As a Certified B Corporation®, we do business a little differently. Knowing that fashion and sustainability go hand-in-hand, we understand that every action we take today has an impact on tomorrow. This is why we are committed to using sustainably-sourced, eco-friendly fibers in every product we make, allowing you to embrace your individuality without compromising your earth-friendly principles.
Today, only 3% of apparel consumption is domestically-sourced. All of our products are manufactured at our own mill in Hickory, North Carolina. In addition to our sustainable production methods, we take great pride in caring for our employees, valuing people over profit. As ethical practices are paramount to our brand, we pay all of our employees living wages, along with generous medical benefits. We are proud to be one of the few knitting mills in American hosiery that offers these types of benefits and hope to inspire others to do the same.
How are your products made?
Working in collaboration with RecoverTex, we utilize recycled cotton yarns made from remnants from production scraps and used clothing to knit our products. While these scraps would normally go into a landfill, Recover's Upcycling System allows them to turn regular textile waste into quality, upcycled yarns. These remnants are ground down and re-spun into our own yarns, without adding any additional dyes or colors in this process, keeping them as "clean" as possible. These recycled yarns are also certified by the Global Recycling Standard and Oeko-Tex, making them even that much more awesome and approved for you.
What does that mean for our planet?
In addition to decreasing the amount of cotton waste sent to landfills, our yarns also reduce the amount of water, land, pesticides and herbicides used to grow new cotton fibers. Every pair of socks we produce saves: 162 gallons of water, 1.12 pounds of CO2 emissions and 1.32 square feet of landfills.
What are carbon offsets and how do they help?
Carbon offsets are a practical and effective way to address climate change and encourage the growth of renewable energy. We offer carbon offsets for purchase on every order placed on SolmateSocks.com. At the end of each year, Solmate Socks matches every carbon offset purchase, dollar-for-dollar, using the grand total to purchase offsets via Native Energy. Native Energy is a Vermont-based organization that helps promote renewable energy, methane abatement and fuel efficiency projects around the globe. We are, and always have been, committed to protecting the environment, our employees and the community in which we serve.
What does being "zero-waste" actually mean?
Textiles take up nearly 8% of our country’s landfills and almost all of them take hundreds of years to decompose! They actually take up more space in our landfill than any other non-durable goods in the solid waste system. Knowing every bit counts when it comes to recycling, we ensure that no scraps - even the tiniest pieces! - go unused.
We partner with Portland Garment Factory to recycle the scraps that are too small for crafting through GemText Recycling. GemText is a Northwest-based sustainability company that is passionate about helping people recycle their textiles and keep them out of landfills. Nearly 98% of what is donated to GemText is usable! They utilize even the tiniest textile particles to pulverize for use in making things like stuffing for dog beds, insulation padding and more. We're so proud to partner with such amazing companies in an effort to continually remain a zero-waste company.
We are B Corp™ Certified! So what does that mean?
B Corp™ Certification is to business what Fair Trade certification is to coffee or USDA Organic certification is to orange juice. Certified B Corps™ are for-profit companies certified by the nonprofit B Lab to meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. A company has to meet a minimum performance benchmark aggregated across all categories to become certified. Today, there is a growing community of more than 2,200 Certified B Corps from 50+ countries and over 130 industries working together toward 1 unifying goal: to use business as a force for good.
Being Certified as a B Corp™ officially recognizes the commitment that has been part of Solmate Socks' DNA since it was founded 20 years ago. It shows our commitment to putting our employees, the environment, and our community ahead of the bottom line.
How did we become B Corp™ Certified?
To become certified, Solmate Socks had to complete the B Impact Assessment, showing the impact of our business practices on workers, suppliers, the community and the environment. Upon being certified, Solmate Socks joined other business leaders in signing the B Corp Declaration of Interdependence.
To learn more about our certification, check out our B Corp profile.