September 2025 Clarks Sustainability Report Review

April 8, 2024

About Clarks

Clarks is a long-established British footwear brand founded in 1825, known for its global presence in the footwear industry. Clarks is based at 40 High Street, Street, BA16 0EQ, GB.

United Kingdom

Clarks is a renowned British footwear brand known for its focus on comfort, quality, and versatility in providing footwear for consumers of all ages. The brand offers a wide range of styles, combining fashion trends with affordability.

Clarks Sustainability Rating is 3.5

This means Clarks are just average compared to other companies in the Apparel, Accessories & Footwear.

Industry positioning

Clarks

Industry averange

Overall

Environmental

Social

Governance

Clarks positioning within the Apparel, Accessories & Footwear

The apparel, accessories, and footwear industry faces significant sustainability challenges, including environmental issues like excessive water usage, chemical pollution, and waste generation, as well as social concerns related to labor rights violations and unethical sourcing. Fast fashion and overproduction exacerbate these problems. However, many companies are adopting sustainability initiatives, such as responsible material sourcing, eco-friendly production, waste reduction, and ethical labor practices, to address these challenges and promote more sustainable and ethical practices in the industry.

Clarks' unique selling point is its combination of comfort, quality, and versatility in footwear. Clarks has built a strong reputation for providing shoes that prioritize comfort through cushioning and supportive technology, ensuring that customers can wear their products comfortably throughout the day. Quality craftsmanship and materials contribute to the durability of their footwear, further enhancing its value for consumers.

Clarks Sustainability Rating Breakdown:

Clarks Overall Sustainability Rating is 3.5 out of 5.0

In recent years, Clarks has been making efforts to incorporate sustainability into its business practices and products.

Here are some key aspects of Clarks' sustainability initiatives:

Inspiring for Change: Clarks is committed to improving equality, diversity, and inclusivity through supporting marginalised and underrepresented voices and partnering with like-minded brands and businesses to achieve this goal.
Championing People: Clarks acts with integrity and honesty toward its colleagues, partners, and customers.
Protecting the Planet: The first pair of slippers created by Clarks used leftover sheepskin.

Clarks shoes are made to last with durable, quality materials to minimize waste. Clarks also utilizes revolutionary waste-reducing shoe construction for certain shoe collections, like the glueless Origin. Clarks is researching sustainable alternatives to virgin materials, including bio-based and recycled content, and investing in shoe recycling and resale projects to close the loop and benefit communities.

Clarks Environmental Rating is 3.3 out of 5.0

Clarks has an environmental rating score of 3.3, focusing in the following areas:

Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions (0.7): This score measures the emissions of greenhouse gases produced by Clarks and their efforts to reduce these emissions. A score of 0.7 indicates a poor effort is being put toward reducing emissions of greenhouse gases.
Materials Sourcing (4.2): Reflecting the sustainability and ethical considerations in sourcing materials for their products, a score of 4.2 suggests an excellent effort in responsible sourcing of materials.
Waste Hazards and Management (4.7): A score of 4.7 assesses how Clarks handles waste and hazardous materials. This indicates an excellent waste management strategies and minimization of hazardous waste are in practice.
Environmental Compliance (3.8): A score of 3.8 rates the level of compliance with environmental regulations and standards, indicating good adherence to legal and ethical norms in environmental matters.

Clarks is performing moderately in the environment category. In many areas, Clarks is performing well, such as material sourcing, waste hazards, and waste management. However, its environmental score is being dragged down by a low score in greenhouse gas emissions.

Clarks Social Rating is 4.1 out of 5.0

Clarks has an overall social score of 4.1, which can be broken down into various components, reflecting the company's performance in relation to social challenges:

Data Privacy (4.2): This score is a measure of how vulnerable Clarks is to breaches related to personal and customer data. 4.2 indicates excellent Clarks Data Privacy protection policies.
Products and Services (3.8): This score reflects the social impact of products and services provided by Clarks, indicating that they are designed and delivered with a strong consideration for social responsibility.
Diversity and Inclusion (4.7): This category indicates an excellent commitment level of Clarks to creating an inclusive and diverse workplace and culture.
Training and Education (3.8): Clarks training and education score represents a strong the level of commitment to employee development through robust training and educational programs.
Supplier Engagement (3.9): This score assesses how Clarks engages with its suppliers on social issues. A score of 3.9 suggests a strong level of engagement and collaboration with suppliers in managing social risks.

Clarks' social rating is good but could still improve. In all social areas: data privacy, diversity and inclusion, and supplier engagement, but could slightly improve in employee training and products and services.

Clarks Governance Rating is 2.8 out of 5.0

Clarks has an overall governance score of 2.8, which encompasses various aspects of its corporate governance practices and structures:

Corporate Compliance Behaviours (4.4): This score assesses adherence to laws, regulations, and internal policies. 4.4 shows an excellent Clarks Corporate Compliance Behaviours.
Business Transparency (4.1): This indicates the level of transparency in the business operations and disclosures of Clarks, suggesting a great communication with stakeholders and clear reporting of activities and financial information.

The governance rating for Clarks is moderate, as Clarks has great business transparency and corporate compliance scores but is let down by its resilience to volatile economic markets.

Clarks Certifications List

So is Clarks sustainable?

To surmise, Clarks has made sustainability a core part of their business by focusing on minimizing their environmental impact during the manufacturing process for their products and attempting to create a circular economy through recycling and resale projects. However, there is still room for improvement in all areas of ESG.

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