How we report Leading industry standards and a balanced view

Each year we report our performance against our 2020 Global Sustainability Framework using the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards, the 10 principles of the UN Global Compact, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Read about how we use global frameworks
Use our GRI, UNGC, and SDG Index to navigate the report

Disclosure	Location	UN Global Compact Principles	SDG	Comments
Universal Standards: GRI 102 General Disclosures
Organisational Profile
102-1 Name of the organisation	About C&A
102-2 Activities, brands, products, and services	About C&A Our retail markets
102-3 Location of headquarters	About C&A
102-4 Location of operations	About C&A
102-5 Ownership and legal form	About C&A
102-6 Markets served	About C&A
102-6 Markets served	About C&A
102-7 Scale of the organisation	About C&A
102-8 Information on employees and other workers	About C&A Listening to employees Equality and diversity	Principle 6	SDG 5
102-9 Supply chain	Sustainable supply Supplier list
102-10 Significant changes to the organisation and its supply chain	How we report
102-11 Precautionary Principle or approach	How we report	Principle 7
102-12 External initiatives	Leaders letter Stakeholder engagement Global frameworks
102-13 Membership of associations	Stakeholder engagement
Strategy
102-14 Statement from senior decision-maker	Leaders letter
102-15 Key impacts, risks, and opportunities	Leaders letter Our strategy Global frameworks
Ethics and integrity
102-16 Values, principles, standards, and norms of behaviour	Our values Equality and diversity Sustainable supply Safe and fair labour Sustainable lives	Principle 1 Principle 2 Principle 3 Principle 4 Principle 5 Principle 6	SDG 5 SDG 8 SDG 12 SDG 13
Governance
102-18 Governance structure	Governing sustainability
Stakeholder engagement
102-40 List of stakeholder groups	Stakeholder engagement External review
102-41 Collective bargaining agreements	Equality and diversity Safe and fair labour	Principle 3	SDG 8	We do not currently report this data at a global level, but we are working to standardise how we collect this information and hope to report it in the future.
102-42 Identifying and selecting stakeholders	Stakeholder engagement
102-43 Approach to stakeholder engagement	Stakeholder engagement
102-44 Key topics and concerns raised	Materiality
Reporting practice
102-45 Entities included in the consolidated financial statements	How we report			C&A does not disclose financial statements on a global level. We publish financial statements where national regulations require this.
102-46 Defining report content and topic Boundaries	How we report
102-47 List of material topics	How we report			Material topics that drive C&A’s sustainability reputation. Sourcing materials responsibly - uses organic, minimal chemicals, minimises pollution, avoids water pollution, minimises climate change, uses renewable energy, minimises climate change, uses recycled materials, no animal skins. Treating workers fairly - no child labour, respect diversity, support worker rights, engage employees, support communities. Openness and honesty – provide transparency in supply chain, make supplier list publicly available, engage with customers and employees Fair trade – require suppliers to pay workers fair wages, limit work hours, provide health and safety equipment and systems Minimising pollution – work with suppliers to minimise chemicals, set stringent supplier standards for and monitor wastewater discharge, use recycled materials. Products – offer affordable, fashionable, comfortable, easy-to-wash, high-quality, durable products
102-48 Restatements of information	How we report
102-49 Changes in reporting	How we report			Global data is provided, unless stated otherwise.
102-50 Reporting period	How we report
102-51 Date of most recent report	How we report
102-52 Reporting cycle	How we report
102-53 Contact point for questions regarding the report	Contact us
102-54 Claims of reporting in accordance with the GRI Standards	How we report
102-55 GRI content index	This document
102-56 External assurance	How we report External review			This report is not externally assured.
Universal Standards: Management Approach
General requirements for reporting the management approach
103-1 Explanation of the material topic and its Boundary	How we report
Topic-specific Standards: Environmental
Material Topic: Anti-Corruption
103-2 The management approach and its components	Our values Sustainable supply Equality and diversity	Principle 10
205-1 Operations assessed for risks related to corruption	Sustainable Supply			We are working towards a risk management and reporting system that will ensure violations of the Employee Code of Ethics or the Supplier Code of Conduct are reported in the future. Operations have not been formally assessed, but no signiﬁcant risks related to corruption have been identiﬁed.
205-2 Communication and training about anti-corruption policies and procedures	Sustainable Supply
205-3 Confirmed incidents of corruption and actions taken				There were no incidents of corruption during this reporting period.
Material Topic: Anti-Competitive Behaviour
103-2 The management approach and its components	Our values Sustainable supply Equality and diversity
206-1 Legal actions for anti-competitive behaviour, anti-trust, and monopoly practices	N/a			No legal actions have been taken regarding anti-competitive, anti-trust or monopoly behaviour.
Topic-specific Standards: Environmental
Material Topic: Materials
103-2 The management approach and its components		Principle 8 Principle 9	SDG 6 SDG 12 SDG 13
301-1 Materials used by weight or volume	Sustainable Materials			We do not currently publish data on all materials across our business by weight or volume used, or the proportion of renewable and non- renewable materials. However, signiﬁcant data on our raw materials is disclosed in the indicated pages. Cotton makes up a majority of the materials we buy and use at C&A, and man-made ﬁbres account for more than 40%. In 2019, we were once again the largest buyer of organic cotton in the world.
301-2 Recycled input materials used	Product innovation			C&A Europe introduced its first recycled nylon products in early 2018. Since then, C&A has provided lingerie certified to the Global Recycled Standard and denim containing recycled cotton.
301-3 Reclaimed products and their packaging materials	Product innovation Circular fashion Enabling customers			In addition to use of recycled materials in some products, we are helping our customers recycle used clothing. We expanded our in- store take-back programme to new geographies and stores, reaching nine countries as of 2019.
Material Topic: Energy
103-2 The management approach and its components	Clean environment Climate change How we report	Principle 7 Principle 8 Principle 9	SDG 6 SDG 12 SDG 13
302-1 Energy consumption within the organisation	Climate change
302-2 Energy consumption outside of the organisation	Climate change
302-3 Energy intensity	Climate change
302-4 Reduction of energy consumption	Climate change
302-5 Reduction in energy requirements of products and services	More sustainable cotton Climate change
Material Topic: Emissions
103-2 The management approach and its components	Clean environment Climate change	Principle 7 Principle 8 Principle 9	SDG 6 SDG 12 SDG 13
305-1 Direct (Scope 1) GHG emissions	Climate change
305-2 Energy indirect (Scope 2) GHG emissions	Climate change
305-3 Other indirect (Scope 3) GHG emissions	Climate change
305-4 GHG emissions intensity	Climate change
305-5 Reduction of GHG emissions	Climate change
Material Topic: Effluents and Waste
103-2 The management approach and its components	Clean environment Chemicals Waste Circular fashion	Principle 7 Principle 8 Principle 9	SDG 6 SDG 12 SDG 13
306-1 Water discharge by quality and destination	Chemicals
306-2 Waste by type and disposal method	Waste
306-3 Significant spills				There were no significant spills during this reporting period.
Material Topic: Compliance
103-2 The management approach and its components	Clean environment
307-1 Non-compliance with environmental laws and regulations				There were no cases of non-compliance brought in any markets.
Material Topic: Supplier Environmental Assessment
103-2 The management approach and its components	Sustainable supply Clean environment Chemicals
308-1 New suppliers that were screened using environmental criteria	Sustainable Supply
308-2 Negative environmental impacts in the supply chain and actions taken	Chemicals Climate change Water
Topic-specific Standards: Social
Material Topic: Employment
103-2 The management approach and its components	Engaging employees Listening to employees Equality and diversity	Principal 6	SDG 5 SDG 8
401-2 Benefits provided to full-time employees that are not provided to temporary or part-time employees				We do not currently report this data at a global level, but we are working to standardise how we collect this information and hope to report it in the future.
401-3 Parental leave				We do not currently report this data at a global level, but we are working to standardise how we collect this information and hope to report it in the future.
Material Topic: Labour/Management Relations
103-2 The management approach and its components	Engaging employees Safe and fair labour	Principle 6	SDG 8
402-1 Minimum notice periods regarding operational changes				We do not currently report this data at a global level, but we are working to standardise how we collect this information and hope to report it in the future.
Material Topic: Training and Education
103-2 The management approach and its components	Learning and development		SDG 8
404-2 Programs for upgrading employee skills and transition assistance programs	Learning and development
Material Topic: Diversity and Equal Opportunity
103-2 The management approach and its components	Our values Equality and diversity Global frameworks	Principle 6	SDG 5
405-1 Diversity of governance bodies and employees				We do not currently report this data at a global level, but we are working to standardise how we collect this information and hope to report it in the future.
405-2 Ratio of basic salary and remuneration of women to men				We do not currently report this data at a global level, but we are working to standardise how we collect this information and hope to report it in the future.
Material Topic: Non-discrimination
103-2 The management approach and its components	Our values Sustainable supply Equality and diversity	Principle 6	SDG 5
406-1 Incidents of discrimination and corrective actions taken	Safe and fair labour Protecting the most vulnerable
Material Topic: Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining
103-2 The management approach and its components	Sustainable supply Safe and fair labour Sustainable supply Safe and fair labour Supplier and worker engagement	Principle 3	SDG 8
407-1 Operations and suppliers in which the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining may be at risk
Material Topic: Child Labour
103-2 The management approach and its components	Sustainable supply Protecting the most vulnerable	Principle 5	SDG 8
408-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of child labour	Protecting the most vulnerable
Material Topic: Forced or Compulsory Labour
103-2 The management approach and its components	Sustainable supply Protecting the most vulnerable	Principle 4	SDG 8
409-1 Operations and suppliers at significant risk for incidents of forced or compulsory labour	Protecting the most vulnerable Supplier and worker engagement
Material Topic: Human Rights Assessment
103-2 The management approach and its components	Sustainable supply	Principle 1 Principle 2	SDG 5 SDG 8
412-1 Operations that have been subject to human rights reviews or impact assessments	Sustainable supply	Principle 1 Principle 2	SDG 8
412-2 Employee training on human rights policies or procedures	Protecting the most vulnerable Engaging employees			We support supplier training on human rights to make sure C&A suppliers understand the requirements for acceptable work ages and hours, overtime, communication with workers, safety, and other workplace concerns. As well, C&A employees receive training on our Code of Ethics. We do not currently report other human rights training data at a global level, but we are working to standardise how we collect this information and hope to report it in the future.
412-3 Significant investment agreements and contracts that include human rights clauses or that underwent human rights screening	Sustainable supply
Material Topic: Local Communities
103-2 The management approach and its components	Sustainable lives Strengthening communities Giving back and volunteering Disaster relief
413-1 Operations with local community engagement, impact assessments, and development programs	Strengthening communities Giving back and volunteering Disaster relief
413-2 Operations with significant actual and potential negative impacts on local communities	More sustainable cotton Polyester Chemicals Climate change Water
Material Topic:Supplier Social Assessment
103-2 The management approach and its components	Sustainable supply Safe and fair labour Supplier and worker engagement Protecting the most vulnerable	Principle 1 Principle 2 Principle 3 Principle 4 Principle 5 Principle 6	SDG 5, 8
414-1 New suppliers that were screened using social criteria	Sustainable supply
414-2 Negative social impacts in the supply chain and actions taken	Sustainable supply Safe and fair labour Supplier and worker engagement Protecting the most vulnerable
Material Topic: Public Policy
103-2 The management approach and its components	Our values Stakeholder engagement
415-1 Political contributions		Principle 10		No financial or in-kind political contributions were made directly or indirectly.
Material Topic: Customer Health & Safety
103-2 The management approach and its components	Product quality and safety		SDG 12
416-1 Assessment of the health and safety impacts of product and service categories	Product quality and safety			Approximately 95% of our products are assessed for health and safety impacts globally (100% in Europe).
416-2 Incidents of non-compliance concerning the health and safety impacts of products and services	Product quality and safety			C&A had no product recalls across our retail markets in 2019.
Material Topic: Marketing and Labelling
103-2 The management approach and its components	Product quality and safety Certified organic cotton Responsible down A circular fashion first
417-1 Requirements for product and service information and labelling	Product quality and safety Certified organic cotton Responsible down A circular fashion first			We do not currently report this data at a global level, but we are working to standardise how we collect this information and hope to report it in the future.
417-2 Incidents of non-compliance concerning product and service information and labelling				There were no incidents of non-compliance during this reporting period.
417-3 Incidents of non-compliance concerning marketing communications				There were no incidents of non-compliance in the reporting period.
Material Topic: Customer Privacy
103-2 The management approach and its components	Enabling customers
418-1 Substantiated complaints concerning breaches of customer privacy and losses of customer data				No incidents were reported during this reporting period.
Material Topic: Socioeconomic Compliance
103-2 The management approach and its components	Sustainable supply Clean environment Safe and fair labour Product quality and safety
419-1 Non-compliance with laws and regulations in the social and economic area				There were no incidents of non-compliance during this reporting period.

About our report

Unless otherwise stated, all data relates to our global performance for the business year 2019 (March 2019 - February 2020). Our data is based on science – and where that is unavailable, we take a precautionary approach. Except where otherwise noted, 2015 is our baseline year for measuring progress against our 2020 goals. Where possible, we have compared our performance to that of previous years and reported regional and global ﬁgures. We’ve also tried to present a more balanced view; for every major topic we talk about our challenges as well as the progress we’ve made.

Reporting scope and boundaries

As a privately-held company, we do not report on economic performance. We strive to report on all other standard disclosures as speciﬁed in the GRI Standards.

We also report for the C&A brand in its entirety, including wholly owned subsidiaries and licensees. In 2019, C&A Brazil completed their Initial Public Oﬀering on the Brazilian Stock Exchange (B3) and are listed under CEAB3. Consolidated ﬁgures in this report include C&A Brazil.
Unless otherwise speciﬁed, we report on our entire value chain. We work with our tier-1, tier-2, and tier-3 suppliers to disclose information, where available. We are working closely with supply chain partners to create a closer link between farmers and farm groups and our tier-3 and tier-4 supply chain.

Uncertainty

We strive to provide accurate and precise data. However, there are inherent uncertainties in certain data sets. All our data has been collected and consolidated with Credit360. Internal subject matter experts have validated the data. We have used state-of-the-art life cycle assessment (LCA) methods to calculate greenhouse gas emissions and water use data; however, uncertainties may rise due to the assumptions used in the model.

In 2017, we used data from garment care instructions and a customer survey on garment use. This information helped significantly reduce uncertainty compared to last year. The customer survey collected data on actual (1) washing/drying habits of C&A customers by garment type, (2) washing machine technology used, and (3) the number of wears per wash for high impact garment categories. Assuming a random sample, the margin of error for each of these parameters was quite small (+/-3% or less depending on the market). The survey was not repeated in 2018 or 2019.

The carbon and water footprints associated with cotton, specifically Better Cotton (sourced via a system of mass balance and self-reported by fabric mills) is derived from a weighted average of BCI’s results indicators. The methodology used and results presented have not been verified by BCI.

Standards of practice

When collecting data or calculating impacts, we only use industry-recognised or multi-stakeholder-developed guidelines and standards:

Employee data: Obtained from our transactional Human Resource systems. Practices follow industry standards for identification of gender, management levels, and contract types. The employee engagement survey was rolled out by an independent third party to ensure confidentiality. We are in compliance with the GDPR.
Cotton and raw material data: Obtained from our internal systems for order placement and sales.
Climate and carbon footprint data: Obtained from core financial data and modelled using hybrid, input/output LCA methods, combined with C&A business data, by Aligned Incentives. All methods used followed the WBCSD/WRI Greenhouse Gas Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard and the Corporate Value Chain (scope 3) Accounting and Reporting Standard. In the case of water, we applied both the Aligned Incentives hybrid LCA methodology and the Water Footprint Network methodology for green, blue, and grey water impacts. Market based emission factors for electric grids were based on data from the International Energy Administration (IEA), country-level reported factors from the Brazilian Government, and residual mix factors from the Association of Issuing Bodies (AIB).
Limited assurance of GHG Inventory – C&A voluntarily engaged PricewaterhouseCoopers GmbH Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft (PwC) as an independent audit firm to conduct a limited assurance engagement on selected non-financial performance indicators disclosed in the Sustainability Report 2017. PwC conducted the limited assurance engagement in accordance with the International Standard on Assurance Engagements (ISAE) 3000 (Revised) to verify that the indicators disclosed comply with the principles stated in the G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative. Part of the engagement focused on assessing GHG inventories across scope 1, 2, and 3 in C&A's retail markets and licensees in Europe, Brazil, Mexico, and China. Through this work, PwC was able to assure GHG inventories for Europe and Brazil, which make up more than 90% of C&A's scope 1, 2, and 3 GHG inventory. In Mexico and China, C&A has been using the results and recommendations of the assurance engagement to further develop reporting processes, strengthen the internal control system, and formalise data collection.
Customer data: Obtained through a survey of over 6,000 consumers in our major markets. Survey design and analysis was conducted by GlobeScan.
Human rights information: We work to identify human rights issues through our internal SSC processes and by employing third parties like Deloitte to conduct independent reviews. Our human rights due diligence follows the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights.
Chemicals data: We continue to use Sustainable Apparel Coalition’s Higg 3.0 module for our assessment approach.
Materiality: Our analysis follows the GRI definition of materiality. We have not used the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) definition in determining material aspects. We reassess materiality each year. Read about our material issues

What we mean when we say...

C&A is a buying and retailing organisation; we do not own any factories (also known as production units and referred to interchangeably in this report). It is important to understand what we mean when we use the following terms:

C&A, the company, us, we, or our: This refers to our owned legal entities that fall under the C&A brand or under the C&A AG legal entity. Unless specified, it refers to all retail and sourcing markets for C&A. It also refers to both wholly-owned subsidiaries and licensees. It does not refer to our holding entity, COFRA Holding AG, or any of their non-C&A-related subsidiaries.
C&A Foundation (now part of Laudes Foundation): From 2014 to 2020, the corporate foundation affiliated with C&A was dedicated to making fashion a force for good. In January 2020, C&A Foundation was incorporated into the newly launched Laudes Foundation, which is part of the Brenninkmeijer enterprise. Laudes Foundation has continued the industry-changing work of C&A Foundation in fashion, but it has a broader focus to accelerate the transition to an inclusive and regenerative economy where all industry can harness its power for good.
Suppliers: This refers to independent third parties with which we have a contractual relationship. Our suppliers operate their own businesses and manage their own factories.
Factories or production units (PUs): These are the actual locations where garments are produced under the control of our contracted suppliers.
Global Sustainability Team: This includes our leadership team composed of internal leaders in sustainability and our retail market colleagues. This team owns the global sustainability strategy and the policies that govern risk management, compliance, and sustainability performance and leadership.
Sustainable Supply Chain (SSC): This refers to our social and environmental auditing function where the policy and strategy is led by our Global Head of Sustainability and the execution is owned by each regional CEO. SSC is an execution function that is governed by second- and third-party oversight.
Sustainable Chemicals Management (SCM): This refers to the topic of management related to Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) within our supply chain.
Fashion for Good: Launched in 2017, Fashion for Good is the global initiative here to make all fashion good. It’s a global platform for innovation, made possible through collaboration and community. With an open invitation to the entire apparel industry, Fashion for Good convenes brands, producers, retailers, suppliers, non-profit organisations, innovators, and funders united in their shared ambition.

Transparency

We believe that being transparent helps to drive better practices across the industry. In addition, transparency is important to our stakeholders and is becoming increasingly important to our customers. In this report, we strive to cover not only positive progress and detailed analyses of our supply chain, but also the challenges we have faced along the way.

To this end, we have been ranked #1 out of 85 textile and apparel brands assessed in the most recent annual Corporate Information Transparency Index (CITI).

C&A also placed in the number 2 spot among the most transparent brands in the 2020 Fashion Revolution Transparency Index, an annual review of 200 global fashion brands and retailers according to their level of disclosure about social and environmental policies, practices, and impact. We increased our overall score since the previous index and once again received high scores for our commitments, governance, gender equality, sustainable materials, and other disclosures. In addition, C&A Brazil was recognised in the number 1 spot for 2019 in that country’s Fashion Revolution Transparency Index, which analysed 30 fashion brands. C&A ranked #1 for policy, commitment, and governance, and scored high in other categories, such as traceability.^[1]

We collaborate and share information with our partners, suppliers, and other brands. Each year, we publish a list of our suppliers’ tier-1 and tier-2 factories and locations.
See the full list of our suppliers’ factories here.

^{[1] Laudes Foundation is a core funder of Fashion Revolution and the index.}

^[1] Laudes Foundation is a core funder to Fashion Revolution and the index.

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How we report Leading industry standards and a balanced view

C&A's Global Sustainability Report 2019 will soon be available
in the following additional languages: German and Portuguese.

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How we report Leading industry standards and a balanced view

C&A's Global Sustainability Report 2019 will soon be available in the following additional languages: German and Portuguese. Thank you for your patience!

You have arrived at the English language version of this site.

C&A's Global Sustainability Report 2019 will soon be available
in the following additional languages: German and Portuguese.

Thank you for your patience!