ethical fashion, Business English
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Worksheet
Ethical fashion
The well-known British retailer, Marks and Spencer, is launching a range of Fairtrade clothing. Will more
companies join the move towards ethical fashion?
1
Which expression below does
not
form a collocation with the word ethical? Create example sentences with the other
expressions.
ETHICAL
trading behaviour products issues
consumers textiles shopping spending
ethical
[adj]
: involving the principles
used in deciding what is right and wrong
Definition from:
Macmillan English
Dictionary
Text ï›™ Bloomsbury Publishing
Plc
2002.
2
Scan the article and
underline
expressions with the word ‘ethical’.
Ethical fashion: the latest trend?
The British market for ethical clothes is now around £43
million. Recently released figures show sales of ethical
products grew by more that 50% in 2004.
Marks & Spencer
has
chosen this month – the month of Fairtrade Fortnight – to
begin selling Fairtrade clothing. The aim of the Fairtrade
movement is to ensure farmers in developing countries
receive fair prices for their products, such as food, tea and
coffee, cotton and so on. So, does the fact that a major retailer
is joining the move towards ethical trading signal a big
change in the fashion industry? What is ‘ethical fashion’?
Marketing experts now speak of the ‘conscience consumer’.
33% of consumers consider themselves as caring, thinking
shoppers. A survey on ethical spending found that 54% of
people believe that, as a consumer, they make a difference to
how responsibly a company behaves. The number of ethical
companies is increasing.
People Tree
is an ‘ethical label’. It
sources its clothes from Fairtrade groups in a number of
developing countries.
American Apparel
makes high quality
t-shirts – also, ethically made.
Enamore
creates clothing from
organic textiles and recycled textiles.
Eco-fashion involves producing clothes in a socially-
conscious way. It uses for example, organic cotton, which is
softer. Supporters want clothing manufacturers and
suppliers to provide safe working conditions as well as fair
wages for their employees. The ‘Look behind the label’
campaign aims to inform shoppers of the way products are
sourced. Typically, companies in this group aim to protect
animal welfare and use recycled packaging. They are
concerned about the conditions in ‘sweat shops’ and whether
children are used in making goods.
Critics point out that less than 1% of the worldʹs cotton
production is organic. They say this will only ever be a niche
area, and that eco-fashion is too expensive to have
widespread appeal. Only 5% of people who shop believe that
ethics are crucial. Most people still have no real interest in
changing their habits to shop ethically. One reason for low
commitment is that people do not know enough about ethical
consumerism. In Fairtrade Fortnight, is this all about to
change?
3
Read the whole article. Which two viewpoints are outlined in the article?
4
Create collocations by matching a word from box 1 to any word from box 2. How many can you create?
(1)
developing animal recycled
organic conscience fashion
(2)
packaging countries welfare cotton
textiles consumer industry
5
Discuss the following questions in small groups. Be ready to report your ideas to the class.
(a)
Do you buy Fairtrade or organic articles, such as coffee / tea, food or clothes?
(b)
Do you believe that your shopping decisions can change a company’s behaviour? Give an example.
(c)
How well does your company score in the area of ethical practice? Can it improve in some ways?
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Copyright
ï›™
Macmillan Publishers Limited 2006.
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