2021 Impact Report

The MATE Manifesto

Our Dress Clean® mission is both a call to action to our MATEs to make sustainable shopping choices, and it’s a mantra for how we operate as a business. By committing to do better for both people and the planet, our goal is to evolve the apparel industry at a fundamental level. We want to create a new standard for the industry at large.

With such a big vision, we are constantly learning, making mistakes, and finding new ways to improve. That’s why it’s so important that we stay accountable by providing visibility into our annual impact.

Dress Clean®

Carbon Impact + Offsets

Every business, no matter how sustainable, has an environmental impact. At MATE, we make it a priority to source lower impact materials and minimize our emissions as much as possible. We are able to call ourselves Certified Climate Neutral because we offset our yearly carbon emissions by funding carbon offset projects, and we make yearly objectives to reduce our impact.

The majority of our carbon impact comes from making our products. Emissions from other facets of our business like our office, employee commutting, and business travel are small because we have a lean, mostly remote team.

These numbers include all scope 1, scope 2, and scope 3 emissions outlined in the chart below. In summary, this is the entire impact of our business up until the product arrives at your door.

Scope 1

Scope 1

Fossil fuels used by owned or leased facilities
Fuel consumed by owned or leased vehicles
Scope 2

Scope 2

Electricity used by owned or leased facilities
Steam bought and used by owned or leased facilities
Scope 3

Scope 3

Purchased goods and services
Capital goods
Upstream emissions from fuel and energy
Upstream transportation and destribution
Waste from operations
Business travel
Employee commuting
Downstream transportation and distribution

Company Carbon Savings

As MATE has grown, so has our impact. However, by sourcing lower impact materials, we have been able to limit our emissions. This chart illustrates our carbon savings in comparison to using conventional materials

Carbon Intensity

Because demand for MATE has grown, we made a greater number of products
in 2021 than ever before. As a result, our overall impact also increased.

As we continue to scale, an increase in impact is inevitable. That's why in 2021, we examined our carbon intensity in order to limit emissions on a per product basis. In the long run, this will help us keep our emissions to a minimum.

Our Offset Projects

We offset our yearly carbon emissions by funding carbon offset projects that remove an equivalent amount of carbon from the atmosphere. These offsets not only mitigate climate change but also have social co-benefits such as habitat restoration, cleaner air and water, and increases in biodiversity.

These are the carbon offsets we purchased to balance out our 2021 emissions:

Capricorn Ridge Wind Project

Texas, USA

662.5-megawatt wind energy project that serves as a source of renewable energy and reduces water and air pollution associated with fossil fuel electricity production.

Doo Doo Does More

Maharashtra, India

This project reduces methane emissions by supplying rural families in India with biodigesters. Biodigesters take cow dung and decompose it into cooking fuel and fertilizer which is used by the families.

A Look Back and a Look Forward

Carbon offsets are a great place to start but they should never be the end of a company’s climate strategy. That’s why we look for other ways to reduce our physical emissions. To hold ourselves accountable, here’s an update on our 2020 goals:

Goal Progress
Gather all of our cotton cut scraps to be recycled and used in new MATE products. We were able to collect and recycle all of our cotton cutting table scraps. These scraps were sent to a mechanical recycler in Guatemala that is creating a recycled fabric we will use in 2022.
Give customers the option to send in used MATE goods to be recycled. We made a lot of progress on this initiative in 2021 but just missed the end of year deadline. We will be going live with this option in early 2022!
Manage the carbon intensity of MATE’s business. As a young, growing company we are looking to scale our business while restricting our environmental impact. We were able to set and abide by restrictions on the carbon intensity of our business, helping to decouple company growth and carbon impact.

Goal

Gather all of our cotton cut scraps to be recycled and used in new MATE products.

Progress

We were able to collect and recycle all of our cotton cutting table scraps. These scraps were sent to a mechanical recycler in Guatemala that is creating a recycled fabric we will use in 2022.

Goal

Give customers the option to send in used MATE goods to be recycled.

Progress

We made a lot of progress on this initiative in 2021 but just missed the end of year deadline. We will be going live with this option in early 2022!

Goal

Manage the carbon intensity of MATE’s business. As a young, growing company we are looking to scale our business while restricting our environmental impact.

Progress

We made a lot of progress on this initiative in 2021 but just missed the end of year deadline. We will be going live with this option in early 2022!

MATE's 2022 Goals

Goal 1

Incorporate recycled fabrics into our product line

Goal 2

Source U.S. grown cotton that uses carbon farming / regenerative practices to reduce the impact of our cotton and promote healthy California soils.

MATE's 2022 Goals

Goal 1

Incorporate recycled fabrics into our product line

Goal 2

Source U.S. grown cotton that uses carbon farming / regenerative practices to reduce the impact of our cotton and promote healthy California soils.


Product Impact

Here is the average carbon impact of our product categories along with the average carbon savings compared to using non-organic or less sustainable materials.

SHIRTS

3.3 kg CO2e
31.5% reduction

JACKETS

5.4 kg CO2e
22.5% reduction

PANTS

3.3 kg CO2e
21.3% reduction

SWEATERS

6.8 kg CO2e
21.8% reduction

Materials

Natural, organic, plastic-free—we only choose materials that come from the soil and can return to the soil. That means Organic Cotton, TENCEL™ Lyocell, and flax Linen. We have made a commitment to never source synthetics like polyester and nylon, with the exception of 8% spandex in our Organic Stretch (because we might be laughed out of the yoga studio if we made non stretchy leggings!).

Our Fabric Impact Summary

ORGANIC COTTON JERSEY

Avg. kgCO2e:  1.8

Avg. Gal Water:  291

37.1% lower carbon emissions

85.3% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Organic Cotton Jersey. Carbon and water savings compare our organic cotton to conventional cotton.

TENCEL

Avg. kgCO2e:  3.1

Avg. Gal Water:  225

40% lower carbon emissions

85.2% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Tencel. Carbon and water savings compare Tencel and Organic cotton blend to a rayon and conventional cotton blend

ORGANIC THERMAL

Avg. kgCO2e:  4.4

Avg. Gal Water:  1,347

23% lower carbon emissions

75% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Organic Thermal. Carbon and water savings compare a product made with Organic cotton to conventional cotton

ORGANIC TERRY

Avg. kgCO2e:  4.2

Avg. Gal Water:  1,397

25.5% lower carbon emissions

77.5% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Organic Terry. Carbon and water savings compare our Organic cotton to conventional cotton.

LINEN

Avg. kgCO2e:  8.6

Avg. Gal Water:  2,378

14.3% lower carbon emissions

10.8% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Linen. Carbon and water savings compare a product made with flax linen to conventional cotton.

FLEECE

Avg. kgCO2e:  13.7

Avg. Gal Water:  9,800

32.7% lower carbon emissions

53.6% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Fleece. Carbon and water savings compare our 50% organic 50% BCI cotton to 100% conventional cotton.

ORGANIC COTTON JERSEY

Avg. kgCO2e:  1.8

Avg. Gal Water:  291

37.1% lower carbon emissions

85.3% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Organic Cotton Jersey. Carbon and water savings compare our organic cotton to conventional cotton.

TENCEL

Avg. kgCO2e:  3.1

Avg. Gal Water:  225

40% lower carbon emissions

85.2% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Tencel. Carbon and water savings compare Tencel and Organic cotton blend to a rayon and conventional cotton blend

ORGANIC THERMAL

Avg. kgCO2e:  4.4

Avg. Gal Water:  1,347

23% lower carbon emissions

75% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Organic Thermal. Carbon and water savings compare a product made with Organic cotton to conventional cotton

ORGANIC TERRY

Avg. kgCO2e:  4.2

Avg. Gal Water:  1,397

25.5% lower carbon emissions

77.5% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Organic Terry. Carbon and water savings compare our Organic cotton to conventional cotton.

LINEN

Avg. kgCO2e:  8.6

Avg. Gal Water:  2,378

14.3% lower carbon emissions

10.8% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Linen. Carbon and water savings compare a product made with flax linen to conventional cotton.

FLEECE

Avg. kgCO2e:  13.7

Avg. Gal Water:  9,800

32.7% lower carbon emissions

53.6% less water use

This is the average impact of MATE goods made with our Fleece. Carbon and water savings compare our 50% organic 50% BCI cotton to 100% conventional cotton.

Impact of Fabric

The following graph illustrates the carbon footprint (kgCO2e) and water impact (m3) of all MATE products color-coded by fabric. As you can see, a lot of the products made with the same fabrics have similar impacts.

2021: Fiber Breakdown

Packaging & Trims

Plastic-free is the way to be. That’s why we paid close attention to even the smallest of details to eliminate plastic from our trims and our packaging.

HANGTAG

Recycled paper and soy ink attached to the garment with a copper pin

MAIN LABEL & SIZE TAG

Made from Organic cotton

MAILER

Recycled paper mail slip

Our Supply Chain

We like to say, keep your MATEs close and your supply chain even closer. Staying local as much as possible not only reduces our emissions, it also allows us to have a deeper relationship with our partners and tap into LA’s rich history of apparel manufacturing.

1. Port of India

The cotton fibers are spun into yarn in India and shipped by boat to Los Angeles

2. Port of Los Angeles

The cotton yarn is then transported to our fabric knitter

3. Fabric Knitter

Cotton yarn is knit into a textile here before going to our cut & sew facility

4. Cut & Sew Facility

Here the fabric is cut and sewn into a garment before going to be dyed

5. Dye House

Here the tee is dyed with GOTS approved organic dyes

6. Shipped to You

The final tee is packed and shipped to our warehouse where is waits for your order

Traceability

How well do we know our own supply chain? We work closely with all of our Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers. As we move to Tier 3, things become a bit more complicated. We are able to trace the yarn mills and cotton gins that our cotton comes from but as we move into Tier 4, we are not able to identify the specific farms our cotton is sourced from. For our flax Linen and TENCEL™ Lyocell pieces, we know the country the fiber and yarn are sourced from but cannot identify the specific facility.

TIER 1

100%
Finished goods factories, aka cut & sew facilities

TIER 2

100%
Fabric mills & dye houses

TIER 3

45%
Yarn spinners

TIER 4

0%
Farms and other raw materials providers

Plans To Improve

We are currently working with a California based cotton farm that is growing climate beneficial cotton. The cotton we source from this farm will be 100% traceable and made 100% in the USA.

Plans To Improve

We are currently working with a California based cotton farm that is growing climate beneficial cotton. The cotton we source from this farm will be 100% traceable and made 100% in the USA.

Planes emit 30 times more CO2e than boats. In this case, slow and steady wins the race.

Any transportation for production is done by boat. Boats may be slower than planes but they emit far less carbon dioxide to transport the same amount of goods. In fact, planes emit 30 times more CO2e than boats. In this case, slow and steady definitely wins the race.

Factory Code Of Conduct

Another requirement we have had since day one is a ban on piece rate pay. This is a practice in which factories pay employees by the number of garments they produce as opposed to an hourly rate. Piece rate pay often leads to wages that are below minimum wage and unsafe working conditions. Fortunately, this practice has been banned in the state of California through Senate Bill 62. This was a huge victory for all who work in the garment industry, especially in the City of Los Angeles.


Team Dress Clean™

Since the beginning, our MATEs have been women of all colors, shapes, and sizes who give a damn about their bodies, their impact, and the world around them. We have always put women at the center of everything we do. But as we look to the future, we know that our Dress Clean® mission has the potential to make an even greater impact. In 2021, we wanted more people to have access to our essentials. That’s why we decided to expand beyond women’s apparel and continue making our apparel more inclusive and accessible.

We Launched

MINI MATE

MINI MATE, our collection for kids and babies.

MATE MEN’S

Starting with three premium Fleece styles and a classic Organic Cotton Tee.

We Expanded

EXTENDED SIZING

Our size-inclusive product offering. In 2021 we started offering size ranges from XS-3X. In 2022 we plan to expand this offering to more products.

We Reduced

PRICING

The pricing of our Organic Cotton styles by up to 25%. In 2021, we shifted to an exclusively direct-to-consumer model which enabled us to lower the retail price of many of our essentials.

Growing Our Community

We are fostering a community of support around environmental and social issues.

12 Meetings With Thought Leaders:

A Year Of WTFs

We’re all about spreading clean knowledge to our community. Our WTF series on Instagram focuses on raising awareness of important environmental and social topics, and making them easy to understand. We were able to reach 599,792 people with this content in 2021. Here is a little highlight reel of our most popular WTF moments:

Reading up on the ties between the fashion industries favorite fibers and the fossil fuel industry.

How CA garmet workers won a huge victory in ensuring fair employment and the elimination of piece rate pay.

What is the annual Conference of the Parties and what went down this year at COP26.

Reading up on the ties between the fashion industries favorite fibers and the fossil fuel industry.

How CA garmet workers won a huge victory in ensuring fair employment and the elimination of piece rate pay.

What is the annual Conference of the Parties and what went down this year at COP26.

Reading up on the ties between the fashion industries favorite fibers and the fossil fuel industry.

How CA garmet workers won a huge victory in ensuring fair employment and the elimination of piece rate pay.

What is the annual Conference of the Parties and what went down this year at COP26.

Employee Benefits

We are happy to offer benefits to our employees that support their mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing as well as offering full medical, dental, and vision.

1
Monthly team bonding events that focus on moving our bodies or settling our minds through guided walks, group meditation, or sometimes an ice cream party is really what everyone needs
2
Employee stipend for educational advancement opportunities and trainings around environmental, racial, and social justice topics
3
Each team member gets 4 days a year where they are paid to volunteer in their community. Giving back to your community is a crucial way of grounding yourself and recharging
4
Each team member is given a Head Space membership allowing access to guided meditations for mental wellness
5
MATE subsidizes both a yoga membership at a local yoga studio and a course on transcendental meditation

Charitable Impact

MATE donates 1% of sales to non-profit partners that are committed to saving the planet. In addition to our other sustainability initiatives, we consider these 1% donations as a self-imposed environmental tax. This is something we are committed to doing no matter how profitable we are.

Partnership With BEAM Impact

You may have noticed that our checkout experience got an upgrade in 2021. We partnered with BEAM Impact to give you the opportunity to decide where you want to donate 1% of your order. Here’s how your donations were distributed between our four partner non-profits:

20%
FIBERSHED

Fibershed is a non-profit that develops equity-focused regional and land regenerating natural fiber and dye systems. Their work expands opportunities to implement climate beneficial agriculture and rebuild regional manufacturing.

21%
LOS ANGELES NEIGHBORHOOD LAND TRUST

The Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust works to address inequalities in Los Angeles parks systems increasing access to green spaces for black and brown communities who have had limited access to these spaces.

42%
SURFRIDER FOUNDATION

The Surfrider foundation focuses on: reducing the impact of ocean plastic pollution, protecting ocean habitats, ensuring beach access for all, preserving coastlines, and ensuring water quality.

17%
WOMEN’S VOICES FOR THE EARTH

Women’s voices for the Earth aims to amplify women’s voices to eliminate toxic chemicals that harm health and community.

Partnership With BEAM Impact

On Giving Tuesday in 2021, we wanted to do even more good. So we upped our donation amount from 1% of every purchase to 5%. Thanks to our MATEs who shopped to support on Giving Tuesday, our community funded:

The removal of 12,000 lbs of plastic from the ocean via Surfrider Foundation
2 weeks of a stipend for organizers advocating for the ban of toxic chemicals in menstrual products via Women’s Voices for the Earth
2 weeks of community garden maintenance for affordable fruits & vegetables via LA Neighborhood Land Trust
500 gallons of rainwater captured to help organic textile farmers via Fibershed

The Clean Council

We are a small brand with big sustainability goals. While we have a dedicated internal sustainability team, we also want to tap into the industry’s best and brightest for advice on scaling a truly responsible company. With that in mind, we assembled what we believe to be the dream (clean) team. This group will work with company leadership and our sustainability team to ensure MATE is using the best science and industry knowledge on issues like microplastics, climate action plans, and chemical impacts.

What's Next

BCorp Certification

We are currently going through the process of becoming a BCorp. This certification has taken longer than expected because SO MANY companies are realizing they must incorporate people & planet into their business model and are pursuing the certification. We are hoping to become officially certified in 2022!

Stories From The Farm

For over a year, we have been planning something major—a single project that unites climate action, traceability, and a commitment to regional and domestic cotton farming and textile manufacturing.

We partnered with a group of brands to work precompetitively to implement regenerative carbon farming practices on two farms in the California Central Valley.

reMATE

Throughout 2021, we collected all of our cutting table scraps to be recycled into new MATE products. Now, we want to expand our circularity program to include your ready-to-retire apparel. In 2022, you will be able to send in your old MATE items for store credit. The plan was to launch this part of our circularity strategy in 2021 but we’re coming clean . . . we fell short! The new plan is to launch in the spring.

From Our Founder

“MATE is on a mission to clean up the fashion industry, one garment at a time. As a business, we believe that prioritizing the health of the planet and its people is an urgent matter. By committing to non-toxic, natural and organic materials, we hope to lead the clean fashion movement and affect change in the industry. ”


– Kayti, MATE Founder