H&M Conscious Foundation announces focus areas

Fashion chain H&M will support clean water, education and strengthening

women through its H&M Conscious Foundation after asking its employees and customers to vote on which global issues to support.

The vote, which took place last month, asked employees and customers to vote on five development issues that it had identified as the most pressing after consulting with a team of experts which included Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Sir Richard Branson, director of the Earth Institute Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs and supermodel Alek Wek.

“A lot of people in several countries have taken the chance to vote and we are very happy about that. This shows that there is a great commitment among our employees and customers,” said Karl-Johan Persson, CEO at H&M and board member of the H&M Conscious Foundation. “The three issues which received the most votes are clean water, education and strengthening women.”

The Swedish retailer will now partner with three world-renowned organisations, which have yet to be named, to address the three issues and to promote initiatives in countries where H&M operates. The chain said in a statement that these partnerships are expected to be in place at the beginning of next year.