Product Safety and Ecology
A well-designed, high-quality and functional product gives long-lasting joy to its owner, and is thus a sustainable choice. In 2009, Marimekko’s designers and other personnel working in product development received training in such issues as the environmental impact of materials and their recyclability, as well as issues related to the lifecycle of products.
Marimekko bed linen and terry cloth products, almost all fabrics printed in the Herttoniemi textile printing factory, as well as several clothing materials and knits have been granted the Öko-Tex Standard 100 certificate, which guarantees that the products do not contain any substances that are hazardous to people or to the environment. The Öko-Tex standard has four levels: I baby clothes, II clothes worn next to the skin, III other clothes and IV other textile products. Level I has the strictest requirements. Marimekko products comply with level I or II Öko-Tex standards.
During this spring, Marimekko will introduce its first children’s clothes where the production process of the cotton used meets the requirements of the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS). Marimekko’s product range also includes organic cotton terry cloth products and bed linen. Organic cotton is grown without any environmentally harmful pesticides or fertilisers. Its production process is certified, and the origin of the cotton is traceable. In general, the cotton production chain is wide, complex and difficult to trace. The objective is to increase the proportion of products manufactured from organic materials in Marimekko’s product range. Interesting new products for spring 2010 include cushions designed by Piia Rinne and Noora Niinikoski and produced in South Africa by a traditional rug-hooking technique. The cushions are made by unemployed women in the Cape Town area, and the material for them is waste fabric from local jersey production.
As the proportion of subcontracting increases, quality control is becoming more and more important. As new collections are being compiled, Marimekko’s in-house quality control team tests materials and product structures during the various stages of the process. The compilation of a comprehensive set of quality criteria was completed in 2009, providing Marimekko with a practical tool for instructing its subcontractors and other partners and further improving the quality and safety of its products.
The challenges related to the ecological nature of products are regarded as a common cause in Marimekko’s branch of business. In order to obtain more information and share views about responsibility issues with other companies, Marimekko takes part in the Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical (NICE) project coordinated by the Nordic Fashion Association. The goal of NICE is to contribute to the development of Nordic fashion companies into even more responsible actors. Several well-known companies are involved in the project.