11 January 2024 , 12:16
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Boohoo has come under fire after putting "Made in the UK" labels on clothes that were actually made abroad.
A BBC Panorama investigation found the company removed the original labels on t-shirts and hoodies at the online fast fashion retailer's flagship Leicester factory between January and October last year. The BBC reports that the labels could potentially be on "hundreds of thousands" of garments which were made in South Asia. The BBC says it could potentially equate to one in every 150 Boohoo garments. However, the retailer would not provide its figures.
The garments had been shipped from Pakistan and other countries in South Asia to Boohoo's Leicester factory. Responding to the panorama findings, Boohoo said the incorrect labels were an "isolated incident" and down to a misinterpretation of the labelling rules and "human error".
A spokesperson for the company said: "This was an isolated incident, which impacted less than 1% of the group’s global garments intake. These errors were found to be the result of human error and we have taken steps to ensure this does not happen again.”
Panorama says it showed the findings to Chris Grayer who spent more than 10 years as head of supplier ethical compliance at fellow high street retailer Next. Chris said the mislabelling suggested that there had been a "significant failure of inspection". Chris explained that if it had happened at his former employer then the "garments would be recalled or stopped from being sold and all the labels would have to be altered to the correct label".
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Earlier this week, it was reported that Boohoo was considering closing the site later this year and relocating its operations. The move could potentially impact around 100 jobs however Boohoo says it expects “some roles will be relocated”. The recent Panorama findings follow an earlier investigation into Boohoo, which evidence of staff pressuring suppliers to drive prices down, even after deals had been agreed.
Boohoo's Thurmaston Lane factory opened in January 2022 and was promoted by the retailer as a "UK manufacturing centre of excellence". However, it has become infamous after supply chain scandals and allegations over factory staff pay and working conditions. Consultations on what it plans to do with the site are ongoing.