CODE
of CONDUCT

We believe that empathy, respect and kindness constitute the foundation of a pleasant work environment. 12 STOREEZ is committed to improving working conditions internally and externally and set an example of a global brand that creates an inclusive, safe and transparent space for all its employees to grow, thrive and succeed. That would not be possible without accepting responsibility to respect universal human rights. We follow UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights therefore do not tolerate any form of discrimination whether it is based on Gender, Race, Colour, Disability, Political opinion, Sexual orientation, Age, Religion or HIV status.

No form of harassment — verbal or not — will be tolerated within our organisation. We accept no bulling, discrimination, intimidation, bullying or humiliating behavior, whether psychological, sexual or constituting an abuse of power. At the beginning of 2022, our HR department launched an anonymous reporting tool to make sure the raised cases are reviewed, assessed and receive required attention. One of our key priorities is to give voice to every single one of our employees and make sure that we are always there to listen. Each of the cases reported is to be reviewed by an HR manager to define appropriate measures and find a solution, whether an open conversation or disciplinary action.

In the last few years the team at 12 STOREEZ has experienced extensive growth. From a company of 510 employees at the beginning of 2021 we grew to over 900 in January 2022, and the expansion is still ongoing. Currently we have 47 physical shops in Russia, 2 offices in Moscow and Yekaterinburg, teams in the UK, France, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and Spain. We have developed a Community Division within our HR, established Global and Sustainability teams. Our ambition is to grow further and double in size and revenue in 2022. Nonetheless, it is still our priority to ensure a fair and healthy work environment for each of the employees. In 2021, we ran an analysis project designed to evaluate the salary levels of all employees and have established a metric system applicable to each level of seniority. Upon the results of the evaluations 93% of employees have received adjustments, the average raise was 10%. Our goal is to ensure a fair, living wage across the entire organisation.

Transparency is one of the key elements of 12 STOREEZ business model and we work against corruption whichever form it takes — bribery or extortion. We expect and promote the same values across our entire supply chain.

12 STOREEZ was founded by two sisters, Marina and Irina, and Ivan Khokhlov and ever since our organisation has been led by women. Over 80% of our staff are women, over 66% of our management roles are held by women. We are working actively towards a free from gender prejudice environment to grow in.

We follow the highest standards to ensure our facilities are safe for all workers and to guarantee healthy practices during working hours. We have dedicated a team specifically focused on ensuring health and safety conditions across the entire organisation; the team works to ensure that we regularly review, audit, prevent and assess working conditions of our employees. We conduct regular assessments of the spaces and set action plans ensuring that the issues identified have been addressed in a timely manner.

Collectively our HR and Sustainability teams have developed a green office initiative plan, to change the office environment to be more conscious, including revision of energy suppliers, removing single use plastics, replacing stationary materials, limiting printing, implementing energy and water saving facilities, etc. In 2022, we plan to scale the program to ensure that similar measures are taken in our warehouse facilities and our retail locations.

At 12 STOREEZ we believe that quality is above all. We seek the highest standards in our product, and we expect the same value to be reflected across the entire organisation. We commit to deliver the best available service to our customers and refuse to compromise on the longevity of our products. We see the value in quality in every aspect of our work. We believe in efficient communication, quality interaction between departments and respect towards our suppliers. Moreover, we expect commitment towards the outlined goals and are keen to continue working on improving the quality of our product. We listen to our customers opinions and register comments about each of the garments to understand the errors and eliminate repeating those. We believe that our focus on quality goes hand in hand with our sustainability goals, as we develop ways to produce only highly demanded, timeless garments that will last for years and decades to come.

At 12 STOREEZ we believe in the power of knowledge and we want every member of our community to have access to it. As a company we promote education as part of our organisational growth and development. Each year we allocate a budget to invest in employees training, both related and unrelated to their day-to-day responsibilities. 12 STOREEZ has been running a benefit program allowing every employee to receive compensation for part of their educational costs by the company if they wish to pursue education externally.

Furthermore, 12 STOREEZ commits to extend the value of education, transmitting it through its products to our clients. One of the sustainability goals is to ensure the environmental impact of fashion is explained to our clients. We want to be fully transparent about our footprint as a company and be open with our consumers about the impact of their choices.

Moreover, we believe and understand that the term sustainability deserves more attention in our local region. Our goal is to become pioneers of the sustainability movement in Eastern Europe. As a first step, in 2021, we have launched a RESPONSIBLE section on our website to educate our clients about the products made from ethically sourced materials, providing information on certification, supply chain and ethical values of the product.

Fashion is one of the most polluting industries in the world. We realise that our production contributes to climate change and we are working to reduce our carbon footprint. In the coming years, we want the fashion industry to become greener, and we commit to become the ambassador for this positive change. We established processes and targets that would get us closer to our goal.

The essence of our brand is high quality and limited production which is in line with our sustainability goals. 12 STOREEZ garments are not meant for one-wear-only, and we truly believe in the ‘less is more’ concept. Our team of designers is actively working on creating pieces that will be worn and enjoyed over the years.

In 2021, 12 STOREEZ launched the first capsule entirely made from organic cotton. By 2030, we want 60% of our materials to be environmentally-conscious — organic, produced adhering to globally recognised certification, recyclable and/or recycled. At the moment, we are far from this goal, but we are moving fast in that direction.

• We plan to conduct revision sessions with every parnter within our supply chain to identify common sustainability goals and alternatives if necessary.
• We are dedicating team members to source alternative materials to supplement those most environmentally harming.
• We are developing auditing processes to ensure that our suppliers are visited and verified for sustainable practices.

One day we want to announce that 12 STOREEZ is a zero-waste company. We realise this would be a tough transition that will need a lot of effort. Our first steps towards circularity were taken in 2021; our warehouse staff came up with an initiative to upcycle items that were no longer fit for sale. The initiative developed into a program dubbed “Second Life”. In 2022, our goal is to scale the initiative and develop more effective ways of reducing our waste.

We are proactively looking for ways to eliminate single use packaging from our production cycle. Throughout 2021 we’ve dedicated resources to investigate the available alternatives in the market. Not every experience has been a successful one, but we are learning from our mistakes and getting closer to the best possible solution. Our goal in 2022 is to reduce our overall packaging and find reliable environmentally-friendly alternatives when packaging is unavoidable.

In the coming years our key task is to set the foundation for sustainable growth of the company. We have identified a few influential factors that would contribute to the success of our ambitious goals:

This year we would like to become fully transparent about our supply chain, sustainability goals, used materials used, carbon footprint and water consumption throughout our production cycle. Good or bad, we want to be honest.

By the end of the year we want to understand the overall impact a company has on the environment.

The process of understanding our suppliers environmental goals, community contribution and style of governance is the first and most fundamental step in our transitioning process. By the end of 2022, 40% or more of the garments will be produced with sustainable materials such as recycled fabrics, organic, and byproduct fibres.

We are focusing on creating awareness within the organisation, among our suppliers and consumers about the harmful practises within the fashion industry and why the transition to a more greener organisation is necessary.

12 STOREEZ currently works with over 100 suppliers located in different parts of the world. Although deciding to replace those that currently do not meet our criteria would be the most effective move, we believe it is our duty as a brand to bring sustainability practises into the production cycle of those organisations that do not have resources or understanding of the global climate or human right issues. Which is why we are implementing a strategic partnerships program to ensure we develop and accomplish our sustainability goals together.

As a part of our business relationship we expect our partners to accept recurring audits that would ensure our business standards are met. We expect our partners to develop action plans to tackle the issues identified.

Big part of our supply chain is located in Russia and although we assume the risks of reaching positive results in a longer run, we believe that promoting sustainability practises among local partners and helping them grow towards more conscious production is overall more beneficial to our community and our planet.

As a general rule we expect that across our supply chain it is clearly understood and accepted that no form of discrimination or harrasment is tolerated by 12 STOREEZ. Our partners ought to promote equal opportunities and gender representation.

We expect that our suppliers provide a healthy and safe work environment for their employees including fair compensation, holidays, regulated working hours, breaks and paid maternity leave. In cases of working with hazardous materials, the employees should have access to the protective inventory.

12 STOREEZ prohibits any form of forced labour such as slavery, human trafficing and debt bondage. Furthermore no instances of child labour can be viewed as acceptable.

We expect that each of our suppliers take necessary measures to prevent corruption and bribery whether it is commonly accepted or not.

Additionally, 12 STOREEZ has implemented programs to transmit our values of quality, education and sustainable development designed to strengthen and grow our strategic partnerships. We schedule frequent visits to our providers to ensure that our requirements and our expectations are met.

In 2022, our goal is to develop a framework allowing us to establish and track goals defined with our strategic registering improvements on water consumption, waste reduction, green energy use, human rights, use of conscious materials, elimination of toxic elements and dyes in production cycle.