Leather is a key raw material for Clarks and all the leather we
source is a by-product of the food industry. We are very proud of the relationships we have built
with the tanneries we work with - many of our them have been supplying us with leather for over 10
years, while the majority have achieved industry-leading environmental standards.
We are also founder members of the Leather
Working Group (LWG), joining in 2005. The LWG aims to promote sustainable and appropriate environmental
business practices within the leather industry., and we are very proud that over 90% of the leather we
specify for our footwear is sourced from tanneries that have achieved Bronze, Silver or Gold
certification against the Leather Working Group Environmental Stewardship Protocol. This assessment
ensures that tanneries have an environmental management system in place and robust procedures covering
restricted substances, energy consumption, water usage, air and noise emissions, waste management,
effluent treatment and traceability. We also believe that building a more transparent and traceable
supply chain is vital, so we are actively mapping our leather supply chain.
Read more about the Leather Working Group here.
Clarks is committed to eliminating
deforestation and we require our suppliers to ensure that hides sourced from Brazil and not from farms
involved in any form of deforestation in the Amazon biome (Since October 2009). We take a collaborative
approach to developing our policies, and have worked with conversation organisation the National
Wildlife Federation to strengthen our requirements with regards to leather sourcing in Brazil.
We also place a high importance on animal
welfare and are committed to the responsible sourcing of animal derived materials. We work with our
suppliers, and multi-stakeholder groups such as the LWG and the Textile Exchange Responsible Leather
Roundtable to build understanding and support the wider industry as they make improvements within
animal welfare, while our Responsible Sourcing Policy for Animal Derived
Materials sets out the minimum standards we expect our suppliers to adhere to.
