Primark invited guests to the Wholehearted Studio in Ranelagh, to mark ten years of its Primark Sustainable Cotton Programme and to discuss its sustainability initiative, Primark Cares…
The Primark team welcomed guests with tea, coffee and matcha along with a delicious buffet of breakfast goodies at the Wholehearted Studio in Ranelagh, Dublin 6. Guests were invited to move around the studio and take in the information laid out on easels, as well as a video projection. This way they could learn more about the three pillars at the heart of Primark Cares – People, Planet and Circular – and also get a visual insight into the Primark Sustainable Cotton Programme.
This was followed by an honest, informative and accessible talk co-hosted by journalist and podcaster Jo Linehan and Director of Primark Cares, Lynne Walker. The main goal for Primark Cares is to make sustainable clothes affordable to all. In order to do this, fundamental changes are being made in the way Primark operates globally and how the Primark Cares team are encouraging their 75,000 colleagues to think. It was clear to the guests how passionate this team are in making sure these sustainable changes are successful and keep evolving. This year the number of sustainable items available in Primark went from 25 per cent to 55 per cent.
Primark has been running its Sustainable Cotton Programme for ten years. The brand started with a sustainable farm in India and now there are farms in Bangladesh and Turkey too. These farms not only guarantee a direct supply chain to Primark clothes manufacturers, but also a good livelihood for the employees. Now, they employ over 300,000 farmers, with 80 per cent of those being women. With the job they receive fair wages, health checks, mental health checks and an education in various tasks like how to read a pay check, or developing secondary skills like cooking or baking. Walker described how palpable female empowerment is in this programme.
The Primark Cares initiative emphasises People, Planet and Circular, by focusing on the durability and emotional durability of these garments, circular design, traceable supply chain, repair workshops (which are very popular in Ireland), the health and wellness of employees and more. It is a huge, all encompassing endeavour for this global company, but already Primark is paving the way for other brands and the fashion industry.
To read more about Primark Cares and the work that they do follow this link: www.primark.com.
Click into the gallery to see the guests who attended.
Photographer: Kieran Harnett
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