ALDO – Ethical Sourcing

About the Aldo Group
With over 45 years of experience, the ALDO Group is a global leader in the creation and operation of sought-after footwear and accessories brands. Founded and headquartered in Montreal, Canada, the ALDO Group is one of the world's leading fashion retailers.
With 3,000 points of sale in over 100 countries worldwide, the ALDO Group operates under two iconic brands, Aldo and Call It Spring, and the multi-brand retail concept GLOBO. To support its global store network, the LAOD Group has established offices and distribution centres around the world and works with factories around the world.
The ALDO Group is committed to being a good corporate citizen by working to develop local communities. This simple yet powerful philosophy drives the ALDO Group to continuously innovate.

Modern Slavery Statement / Ethical Sourcing Policy
The ALDO Group recognises the risks of slavery, forced labour, human trafficking and other forms of slavery in retail and related supply chains and is therefore committed to ensuring that our business decisions support social welfare and have a positive impact on the countries in which we operate.
Our Supplier Code of Conduct and Handbook outline the requirements and best practices that suppliers and their factories must adhere to, including employment standards, legal requirements and environmental protection. The ALDO Group Code of Conduct explicitly prohibits the use of child or forced labor, including any form of coercion, abuse or threat. It also states that manufacturing partners must work with factories that comply with legal requirements in any country in which they operate, and those that meet or exceed our standards.

Factory audit
The ALDO Group conducts regular audits of factories operating in accordance with the conditions set out in our Supplier Code of Conduct and Guidelines. These audits take the form of announced and unannounced on-site inspections, as well as on-site and off-site discussions with factory workers by an independent auditing company and our Social Compliance Team. Any non-compliance is detailed in a corrective action plan.
The ALDO Group is proud of the following:

• In 2018, there were a total of 338 inspections, 71% of which were semi-annual.
• All new factories will be required to undergo an ethical pre-approval process and must be able to demonstrate compliance with the rules for production orders.
• Investigating the use of forced labor is part of our inspection methodology.
• Confidential interviews with workers and factory management are essential during any inspection.
• During factory inspections, recruitment and compensation practices will be reviewed.
• Findings that pose a serious threat to the life or safety of factory workers, including forced labor, trafficked labor, forced or prison labor, will be addressed for immediate remedial action and action for all relevant stakeholders.

As part of our monitoring and auditing program, the Social Compliance team receives training on upholding the mission, values ​​and principles found in our Code of Conduct. Their factory visits help ensure that the Code of Conduct requirements are integrated and maintained, and that all questionable behavior is reported.
ALDO Group values ​​a collaborative approach to assist in implementing necessary corrective actions. If a satisfactory resolution cannot be reached within the agreed timeframe or is not feasible, ALDO Group may terminate the business relationship with the non-compliant vendor.

Factory participation
Our efforts to ensure that factories comply with legal requirements, respect our standards and provide a safe and healthy working environment for all factory workers are not limited to factory monitoring and on-site inspections. The ALDO Group encourages factories to take responsibility for their own sustainability performance by providing guidance, training manuals and facilitating workshops to address current supply chain issues.
In 2018, 111 factories received training from ALDO Group's Social Compliance Team and external consultants on topics such as working time, wages and benefits, and modern human trafficking, through regular face-to-face training throughout the year.

Multi-stakeholder collaboration
The ALDO Group is a proud and active member of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, whose focus is to create the Higg Index, a standardized supply chain measurement tool for members of the apparel and footwear industry to understand the environmental, social and labor impacts of producing and selling products and services. By measuring sustainability performance, the ALDO Group aims to address inefficiencies, address harmful practices and achieve the environmental and social transparency consumers demand. By joining forces with the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, we can address pressing systemic challenges that cannot be changed alone.
The ALDO Group is continuously looking for solutions to this important global and multi-sectoral issue. We continue to drive forward our current projects to prevent human trafficking and address this issue by providing additional guidance and support to our supply chain.