Detailed Report: Ethical Business Strategy of H & M Fashion Analysis

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of H&M Fashion's ethical business strategy. It examines the company's zero-tolerance policy on corruption, its commitment to fair wages through the Fair Wage Living Strategy, and its sustainable sourcing practices, including the use of recycled materials ...Read More

Running head: ETHICAL BUSINESS STRATEGY OF H & M FASHION
Ethical Business Strategy of H & M Fashion
Name of the student
Name of the University
Author note

1ETHICAL BUSINESS STRATEGY OF H & M FASHION
Answer 1)
H & M Fashion has zero tolerance policy in relation to corruption and they take a pro-
active approach in relation to the prevention of corruption (Hm.com, 2018) This has been
stated forward in that of Code of Ethics that is applied to all the business partners along with
suppliers. Education along with building awareness are held to be crucial tools that can help
in the prevention of corruption within that of high-risk countries. Code of ethics helps in
providing backbone to that of their business. The H & M Group is not instrumental in owning
any factories. The products of H & M are made by that of independent suppliers who are
located in the developing countries. H & M believes that everyone who is working within that
of the textile industry should be capable of earning a wage- irrespective of where they are
working. The people who make the clothes are treated with utmost respect and the suppliers
offer the employees with fair wages along with that of good working conditions. H & M is
not responsible for owning any factories and they work with that of independent suppliers.
The suppliers can be contracted by various brands and so the worker is able to earn same
amount in relation to that of the money. The workers can be employed by that of the supplier.
They work regarding the wage issues within that of the company along with collaboration
with that of other stakeholders like that of UN Body International Labour Organization and
global unions.
H & M has implemented a strategy in relation to fair living wages which is called Fair
Wage Living Strategy. They are adopting the Fair Wage method so that they can achieve fair
wage setting in relation to the employees (Guitián, 2015) They work in partnership with that
of local players along with that of global organisations in relation to this important issue. The
materials of H & M fashion are sustainably sourced and they depend on that of natural
resources. Environmental impacts in relation to textile processing can prove to be harmful
and there are other fabrics that have less amount of environmental footprint. They use

2ETHICAL BUSINESS STRATEGY OF H & M FASHION
recycled polyester in relation to the sportswear instead of that of conventional polyester. The
recycled polyester is made from that of oil-based waste like that of PET bottles that can help
in preventing it from being in the landfills (Wang, Cheney & Roper, 2016). H & M Fashion
make use of recycled polyamide which is made from that of fishing nets along with that of
carpets. They utilise the leftover waste from that of production and it can help in the saving of
that of natural resources.
H & M believes in uniform human rights for all the workers and the objective of the
organization is to see to the fact that everyone is entitled to fair wages (Grayson & Hodges,
2017). They have collaborated with that of international organization like that of International
Labour Organization which deals with the wage issues. The Fair Wage Living Strategy helps
in the protection of the workers. Treating the workers well is another vision in relation to
their organization and optimum working conditions can help in saving the rights in relation to
the employees.
Answer 2)
Ethical branding in relation to H & M Fashion focuses on making use of organic
linen, organic silk, natural rubber and recycled glass for making the clothes. The organic
linen is derived from that of plants and it does not have any kind of chemical pesticides or
that of fertilisers. It can thus help in favouring both the health of the farmers along with that
of the environment. It does not have any kind of genetically modified fibre and this makes the
ethical branding of H & M to be of superior quality. The organic silk of that of H & M
fashion comes from that of the silkworms who line in that of the mulberry trees. The
mulberry trees are grown in a manner that is environment friendly and sustainable farming
techniques are made use of for augmenting the brand reputation of the organization. It helps
in uplifting corporate reputation in relation to the organization. Animal welfare is important
for H & M Fashion and animal tests are not performed by the organization in relation to the

3ETHICAL BUSINESS STRATEGY OF H & M FASHION
beauty products (Jain, Leka & Zwetsloot, 2018). H & M educates the farmers on that of
animal welfare. H & M will collaborate with that of other stakeholders that can raise
awareness in relation to animal welfare. They have joined forces with that of Humane Society
International so that animal protection is treated as a priority in relation to that of the fashion
industry.
All the major organizations of the present age focus on the arena of sustainable
practices and the conscious actions undertaken by them in relation to recycling helps in
increasing the reputation pertaining to the organization. There has been an ethical shift within
that of the organization and currently H & M Fashion lays stress on the aspect of recycling in
order to improve their brand reputation. The previous sustainable methods focussed on that of
animal welfare along with that of working conditions and wages. The garment collection
programme is of great importance in the present age and this can help in protecting the
sources within the world (Zaharia & Zaharia, 2015). The ethical practice can be said to be
genuine as it lays focus on the welfare of the people and that of the earth. H & M have
brought out a programme in which they take old and used clothing from that of the
consumers and offer the people a discount of 10 % on that of their next purchase. In the year
2015, they collaborated with London College of Fashion students for launching a recycling
campaign. Garment Collection Programme in relation to H & M Fashion focuses on the arena
of that of sustainable fashion culture. The clothing that can be worn the second time is
marketed throughout the world in the form of second hand goods (Chell et al., 2016) The
textiles that cannot be worn any longer can be converted into that of other products like that
of remake collections. The textiles that can no longer be used can now be used as textile
fibres and they are used in order to manufacture other products. The bag in relation to
unwanted clothing can be dropped in the recycling box of that of the local store (Charles Jr,
Schmidheiny & Watts, 2017). The textiles are then sent to that of the nearby recycling paint

4ETHICAL BUSINESS STRATEGY OF H & M FASHION
where they are sorted by making use of hand. A customer will get a voucher in relation to
their next purchase.

5ETHICAL BUSINESS STRATEGY OF H & M FASHION
References:
Charles Jr, O. H., Schmidheiny, S., & Watts, P. (2017). Walking the talk: The business case
for sustainable development. Routledge.
Chell, E., Spence, L. J., Perrini, F., & Harris, J. D. (2016). Social entrepreneurship and
business ethics: Does social equal ethical?. Journal of business ethics, 133(4), 619-
625.
Grayson, D., & Hodges, A. (2017). Corporate social opportunity!: Seven steps to make
corporate social responsibility work for your business. Routledge.
Guitián, G. (2015). Service as a bridge between ethical principles and business practice: A
Catholic Social Teaching perspective. Journal of Business Ethics, 128(1), 59-72.
Hm.com (2018). Hm.com. Retrieved 28 April 2018, from https://www.hm.com/au
Jain, A., Leka, S., & Zwetsloot, G. I. (2018). Responsible and Ethical Business Practices and
Their Synergies with Health, Safety and Well-Being. In Managing Health, Safety and
Well-Being (pp. 99-138). Springer, Dordrecht.
Wang, Y., Cheney, G., & Roper, J. (2016). Virtue Ethics and the Practice–Institution
Schema: An Ethical Case of Excellent Business Practices. Journal of business
ethics, 138(1), 67-77.
Zaharia, C., & Zaharia, I. (2015). Corporate governance and business ethical
values. Linguistic and Philosophical Investigations, 14, 103.