Our Ethical Mission Statement

Our goal is to empower women in India, whilst ensuring that we manufacture our goods responsibly, to have as little impact on the environment as possible. We are proud of the steps we have taken as a business to meet our goal and invite you to read our full Ethical Mission as detailed below.

Secret Projects fashion and homeware goods are produced in India by groups of marginalised women, spread throughout five Indian states, where there are few or no opportunities for women to earn an income. The women come from many backgrounds. Some are married and raising a family on very little income, some are widowed, finding themselves reliant on support from their already financially overstretched families. Whilst others have been rescued from situations of human trafficking or are living at risk of being trafficked.

Working closely with established Indian NGO’s Secret Projects connects with these women, who may be part of a community group or individuals, training them to develop their sewing skills to begin producing our goods. It is important to note that the women are not Secret Projects employees, rather they are paid at least twice the minimum wage for each product they manufacture. Makers receive 70% of the profits of each product they make.

We ensure that the women are fully informed about where their products are sold throughout the world and Secret Projects passes on customer feedback, positive or negative to our groups in a professional and sensitive way, avoiding singling out individuals.

Click here to meet our Maker Community.

Our materials are sourced as close as possible from each local community.

• We buy our fabric largely from organisations that purchase ‘end of line’ fabrics from large corporates, that otherwise would be sent to landfill.
• The wadding we use in our Secret Pillows is made from 80% recycled polyester fibres, meaning that fewer PET bottles end up in landfill.
• Fabric scraps left over from production aren’t thrown away, but used to make other Secret Products, such as Mini Secret Pillows, Secret Bunting and scrap bundles. Nothing is wasted.
• As we grow, we will continue our quest to use more Fairtrade, organic cottons to make our Secret Products.

The bags we use to package Secret Products for delivery are made from recycled plastic.

• We took the decision to use these bags rather than paper and cardboard as the majority of our products are shipped directly from source in India to our customers, thus removing an additional layer of transportation.
• We are now using recycled paper and card and reducing the amount of marketing materials we send with each product.
• We never buy new plastic packaging for our products.

Our Customer Trips are a growing area for us and our aim is to educate our customers about ethical and conscious shopping. All those who have travelled with us are encouraged to host a talk to their network of contacts to tell the Secret Projects story and highlight the ways that people can make an impact and drive empowerment as individuals. Click here to visit our Travel Centre.