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Modern Day Slavery Statement

About us

Our mission at 69b Boutique is to help create a brighter tomorrow for both people and planet. Our business is 100% women run and owned, and we are committed to ensuring inclusion and protection of our planet. This commitment is set out in our Eco Manifesto, which sets out the targets we aim to achieve by 2022. We truly believe it is our responsibility to champion equality and try to create something better. 

What is the Modern Slavery Act 2015?

The Modern Slavery Act 2015 (the “Act”) addresses the role of businesses in preventing modern slavery within their supply chain and their own organisation. It applies to businesses of a certain size, and although we are not currently big enough to need a statement, we feel that every business should have one to ensure they comply with the Act. These businesses are required to publish a statement setting out the steps they’ve taken to ensure that modern slavery and human trafficking aren’t taking place within their business or supply chain.

This statement sets out the steps we’ve taken, and will continue to take, as part of our ongoing commitment to keep slavery and human trafficking out of our business and our supply chains.

69b Boutique

69b Boutique is a womenswear boutique established in 2011, dedicated to creating a better fashion industry. We curate a collection of products from brands all over the world who have promised to create items that do not have an adverse effect on people and the planet.

Although 69b Boutique is made up of women who are paid a London Living Wage with a clear chain of command and transparent complaints procedure, we are aware that the nature of our business means that our suppliers’ employees are at a medium to high risk of modern-day slavery and/or human trafficking. Many of the products we sell come from countries including Bangladesh, India and Turkey, where employment policies and procedures are not as robust as our own, and regulations around working conditions and fair pay can be next to none. That’s why we are committed to acting ethically and with integrity in all our business relationships. We are committed to implementing and enforcing effective systems and controls to ensure slavery and human trafficking isn’t taking place anywhere in our business or supply chains. 

Our Practices and Policies

When selecting brands to stock at 69b we constantly check to ensure they comply with our values. This process includes:

  • Continually reviewing our supply chains and carrying out risk-based assessments of our suppliers
  • Reviewing the Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statements published by our key suppliers
  • Writing to our key suppliers to check their compliance with the Act and their commitment to keep their business and supply chains free from modern slavery
  • Sourcing our goods and services according to our Ethical Procurement Policy, which sets out guidelines on acceptable safety, environmental, social and local legal standards under which products and services are made and provided
  • Where possible we stock brands that can produce industry specific standards including GOTS, Fairwear and Sedex, to ensure compliance within the supply chain.

At 69b Boutique we aim to create a business in which every employee is valued. We strive to create a place where our internal practices and policies foster an environment that has our employees at its heart. There is an open line of communication for all employees ensuring they can verbalise any issues they have within the business. As a small SME we ensure transparency with all our employees to create a fair and happy place to work. 

The Future

As the business grows and develops, we aim to identify, assess and manage risks on an ongoing basis.

During the audit and buying process we will continue to gather information from our suppliers about their awareness of and compliance with the Act. If we do not think our suppliers are adhering to our strict procurement procedure we will attempt to help them find ways to ensure they have systems in place to comply. If they do not manage to remedy issues within their own supply chains, we will remove them from our suppliers lists.

Our Sustainability Officer Sarah Dorey and Director Emma Bonar are responsible for overseeing the implementation of policies and procedures relating to modern slavery and human trafficking, and for preparing the annual Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement.

 

If you have any further questions regarding our adherence to the Modern Day Slavery Act please contact us at hello@69bboutique.com