Our Ethical Commitment at Mochipan
At Mochipan, we want to be very clear about what ethics actually mean to us, how we practice them and any places where we are still growing.
Unfortunately, the term “ethical manufacturing” is often used loosely in this industry without any proof, and we think brands should be held to a higher standard. A lot of times, brands will use this buzzword to justify higher prices or to try and appeal to more people. Ideally, brands should be backed by third-party accountability via certifications such as WRAP, BSCI, or similar.
We don’t currently hold a third-party ethical certification for our main factory (see below for certifications our other factories hold), and that's because we just recently started this factory up, but we will touch more on this below. We absolutely believe it’s reasonable, and even crucial, for customers to be cautious when a brand claims ethical production without formal verification, and we understand that same scrutiny applies to us as well.
That said, while we do not yet have a certification for our main factory, this does not mean we are not actively practicing and upholding our ethical commitments. We have been pursuing certification for some time and fully intend to add third-party verification to our website by late 2026. In the meantime, we want you to know that we are wholeheartedly dedicated to upholding our ethical standards, regardless of any certifications. For us at Mochipan, ethical commitment starts with the people involved, and with making tangible choices that prioritize fair pay and humane working conditions.
The core of Mochipan’s ethical approach is this: everyone involved in making our garments is paid fairly for their work.
First and foremost, it is an absolute non-negotiable that every single employee at Mochipan, whether it is a customer service manager or a designer, is paid fairly for their work and is offered a minimum 6% raise every year.
As mentioned above, we own our own factory. As a result, we have direct control over all of the factory workers' salaries, and ensure we are hitting above the average for their job title.
Sometimes we outsource to other factories if our workload is too high. In these cases, we work with small, ethical manufacturers who carry certifications (check the bottom of the page for those applicable certifications). This allows us to ensure that, even when we are unable to control the workers' salaries directly, people are being paid fairly for their work.
Mochipan is a very small brand, run by a small team. We intentionally produce in limited quantities and rely heavily on pre‑orders to avoid overproduction. While we don't consider ourselves "sustainable" per se (it's hard to be truly sustainable in this world), we do prioritize a lot of sustainability practices, such as biodegradable and compostable packaging for products, a small-batch production method, and choosing fabrics that reduce waste in landfills, to name a few. In a world that seems to be run by fast fashion, we are doing our best to be very different.
Fast fashion often relies on razor‑thin margins that make underpayment inevitable. That is why our pieces often cost much more than you might be used to. Aside from higher quality techniques and materials, the biggest reason for our prices being where they are is the ethical manufacturing process we follow. If the people who are involved with making our products are not happy and not paid properly, we couldn't live with ourselves.
Why We Don’t Have a Certification For Our In-House Factory (Yet)
Third‑party certifications can be valuable, but they are also expensive, time‑intensive, and often designed with larger brands in mind. Our main factory just got started up this year, and we will likely have to move locations very soon, so the certification process is on pause for a little while.
That said, transparency matters to us. We’re committed to continuing these conversations openly, and as Mochipan grows, pursuing formal certifications is absolutely something we want to, and intend to, explore.
If you ever have questions about how something is made, we welcome them. Ethical fashion should be a real commitment, not a marketing slogan.
Thank you for supporting small, independent brands that choose people over shortcuts.
— The Mochipan Team
Certifications:
