Roots is an internationally recognized lifestyle brand with over 200 stores. Official Olympic outfitter for Canada, USA, & Great Britain.
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Originally established in in 1973, Roots has grown into an internationally recognized lifestyle brand. We are the number one brand in Canada with 200 stores in North America and Asia and we are still growing!
ROOTS is proud to have partnered with some of the best companies in Canada to bring you an assortment of ROOTS lifestyle products. Today you can find the following ROOTS branded products at department store and specialty retailers throughout Canada. Activewear Backpacks Bedding & Bath Linens and Accessories Belts Camping Gear and Outdoor Accessories Casual Bags Equipment Eyewear Fragrance Golf Apparel Jewelry Ladies Intimates Luggage Men’s Underwear Music, Digital and Wireless Accessories Paper Goods Pet Accessories Sleepwear Small Leather Goods Socks Swimwear Sunglasses Travel Bags Watches
When it comes to ROOTS products, there’s a lot more than meets the eye. An important part of that relates to how they are made. In keeping with our core values and our respect for all those connected to ROOTS, we make it a priority to uphold ethical standards anywhere ROOTS products are made, whether it be in our own state-of-art factory in Toronto, or with suppliers elsewhere. One way we do that is with the ROOTS Workplace Code of Conduct. It is a formal statement that outlines the conditions we require our suppliers to respect if they want to do business with us. It explains what we expect from them. Reflecting our concern for the workers who make ROOTS products, the Code of Conduct reinforces our demand that all suppliers operate with fairness, decency, and responsibility in all aspects of their business. More than a mere statement, the Code of Conduct is an official document that suppliers must sign before we will work them. To help enforce this Code, ROOTS has contracted an independent, third party organization to conduct an extensive auditing program of the places where ROOTS products are made
Toronto, September, 2005 Dear Roots Customer, Global outsourcing is unquestionably a highly complex issue. To help you better understand this subject as it relates to Roots, we would like to share with you aspects about our company, our products and how we make them. This information relates to who we are, how we do business, the basic values that guide us and our concern for the communities in which we operate. Based on the core values and leadership of our two Co-Founders Michael Budman and Don Green, Roots has always been committed to highly ethical standards in everything related to our business -- whether it be in our stores, our offices, our own production facilities in Canada or with our suppliers, both domestic and foreign, of raw materials and finished goods. We take pride in who we are and what we do, from our product design to our customer service to our charitable contributions and sponsorships of cultural and sports-related groups and events. We also take pride in our success and take very seriously the social responsibility that goes with it. In all aspects of our manufacturing process, we require that working conditions meet our stringent health, safety and labor standards. We insist that the rights, dignity and well-being of all workers making Roots products be respected. Roots suppliers, whether in Canada or abroad, operate according to the Roots Code of Conduct which sets forth the high standards Roots will accept in compliance with industry guidelines and environmental requirements. We are constantly examining everything we do and looking to see how we can do even better. This helps explain why Roots is still so successful today, 32 years since it was founded in Toronto. This on-going pursuit of excellent standards also applies to our outsourcing program. In 2004, we made our Code of Conduct even more stringent, more explicit, adding amendments to it that we feel ensure even higher standards. You are welcome to consult it on our website. The Roots Code of Conduct is aimed at ensuring that our suppliers uphold the standards of ethical business practice consistent with the core values of Roots and our own demands for just, fair practices. The Code is the result of consultation with experts in the field and is based on our concern for the health, safety and dignity of those who make Roots products. To ensure that suppliers meet our standards, they must commit themselves to our Code of Conduct before we will work with them. To ensure compliance, a third-party organization conducts a thorough audit of our suppliers. This is not a casual process as it’s conducted by an independent, internationally recognized organization devoted to monitoring labour and safety conditions worldwide. Through both announced and unannounced visits, the auditors inspect the workplace conditions where products are made. If a factory is found to be in violation of any of the provisions in our Code, we work with the factory to remedy the situation and conduct follow-up visits to monitor improvements. We also provide training for all our production and sourcing staff to ensure that our own employees understand and comply with Roots standards and guidelines. When looking at our manufacturing and supplier systems, we must always balance four factors: Quality, compliance, price and delivery. Together, they are vital to our success. The names of the suppliers with whom we contract are confidential proprietary information of Roots. Given the highly competitive nature of this industry and the propensity of counterfeit product, we, like almost all other companies including our many competitors, do not publish the names and addresses of the factories we work with. We also do this out of respect for the privacy of these facilities. In the case of our own exemplary, state-of-the-art factory in Toronto, not only do we list its address, we have often hosted journalists, school groups and NGO members there. That’s how proud we are of the conditions we maintain in our own factory. For the longest while, we made most Roots products in Canada but over the past two years or so we have shifted some of our manufacturing abroad as a result of technical, economic and capacity challenges. In early 2004, with great reluctance and much disappointment, we closed one of our own manufacturing facilities in Toronto where we made much of the Roots apparel line. For seven years, we tried to compete with offshore manufacturing companies. Unfortunately, it proved a largely unprofitable and unrealistic exercise. The sad reality today is that there are fewer available suppliers in Canada, and certain products can no longer be made in Canada. It’s a shame that free trade, globalization and the saturation of the Canadian market by major US and European companies manufacturing overseas have made this situation worse. The result: the technical capacity simply no longer exists in Canada to make certain categories of merchandise (i.e. luggage and backpacks). As much as it’s possible and feasible, we still strive to make many Roots products in Canada, reflecting our commitment to our strong Canadian heritage. It’s a major part of what the Roots team is all about and what we are as a company and what our customers appreciate. In our stores and in our actions, we have always tried to showcase and celebrate positive aspects of Canada, which is a major inspiration behind Roots. We are proud of the strong link between Roots and Canada and are thankful for the support Canadians have long demonstrated for what Roots does. We are proud of the international acclaim and recognition that Roots, as a Toronto-based Canadian company, has attracted to Canada, especially in connection with the Olympics. In 2004 in Athens, Roots was the official outfitter for four countries -- Canada, the United States, Great Britain and Barbados. It was a strong vote of confidence that three countries, including two Western powers like the US and the UK, would choose a Canadian company to outfit their athletes for such a high profile, prestigious event as the Olympics While on the subject of the Olympics, contrary to some reports, Roots made all official Canadian Olympic team clothes in Canada. The only exceptions were a few non-apparel items (pins, luggage, sweatbands and flip-flops) and a replica windbreaker that had to be made overseas. With the Roots Olympic program, we generated unprecedented financial royalties for the Canadian Olympic Committee in support of the country’s amateur athletes. Currently, Roots is sponsoring several Canadian Olympic athletes including Gold Medalist Kayaker Adam van Koeverden, World Champion diver and Olympic Silver Medalist Alexandre Despatie and the Canadian Speed Skating Team. Roots still directly employs nearly 2,000 people in Canada, including 200 at our leather goods factory in Toronto. All Roots products are designed in Toronto by Canadian designers. Indirectly, through our work with various suppliers, we help contribute to the employment of thousands more people in Canada. Roots constantly tries to stay informed about all its activities. Over the past year, we have met with representatives of Oxfam and the Maquila Solidarity Network who operate on behalf of factory workers around the world. The meeting was part of our efforts to hear more about their concerns and to engage them in a constructive dialogue. We wanted to take what we learned from such meetings to lend insight and perspective as we continually endeavour to upgrade our processes. It’s not by chance that Roots has always had such a progressive reputation. People who have long been familiar with our company know of the core values of integrity and quality that have guided Roots since its inception. On a practical level, it translates into protecting the rights and dignity of all those involved in the making of Roots products and ensuring that anything sporting the Roots name on it is made in decent, humane and professional conditions. No brand can guarantee that every factory complies with every regulation every day of the year. But we can guarantee the firm commitment and vigilance of the Roots Co-founders and senior team to uphold these standards. It’s an on-going process that demands diligence, patience and understanding of local cultures, customs and laws. As such, Roots is actively involved in several programs that help us find solutions that benefit everyone. Roots is dedicated to our obligations and responsibilities and we will do whatever it takes to continue to provide the highest quality products in a manner consistent with our company’s principles and our customers’ high expectations of our responsible manufacturing standards. This commitment is central and of the utmost importance to our staff, our customers and the public at large. We will never lose sight of this. Roots is a member of Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), a non-profit global organization that works with companies committed to respecting ethical values, people, communities and the environment. You may also be interested in knowing that over the years Roots has responded positively to literally hundreds of requests for charitable support. It’s part of our commitment to community support and social responsibility. Check our website (About Us/Community Support) for a comprehensive list of the organizations and causes we have supported in recent years. Since Roots began, many of our products and styles have changed, but some things have not. These include the core principles that have governed Roots since its inception. They are based on a genuine respect and appreciation of people – those we work with and those who shop in our stores. But this sense of respect and appreciation extends much further. It also applies to how we make our products and to the communities where we do business. These values are as valid today as they were back in 1973. Perhaps even more so. I hope this letter provides you with a better, more informed understanding of what Roots is all about and how we do business. Please feel free to write me with your comments. To date, ROOTS has produced merchandise for thousands of films, television shows, sports teams, athletes, musical groups and corporations. Our products include the Athletic Casual Clothing, Handmade Leather Goods, Initial Bags, Jackets, Watches Accessories, Perfumes and much more.
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