Galaxus now discloses where clothes were made

Where were the hiking boots in your shopping cart made? Where do your sunglasses come from? What about that bikini? Until now, you would have had to look at labels or packaging to find out. Or do some research online. The latter often leading nowhere.

To give customers more control, Galaxus is now disclosing the country of origin of over one million fashion and sportswear items. The information is available in the product specs under «Origin». In addition, there’s now a «Country of origin» filter available for 91 product groups. Customers can use this filter to find out which of the over 25,000 sneakers in the Galaxus range are made in Germany or Switzerland, for example.

According to EU customs regulations, the country of origin is defined as the country in which the lion’s share of a product’s value was added, i.e. the manufacturing or processing. This usually corresponds to the information on the label «Made in XY».

«With this information and the filter options, we’re creating transparency for our customers,» says Anaïs Scheiwiller, Product Sustainability Manager and person in charge of the new feature. However, not all manufacturers and suppliers have provided the necessary information. «If there’s already a country of origin entered in our database, the information is often incorrect.» That’s why Anaïs and her team are currently checking a lot of data – especially when partners declare European countries as the country of origin. «It often turns out that items like sandals, socks or football shirts were actually produced in Asia.»

Of the 1.18 million fashion and sportswear items where the country of origin is stated, 78 per cent are made in China. Bangladesh and Vietnam each account for four per cent, and India for three.

Manufacturers reluctant to share

Of the 7.4 million products on offer at Galaxus and Digitec in Switzerland, around 1.2 million, or 15 per cent, disclose their country of origin. «We’ll be increasing this to over 20 per cent by the end of the year,» says Anaïs. At the top of the priority list are the categories IT + Multimedia and Beauty.

However, it will probably be some time before Galaxus and Digitec will be displaying the source of all products. «Unfortunately, many manufacturers are reluctant to provide us with the relevant data; especially if the products hail from low-wage countries,» says Anaïs. In those cases, Anaïs and her employees have to ask for the information or investigate themselves – and that takes time. «But we won’t let that put us off.» Besides, it’s in the manufacturers’ interest to provide the data. «If not, we just fall back on what we find.»

The hope at Galaxus and Digitec is that the more it becomes common practice to disclose products’ country of origin, the greater the incentive for partners to provide this data. «This is where manufacturers, retailers and consumers need to take responsibility,» says Anaïs.

In addition to the origin filter, Digitec and Galaxus also offer a sustainability filter. Because «Made in China» could take on a whole different meaning if the production meets the criteria of a quality seal such as Oeko-Tex, Ecocert or FSC.

*What do you make of Galaxus now providing information on the country of origin of fashion items and sportswear? Is this a filter you’ll be using? For which products do you find the information particularly relevant? The comments section’s all yours!