COS

COS reports a portion of its garments are made with lowest impact fibers, including organic hemp, recycled linen, and recycled cotton, with certifications from GRS. It states that 95% of its base fabrics are sustainably sourced or recycled, but it is unclear what proportion of total fabric this comprises.The brand still uses some high impact fibers, including silk, polyamide, elastane, and wool. Its parent company, H&M Group, plans to reduce its reliance on high impact fibers by moving 100% of materials to recycled or sustainably sourced materials by 2030, and it has reported on progress towards this goal within the last year.

COS reports using renewable energy for a majority of its store and office energy. Its parent company plans to expand renewable energy in owned and supplier operations to 100% by 2030. COS sources and manufactures its materials globally, which is standard practice in the fashion industry.

It has made efforts to reduce virgin plastic in its packaging. Its eco-friendly packaging materials include FSC-certified material and 100% recycled polypropylene.

COS does not offer repair services or a warranty.

It gives detailed and environmentally conscious care instructions for its garments.

COS has a take back partnership with ThredUp that accepts its own brand's clothing for resale. It shares details on how successful this program is at diverting items from landfills.

COS offers a core evergreen collection with additional releases. Commons couldn't find enough information on COS' production strategy. For a large brand, we assume this lack of transparency means they have the standard practice of frequent new releases and overproduction waste.

Commons is still analyzing this brand's marketing emails.

COS has a prominent sustainability page with discussion of materials, circularity, emissions reduction, packaging, energy use, supply chain partners, and labor practices. It's unclear how often this page or information is kept up to date. COS' parent company has a detailed annual report, with a clear, impact driven strategy and progress reporting that was last updated in 2023.

COS' parent company, H&M Group, internally measures its overall emissions on an organization-wide level. It identifies its top driver of emissions by including detailed breakdowns, but does not report anything at the brand level. H&M Group has one of the top 10 largest absolute carbon footprints among fashion brands. Its 2023 estimated total emissions were 8,586,805 tonnes CO2e.

COS' parent company, H&M Group, has SBTI-approved medium and long-term targets. It has shared progress on these targets in the last year and it is on track. Commons could not find verification that it offsets any emissions, and it has been outspoken in the media about avoiding offsets.

COS' parent company publishes the names and locations of some of its supply chain partners. It has a supplier code of conduct, which includes provisions allowing collective bargaining and prohibiting forced labor. It does not mention a living wage or restrictions on subcontracting.