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I Despise the Concept of ESG Investing, but the H&M Situation Might Warrant a Second Look
Last month, the Wall Street Journal ran a story about the clothing retailer, Hennes & Mauritz (H&M), a Swedish company that sells “fast-fashion” apparel worldwide. They are a member of a fashion trade group whose members “have adopted environmental and human-rights concerns as part of their image.” Recently, members of the group have had some difficulty with the human-rights issue of cotton and apparel sourced from the Xinjiang region of Communist China, which is known to be engaging in genocide and forced labor of Uighur Muslims. H&M had a statement on their website that they were hesitant to source raw materials from Xinjiang, because of human-rights concerns.
That statement has brought down the wrath of the Communist Chinese government and consumers on the company. Their stores disappeared from the social media sites in China that were their main marketing channel in the country and state-controlled media came down hard on them. The State urged citizens to boycott the company’s stores and products, and their sales in China were reduced. From a WSJ article on Friday:
Calling those accusations [of forced labor] lies, Beijing fanned outrage against H&M via state-controlled media outlets and social-media accounts. H&M disappeared from Chinese e-commerce sites and stores vanished from map apps. Landlords closed some outlets.
So, now, H&M has a dilemma. If they wish to sell into the Chinese market, they will have to moderate those human-rights concerns. “They are now trying to balance that [human-rights issue] while maintaining access to the massive Chinese market. The CEO of the company says “we’re still in a complex situation.” You don’t say! Here’s another quote from the WSJ article:
A few major companies including Zara owner Inditex SA, removed or altered their online statements about Xinjiang. H&M, as well as North face owner VF Corp., publicly re-affirmed their commitment to avoiding sourcing from Xinjiang. While H&M was the most drastic example of the Chinese backlash, nationalistic internet users in China also attacked, to a lesser extent, other members of the Better Cotton Initiative, a fashion-industry coalition that also raised concerns about Xinjiang.
So maybe it is time for both customers and investors in Hennes & Mauritz, VF, and Inditex to make those companies aware that their customers and investors here in the US are behind them 100% in their efforts to publicize the Chinese genocide; praise them for not sourcing product from that area, and vow to buy more of their clothes to cancel out the reduced sales in Communist China. These companies are sticking their necks out and opposing a very powerful State interest, and they should be encouraged to continue. I think that would be the best kind of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing and purchasing. Vow to boycott those companies who kowtow to the Communists, and support those who do not.
Published in Economics
I wish them well, but I can’t afford to buy any of their stuff.
I despise any company and its management who would deal with a muderous regime bent on destroying us, just for a profit. It’s too hard for consumers to boycott the companies because so many things are made over there and hardly anywhere else. It’s also hard to find out which companies are doing business with the Chicoms. And it doesn’t matter if the products were not made with slave labor. You’re still dealing with slavers . . .
LeBron doesn’t seem to mind at all. Just don’t be a policeman in the USA. That’s where he and many of his NBA buddies get triggered.
There you go.
LeBron once likened his NBA job as slavery. Funny that a slave who earned millions would not run away . . .
Actually, H&M sells very reasonably-priced clothes. I went into one of their stores, and was surprised by the stylishness and low prices I found there. They do appeal to a younger demographic.
“Reasonably-priced” is not a fixed standard either. How much are their shirts? The most recent shirts I bought came from Bangladesh, which doesn’t bother me nearly as much as buying from China, 66% cotton which I actually prefer over 100%, and they were on sale for I think $6 or $8 each.
Here’s something you might be interested in:
https://chinanever.com/
it’s a database of products not made in China. It’s not perfect, but it’s a start.
I’ve also heard that Marc Cuban has invested in a startup developing a browser add-in that will suggest alternatives to China made products when Web shopping.
https://prosperousamerica.org/can-a-few-made-in-the-usa-investors-slow-the-tide-of-made-in-china-e-commerce/
I’m still not giving up my iPhone.
They’ve targeted the sweet spot between Old Navy and the non-discounted Gap rack, with a sheen of “it’s European!” backstory to appeal to the mall shoppers.
Old Navy and The Gap both seem too expensive for me, too.
Bunch of analysis & opinion pieces here, for anyone considering H&M as an investment:
https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/HMRZF
Ah, another Seeking Alpha reader! I am on there a lot, considering applying to be a contributor.
Marc Cuban? That is surprising. As an NBA owner, I would think his peer pressure would keep him from such endeavors.