EN 
EVERY STEP BETTER
TO MAKE EVERY STEP BETTER THAN OUR LAST
For 150 years, our commitment and responsibility to our community has remained unchanged.
The difference is that our community now reaches the furthest points of the globe.
Blundstone holds itself to the highest standard. As a responsible business, it’s a journey that will never end.
We will achieve this by striving for constant improvement. By going above and beyond all relevant laws and standards. By being honest and open. Through accountability for ourselves and those within our value chain. And by ensuring that our people do the right thing by our brand, our products and the planet.
We are proud to launch our Every Step Better Program that encapsulates our commitment to ethical and responsible business management, or as we say, simply doing the right thing.
The difference is that our community now reaches the furthest points of the globe.
Blundstone holds itself to the highest standard. As a responsible business, it’s a journey that will never end.
We will achieve this by striving for constant improvement. By going above and beyond all relevant laws and standards. By being honest and open. Through accountability for ourselves and those within our value chain. And by ensuring that our people do the right thing by our brand, our products and the planet.
We are proud to launch our Every Step Better Program that encapsulates our commitment to ethical and responsible business management, or as we say, simply doing the right thing.
You can hold us accountable...
by sizing us up against our Blundstone Code of Conduct (
available here), in which we set the minimum standards and expectations that we and our partners are working together to achieve and exceed. It’s about raising up the welfare of our employees, the responsible and efficient use of resources, and by reducing our footprint on the planet.
Our major partners include Blundstone footwear manufacturers, leather suppliers and Blundstone distributors.
Every step we take, we ask ourselves, is this the right direction for our product, our people and our planet?
We acknowledge our journey as a responsible brand is ongoing.
But we’ve made a commitment that every step must be better than our last.
Our planet
TODAY AND TOMORROW
With our eyes on the future, we strive to minimise our environmental impact.
We only do business with suppliers that we believe are sufficiently active in improving environmental impact and practices.
We encourage all our suppliers to examine and set strategies around the areas of:
Waste management;
Energy consumption;
Water usage and handling;
and Managing emissions.
Responsible use of resources and managing emissions
Through water recycling we save approximately 5 litres of water for every gumboot manufactured. That’s 1 million litres of water per year.
Some of our suppliers are taking steps to save energy using LED lighting, solar energy installation and other energy efficiency methods.
We encourage our suppliers to minimise emissions. One major partner has implemented active filtration of hydrocarbon and other potential pollutants.
Chemical use properly managed and minimised
We are 100% compliant with the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH), a European Union regulation adopted to improve the protection of human health and the environment from risks that may be posed by chemicals.
We ensure we comply with all relevant market legislation including the California Proposition 65 and the United States Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act.
Our compliance is verified by SATRA’s chemical compliance laboratory testing, the pre-eminent European testing authority. Safe storage and use of chemicals is demanded.
Monitoring Environmental
ImpactSince implementing Every Step Better, none of our major manufacturing partners have recorded a significant breach of any of the auditable environmental areas.
We continue to support our other partners to be ISO 14001 certified - confirming their ability to set up, manage and adhere to an environmental management system.
Promoting Recycling
Our footwear suppliers monitor and remove waste responsibly in compliance with local laws.
Each supplier is encouraged to continually improve waste minimisation and to promote recycling. All of our shoe boxes are made from 100% recycled material and are 100% recyclable.
Our people
EVERY INDIVIDUAL MATTERS
A company is only as good as how it treats its people.
For 150 years Blundstone has prided itself on positive employment practices.During that time we’ve never experienced work force strikes.
Over the last ten years we have significantly expanded our manufacturing operations from our home in Hobart Tasmania. Our supply management and manufacturing has grown to now include key partners in Vietnam, Mexico, India, China and Thailand.
In working across the globe, we seek partners that have the same ethics when it comes to employment practices. We seek out leadership in sustainability, better working conditions, and delivering above minimum standards.
Ethical Business Practices
We dedicate more than 6,000 hours annually to supply chain assessment and monitoring across our supplier and manufacturing locations across the globe to ensure best practice labour outcomes are achieved.
We have zero tolerance for corruption, bribery, extortion and embezzlement.
Voluntary employment
All manufacturers must only use voluntary labour, no form of forced, indentured or bonded labour is tolerable.
Independent auditing
By working with the British Standards Institution (BSI), this independent third party performs regular audits to give us deeper understanding of how us and our partners are progressing towards our shared goals
Freedom to get a fair deal
We advocate for all direct and contract employees to have the right to freedom of association and to bargain without fear of harassment or discrimination. Employees must have the ability to approach management on issues of concern on their own, or through representation.
No discrimination
We will not stand for discrimination. This includes bias based on gender, race, religion, age, ability, sexual orientation, social or ethnic origin.
All of our footwear assembly factories provide paid maternity leave for their employees, and we demand fair treatment of pregnant workers and new mothers.
No child labour
We have extensive safeguards in place to prevent any under-age workers from exploitation.
Fair working hours
Through the review of timesheets, onsite audits and face-to-face verification with employees we adhere to local labour law and regulations.
No harassment or abuse
Every individual matters and must be respected in the workplace. Since we implemented an audit system three years ago, there has been no known or documented labour strikes at supplier factories.
Employee pay
All employees are paid at or above the minimum wage in the country of operation.
Safe and comfortable working conditions
All employees have the right to feel safe in their place of employment. The wellbeing of workers within all workspaces is critical. From ventilation and first aid, to emergency exits and sanitisation, all employees must have access to these facilities without restrictions.
Correct records
Suppliers are required to keep accurate, transparent timesheets and follow human resource practices.
Modern Slavery Statement
Blundstone formalised its statement on Modern Slavery in compliance with the Australian Government Modern Slavery Act 2018 (Cth). As a business we acknowledge there are risks of modern slavery and human trafficking throughout the value chain. We work closely with our partners throughout the value chain to manage and mitigate these risks.
Our Modern Slavery statement sets out our commitment and outlines the steps we have taken to ensure compliance with the Australian Modern Slavery Act.
Our product
MADE TO LAST
We pride ourselves on the quality of materials and the skills required to craft our boots. Tough, durable and designed to last.
Considered design and innovation
Everything from sole technology through to stitching, laces, leather and linings are carefully considered and tested to ensure the product will stand the test of time.
From hand-picked leather to over-engineered double stitching, it ensures our products are not only delightful to wear, but are robust and fit for purpose.
We continually review our designs and material selection to understand how materials can be maximised and production impacts minimised. We encourage all suppliers and partners to invest in innovation and sustainable advancements in production.
Mindful consumption
We design products not just to last but to make sure we use materials efficiently and minimise wastage where possible.
Through detailed processes we ensure the maximum yield can be achieved on each piece of leather to reduce wastage.
Selectively sourced materials
We work closely with Leather Working Group (LWG), the peak body for accreditation and sustainable practices within the leather industry, to source 95% of our leathers. We value this group for their environmental assessment tools, audit protocol, rating systems and third party services. It also encourages upstream suppliers to improve their own environmental practices.
We are trialling more environmentally friendly tanning processes to minimise water consumption, with the goal to use waterless methods.
Animal welfare is top of mind, and we ensure our partners treat animals respectfully and humanely.
Recycled & recyclable
Examples of where we maximise the use of recycled and recyclable content includes returning offcuts from our gumboot products back into the manufacturing process.
Some of the PVC waste from manufacturing is processed, diverting 10 tonnes from ending up in landfill each year, and instead being recycled into the inner material for garden hoses.
Our future
EVERY STEP BETTER
You won’t find us standing still where our future is concerned.
We’re going to be continually shifting the goalposts - getting more ambitious, applying the very latest in technology and material advancements, moving ahead of the times.
So keep checking in on us. In the meantime, these are the areas of focus, investigation and consideration for Blundstone.
Recycled and recyclable
Build on our current efforts to evaluate other components, materials and point of sale items which can transition to recycled and or recyclable alternatives
Sustainable packaging
Transition packaging for items such as footbeds, socks and ancillaries to 100% recycled, and work to eliminate single-use plastics from all packaging.
Minimising Product Impact
Work towards utilising the most environmentally-friendly materials suitable for function, and purpose, beginning with components we use to produce our uppers.
Ethical and transparent conduct
100% of our tier one suppliers and distributors have committed to our Code of Conduct. This document is now a key part of all our agreements with current and future partners. View our Code of Conduct.
Waste minimisation
Actively work with tanneries and global partners to ensure we have access to the most modern manufacturing techniques and identify and implement best practice waste minimisation strategies.
Sourcing sustainable materials
The transparency of our leather sourcing will continue to be a key area of focus.All leather is considered a renewable material. Blundstone source 95% of our leather from sustainably certified tanneries.