Make 50% of our t-shirts, sweats et merinos knits sustainable.
Make the fabrics and dyeing of our chino pants organic.
Improve our shipping options.
Get rid of plastic blisters.
Reduce the energy consumption of our stores.
Sustainability Program Ensemble
WHERE WE STAND ON SUSTAINABILITY
Limiting our impact on the environment and ensuring fair working conditions are our ways to fight against climate emergency and for a fairer world.
This state of mind has been present ever since Balibaris was created but it needed to be better structured and grow in order to get more efficient.
We’re undertaking these long-term efforts to improve our practices, to question our reflexes and go beyond what we’ve already accomplished. It feels like taking some kind of long and winding road where humility is key and there is no proper finish line.
And above all, we’re in this together with all Balibaris co-workers, customers, suppliers and partners. This is why we named our sustainability program Together, as both the prerequisite for achieving the goals we pursue and a leitmotif to encourage ourselves to reach further as one.
Here is where we stand today on sustainability at our humble scale and further below where we’re aiming at.
FirstStyle
Our collections are timeless, mix and match perfectly and never go out of style.
SecondQuality
We’ve been improving our clothes for ten years now, from raw materials to finishing touches, so you can wear them as long as you wish.
ThirdQuantities
We prefer to be out of stock rather than over produce.
FourthControl
We’re in the process of getting our raw materials and production processes certified and regularly check our partners.
FifthOptimization
We're looking for all ways to improve our footprint in the whole production process. Learn about them below.
SixthCommitment
We're supporting causes, which contribute on the field to reaching our common goals.
Our fabrics
We choose our materials and fabrics for their resistance and easy care but also whenever possible for their sustainability and their near origin.
Of course, we’re not there yet but we’re constantly improving our materials’ sourcing and certifications.
You can find the exact composition of all our clothing items on the labels of course, but also in the Details section of our product pages on the e-shop.
Natural fabrics
83% of our references are made up of natural fabrics only (cotton, wool, silk and linen in summer).
We only use synthetic fabrics such as polyamid or elastane for the three following purposes:
• First to meet functional expectations such as impermeability for coats.
• But also to increase your confort with more flexible and agreable jeans to wear all day long.
• And finally, to improve the drape and the looks of a fabric.
In every other case, we use natural fabrics.
Organic fabrics
What about organic natural fabrics? This year, we’re proud to present four 100% organic clothes: one pair of jeans and three t-shirts. But that’s only a starting point, and we’re working on this hand in hand with our partners and suppliers.
Certified fabrics
We’ve started this year to get our fabrics certified in order to ensure they have a low impact on the environment and health. We are now committed to making progress each and every season.
For instance, the fabrics of all our chino pants are REACH and Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certified. The Oeko-Tex certification ensures that all fabrics, components and processes have been proven to be harmless for men.
OUR PRODUCTION
Where and how?
We make 85% of our collections less than 3000 km away from France but we sometimes go further away for three main reasons:
• Local know-how when we cannot find it closer to us.
• Trusted partners: we choose a location but also people with whom we share a set of core values, which is essential to seal a successful collaboration. We ensure that their expertise level and their quality and ethical standards meet our expectations and even though our work relationships are based on trust, we regularly check their compliance through certifications and visits.
• Proximity with our fabrics and materials’s origins to prevent worldwide transit.
SOME MORE DETAILS
All our shoes are made in Portugal, where there is a longlasting leather work tradition and industry.
It’s also the case for all our swimsuits, classic chinos and shorts: they’re made in Portugal by our long trusted partner.
44% of our merino wool knitwear are made in Italy, close to our merino wool suppliers.
95% of our jackets, coats, parkas and suits are made in Europe, including 51% in Romania
where the textile industry managed to keep its know-how over the last decades.
100% of our shirts, t-shirts and sweats are made less than 3000km away from Paris.
PROGRESS TOWARDS OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100
The Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certification ensures that all components and processes used to make our clothes are harmless to men.
100% ouf our jeans and chino pants, 80% of our suits and jackets, knits and sweaters, 60% of our coats, tshirts, shirts and caps are Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certified. Next year’s goal is to make progress on every category at every step of the production process.
Packaging
Our cardboard boxes and shopping bags are made up of 40% of recycled material, that is the maximal proportion to ensure their resistance.
Both boxes and bags can be fully recycled, but don’t hesitate to use them again as storage boxes or for any other purpose!
We are also considering about limiting the use of plastic blisters which protect our clothes from humidity during shipping and storage, and in general all non-necessary packaging components.
Shipping
Almost 85% of the collection are made less than 3000 kms away from France and are shipped by road. We also try to make sure our materials are not shipped halfway around the world to be woven and sewn and then back.
We are considering less polluting options with our partners and warehouses for shipping, be it for the shops or the e-commerce.
ABOUT STOCKS
We are doing our best to avoid material waste by limiting scrap pieces and reusing stocks.
As per our clothes, we prefer to be out of stock rather than overproduce.
If we didn’t sell everything at the end of the season, we have three dedicated outlets, where the old collections can be purchased at a discounted price. We do not produce for the outlets as it can be the case in the industry.
We also sometimes give away clothes for charities, such as AIDES, which organizes a special sale to finance AIDS medical research.
We’ve anyway never destroyed our surpluses of stocks and will never do so. Lucky enough, law will soon prevent such shameful behaviours.
BALIBARIS GETS COMMITTED
The shared state of mind of sustainibility and responsibility starts with small daily gestures.
At the headquarters, everyone has a reusable bottle and cup for water and coffee. We only print what’s necessary and try to limit our waste, as well as find new solutions for recycling.
We are also committing to causes which are important to us. We’ve been donating clothes for AIDES special sale against AIDS for years now. During the COVID-19 outbreak, we donated 20% of our sales to Fondation de France which funds medical equipment, initiatives to improve health workers wellbeing and medical research.
