Breaching advertising codes

This company has been criticised for offensive advertising. In 2016 Ad Standards upheld complaints about a City Chic store window video ad by this company on the grounds that it breached advertising codes. The ad was subsequently discontinued or modified.

Source: Ad Standards (2016)

APCO member

Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) is a not-for-profit organisation leading the development of a circular economy for packaging in Australia. Each year, APCO Members are required to submit an APCO Annual Report and Action Plan, which includes an overall performance level from 1 (Getting Started) to 5 (Beyond Best Practice). This company is listed as an APCO member, but has not published an APCO Annual Report (as of July 2025).

Source: APCO (2025)

Rejecting Burma

In Oct 2009, as a result of Burma Campaign Australia's 'Don't Deal with Burma' campaign, Specialty Fashion Group committed to stop sourcing products from Burma and dealing with companies that trade in Burma.

Source: Burma Campaign Australia (2009)

Turkmen Cotton Pledge signatory

This company has signed the Turkmen Cotton Pledge with the Responsible Sourcing Network, signifying a public commitment to not knowingly source Turkmen cotton for the manufacturing of any of their products until the Government of Turkmenistan ends the practice of forced labor in its cotton sector. Each cotton season, Turkmen public sector workers are forced by the government to fulfill cotton picking quotas and private businesses are forced to contribute to the efforts financially or with labor. This places a huge burden on the health, education, and general well-being of Turkmen citizens.

Source: Turkmen Cotton Pledge (2022)

Angora ban

This company has taken angora items off the shelves and promised not to use angora again, following a PETA campaign launched in Dec 2013 which revealed the cruelty inflicted on angora rabbits in Chinese factory farms, where 90% of the world's angora is produced.

Source: PETA (2018)

Supplier Factory Disclosure List

This company is one of of a handful of major Australian fashion retailers to publish the names and addresses of their supplier factories.

Source: company website (2016)

Ethical trade claims

This company has CSR claims on its website in the areas of ethical trade, sourcing policies, product safety, packaging and supply chain transparency.

Source: company website (2016)

Modern Slavery disclosure quality

Modern slavery disclosure is a critical step in mitigating the risk associated with modern slavery practices in companies' operations and supply chains. The quality of the disclosure signals the level of commitments and efforts that the companies have put in managing these risks. In 2021 the Monash Centre for Financial Studies analysed and ranked the disclosure quality of the modern slavery statements submitted by the 300 largest listed companies on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX300). This company's modern slavery disclosure statement received a grade of C.

Source: Monash University (2021)

40/100 in Ethical Fashion Report

Baptist World Aid Australia's '2024 Ethical Fashion Report' assessed 120 companies on their efforts to mitigate against the risks of forced labour, child labour and worker exploitation in their supply chains, as well as protect the environment from the harmful impacts of the fashion industry. Assessment criteria fall into five main categories: policy & governance, tracing & risk, auditing and supplier relationships, worker empowerment and environmental sustainability. This company received a score of 40/100. The average score was 31.3 and the highest score was 90.

Source: Baptist World Aid Australia (2024)

Efforts to pay a living wage

Oxfam Australia's Company Tracker compares the big clothing brands on their efforts to pay a living wage to the women working in their factories. This company has released the names and addresses of their tier one suppliers, made a public commitment to pay a living wage within a set timeframe, and has taken some action towards separating labour costs.

Source: Oxfam Australia (2024)

Victim of fraud

In 2010 SFG's head of property, Simon Feldman, was charged with 226 counts of fraud. The NSW Supreme Court was told Feldman siphoned most of a missing $16.7 million to "prop up" three private businesses he ran with Richard Bamford.

Source: news article (2011)