A certified supply chain is built step by step. The Cradle to Cradle Certified® standard assesses a garment on every substance it contains. That is why every supplier in the supply chain discloses the full chemical composition of what it delivers. For a dye house or washing facility, this means sharing formulas and processes that are kept as trade secrets. Suppliers who care about our world agree to this.
In 2019, founder Yvonne Vermeulen set The Blue Suit on the path to Cradle to Cradle certification. First, she studied how supplier audits and technical evaluations work. Then the supply chain was rebuilt around materials that could pass these evaluations. Yvonne prepared and guided every assessment. The first official audits took place in Italy in October 2021.
We created our own dyes according to Cradle to Cradle criteria. We also developed a silkscreen print by hand that is free of microplastics. Our first three certified garments were the LISA jacket, the EMI gilet and the GEORGE trousers. The next twelve styles were certified in just one year.
The first assessment takes the longest because it involves checking the entire supply chain. Once a supply chain has been established, any new style created using its library of approved materials, processes and sites qualifies for certification upon application. So a year later, we had 15 certified styles.
Most of the work lies in the disclosure, the testing and the replacement of materials. That work remains part of the supply chain.
Building a certified supply chain from zero takes two to five years.
Ours exists, and it is ready to scale up.
