Statement on current inquiries on the Xinjiang region

In the past few days, we have received several messages related to the Xinjiang region in China. We take the open words and concerns expressed very seriously and would like to comment in detail as follows.

The report in the format ‘Panorama’ of the German television station NDR, which focuses on the Xinjiang region, conveys an image of global supply chains in relation to HUGO BOSS that does not correspond to our values and our stance as a company on human rights and fair working conditions. 

Safeguarding human rights in its global supply chains is a top priority for HUGO BOSS. Accordingly, we do not tolerate forced or compulsory labor or any form of modern slavery. We also demand this attitude from all our partners along our supply chain. Wherever we stand up for our standards and values, we do so with the conviction that our products are manufactured according to what we have defined and specified as binding criteria for our business activities. We have summarized our high ethical standards in more detail in the HUGO BOSS Supplier Code of Conduct, which forms the basis and the framework for our business partnerships worldwide. Our values as well as our standards for respecting human rights are also defined in our Human Rights Policy as well as in our HUGO BOSS Code of Conduct

Our position on respect for human rights applies worldwide, without exception. It goes without saying that we take the allegations of human rights violations very seriously and have initiated measures accordingly. HUGO BOSS has not procured any goods from direct suppliers originating in the Xinjiang region. 

Already in 2020, we requested our direct suppliers to inform us and confirm that the production of our goods is carried out in accordance with our values and standards and, in particular, that human rights and fair working conditions must be observed along our supply chains. Furthermore, we have additionally conducted own audits at production sites of our suppliers to verify compliance with our standards. We are, therefore, convinced that our values and global standards have been respected in the production of our products. HUGO BOSS will continue to take measures to live up to its own values and standards.

Of course, we are also reviewing the critical points of the report in depth, which were not shared with us in advance by the TV station.