Canada.

We also have outsourced our sewing work to a local studio in Edmonton. And this is the part that is hard for me. I worry that my customers will think that we are no longer who we are because we are not working with home seamstresses anymore. But the truth is that we have enough work for two Edmonton based women, who happen to work at a studio instead of from their own home. And I decided that I am okay with that. In fact, I am more than okay with that. I am proud. I realize that something I have built is providing good wages, benefits and holidays to two very hard working and skilled women. That is nothing to be ashamed of but something to celebrate.

So today I celebrate.

Yesterday I met with a group of local designers and business owners and the theme that came out is what does ethical production mean. We soon realized that it can mean different things to different brands, but we were all unsure if we can use that word.

I have given it some thought and I realize that to House of Koopslie, ethical production means good wages and good working conditions. It also means producing locally for as long as it makes sense. I like working with local people and businesses because I like to be hands-on. I like to be able to go and see how things are going, to chat and see where we are with production, see if they have any issues or even ideas to improve or create something completely new. Being geographically near my factory makes sense for me. As we grow, that may change and if it does, I will not be ashamed. It will mean that we have grown to the point where we need more help and that will be an exciting thing. We will be creating new jobs and new opportunities in other areas. All good things.

So back to today. I am going to start celebrating the great accomplishments that I’ve achieved with my business House of Koopslie. A business I am extremely proud of.