Create merchandise they said, it would be fun they said...

Well, we can tell you that it wasn't as easy as we thought it would be. In the context of transparency, we would like to tell you about our journey of creating our merchandise. The inconveniences, the obstacles we encountered, and how we dealt with them.

First, let me underline our main goal again: We've set up The Corporate Rebels Foundation to end inhumane workplaces. We raise money and support projects to fight injustice. You can help us by either donating, so that we can support more projects (Corporate rebels donates as well, sharing 10% of all profits) or by submitting (local) projects that we can support. You can click here to submit a project. We have money in the bank to support new projects!

Our main goal is to raise money to support projects. With our merchandise, we wanted to make donating more attractive and accessible so that we can give something in return when donating. Corporate Rebels has a growing number of followers who believe in the rebellious message of changing the way we work. Can you imagine how many projects we could support if the half a million people we reach per month would donate 10 dollars..... Wow, imagine that!

With that dream and mission in mind, we had just one really important ingredient for creating the merchandise: It had to be made as responsible as possible, and under the best circumstances that exist, with the challenge to have the smallest footprint thinkable.

If we could do this, we would make a statement that it is indeed possible to create fashion items you can be truly proud of, without having any dirt on your hands. But our fair conditions were exactly why the whole process wasn't that easy.

It is confronting how f*cked up the fashion industry is. We had some passionate conversations to express our concerns about whether it is responsible to have merchandise products developed in the first place, and after that, we shared that we live in an over-consuming time. But as long as we can make a statement, that with the right research and will, you can make something that you can wear with pride and feel good about in this unhealthy sector.

Of course, we were already aware of this, but of all the hundreds of merchandise partners we could find, only a handful of brands were suitable to consider for us to partner with.

We’re happy to shout out to Stanley & Stella, the company we choose to work with. They create fashion merchandise you can fully rebrand in the most sustainable and eco-friendly way with respect for humans and our planet. They use only 100% bio cotton and recycled fabrics that are GOTS-certified. They keep a close eye on every step of the process to ensure the safety of all their workers. They work closely with the Fair Wear Foundation (FWF) and support the socially responsible approach of their partners. They even have set up mechanisms for decent working conditions, such as an internal code of conduct, monthly reports and daily visits to their partner factories. Wow, that’s the way we like it! You can imagine that in this way we consider it responsible to make merchandise that matches our main goal: End inhumane workplaces.

Another detail that we were convinced we could do more consciously in the process was the stock. Instead of stockpiling a shitload of sizes of merch at the Corporate Rebels headquarters that we may never sell, we thought it would be a good idea to create a print on demand option for our webshop. In this way, no unnecessary items are made, and no unnecessary emissions are produced that we cannot compensate for.

We have chosen to work with Printful. An online platform that only uses eco-friendly ink and yarn. They work together with Stanley & Stella, so that is a perfect match. When you place your order on our webshop, (First of all, you are awesome to do so!) your item will be printed or embroidered at the nearest Printful location closest to you. In this way, emissions are minimized.

But for all consciously aware readers among us, yes, that means that some emissions are indeed still being produced. But Corporate Rebels have chosen to offset the emissions x10. Hell yes!

As you can read, we tried to think about every little detail while making the t-shirts/sweaters and tote bags: The best quality, made in a good environment/ eco-friendly ink and garment/ responsible shipping/ extra CO2 compensation and all of that for a fair price...

You can only imagine how proud we are to say that we did it! Lord what a challenge it was.

We are very proud of the results of our first editions and hope that our consciously basic items, with a rebellious touch, can help you consider making a donation in the form of a purchase. Remember that when you donate, you help to put an end to inhumane workplaces, you are kind of a hero!

If our previous Blogpost convinced you to consume less (you are awesome!) you can of course always just donate and still be awesome!

Check out our merchandise, we only put good intentions into it!

For all the haters: We want to create awareness around our habits and choices and give good alternatives. Our merchandise is a good alternative.