No, Coach is not a fast fashion brand. It operates in the accessible luxury market, prioritizing craftsmanship, quality materials, and a slower production cycle over the rapid, high-volume model of fast fashion giants.
While the brand has made some commitments to improve its practices, it faces criticism regarding labor wages in parts of its supply chain and the significant environmental impact of its heavy reliance on leather. Here's a closer look at Coach's ethical and sustainable practices:
Coach's business model is fundamentally different from a fast fashion brand. Its focus on quality, brand heritage, and a premium price point sets it apart from the disposable nature of trend-driven apparel.
Coach demonstrates a moderate commitment to ethics, with some positive transparency measures offset by significant shortcomings in its supply chain, particularly regarding wages and animal welfare certifications.
Coach manufactures in countries such as Italy, the United States, Vietnam, and China, conducting third-party audits on its factories to monitor standards. However, reports suggest that workers in some Vietnamese factories earn around $180-$200 per month, falling below the region's estimated living wage of $250-$300. While the brand has standards in place, ensuring a true living wage for all workers remains a major challenge.
The brand shows a degree of transparency by publishing a list of its Tier 1 suppliers. However, it lacks comprehensive disclosure of its entire supply chain and does not hold key certifications like Fair Trade or SA8000, which would provide more robust, independent verification of worker conditions and rights.
Coach relies heavily on animal-derived materials, including leather, wool, and controversial exotic skins like python and crocodile. While it states its leather tanneries comply with European chemical regulations, the brand does not have third-party animal welfare certifications like the Leather Working Group (LWG) or Responsible Wool Standard. Its use of exotic skins, often sourced through practices with poor animal welfare standards, is a significant ethical concern.
Coach has taken some steps toward sustainability, but its efforts are largely undermined by its core business material - leather - and a lack of concrete data, aggressive targets, and circularity initiatives.
An estimated 70-80% of Coach products are made from leather, a resource-intensive material with a high environmental footprint from land use, water consumption, and GHG emissions. The company has not provided data on what percentage of its leather is sourced from environmentally certified tanneries. While some products incorporate recycled materials, these make up a very small portion of its overall collections.
Leather tanning is a notoriously polluting process, often involving chromium and other toxic chemicals that can contaminate water sources if not properly treated. Coach’s lack of public disclosure on its carbon footprint, water usage, and chemical management makes it impossible to assess the full environmental impact of its operations.
Coach promotes longevity through its repair services, which is a positive step toward extending the life of its products. However, it lacks any significant take-back, resale, or recycling programs to manage its purses at the end of their life, meaning most items ultimately end up in landfills.
The company has set vague goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2025 but has not provided clear, measurable targets or progress reports. Crucially, it lacks leading third-party certifications like B Corp or Climate Neutral, which would validate its sustainability commitments.
While Coach is not a fast fashion brand, its practices fall short of being truly ethical or sustainable. Its efforts are a clear step above mass-market fast fashion but lag significantly behind luxury leaders in conscious production.
Coach earns a B- for its moderate transparency in publishing supplier lists and conducting factory audits. However, the grade is held back by documented issues with wages falling below living wage standards, the use of controversial exotic animal skins, and a lack of stringent third-party certifications to validate its claims of fair labor and animal welfare.
The brand receives a C+ for sustainability. Positives include its focus on durable products and its repair program, which promotes longevity. However, its grade is severely limited by an overwhelming reliance on environmentally taxing leather, a lack of transparency on its carbon and water footprint, and the absence of meaningful circularity programs or ambitious, science-based targets.
If Coach's lack of robust ethical and environmental commitments is a concern, here are several brands offering similar quality and style with stronger credentials.
A true luxury leader in sustainability, Stella McCartney is a cruelty-free B Corp that uses innovative plant-based materials like Mylo (a leather alternative) and recycled fabrics. The brand is transparent about its supply chain and prioritizes fair labor practices, offering a high-fashion alternative without the ethical compromises.
Shop now at stellamccartney.com
This B Corp brand specializes in high-quality vegan leather bags and accessories, using sustainable materials like recycled plastics, rubber, and cork. Matt & Nat offers a similar minimalist and classic aesthetic to Coach at a comparable price point, but with a fully cruelty-free and more eco-conscious approach.
Shop now at mattandnat.com
Built on a "fewer, better" philosophy, Cuyana creates timeless bags and apparel designed for longevity from sustainable materials like certified Italian leather and recycled fabrics. The brand is committed to supply chain transparency, working with craftspeople who earn fair wages and ensuring its products are made to last a lifetime.
Shop now at cuyana.com
Known for its radical transparency, Everlane offers a range of bags and accessories made from LWG-certified leather and recycled materials. The brand shares detailed information about its factories and production costs, providing an affordable and transparent alternative with a modern aesthetic.
Shop now at everlane.com
While known for outdoor gear, Patagonia's collection of bags, backpacks, and totes are industry leaders in sustainability. All their bags are made from durable recycled materials, produced in Fair Trade Certified factories, and backed by an ironclad lifetime repair guarantee, representing the gold standard in ethical production.
Shop now at patagonia.com
Coach is not fast fashion because its business model is based on higher quality, premium pricing, durability, and a much slower production cycle of 4-6 seasonal collections per year. This contrasts sharply with fast fashion's low-quality, low-cost, trend-driven model of releasing thousands of new items weekly.
Coach's leather sourcing has ethical gaps. The brand states it complies with chemical regulations but lacks key third-party certifications like the Leather Working Group (LWG), which verifies environmental and animal welfare standards. Furthermore, its use of exotic skins from animals like pythons and crocodiles is widely considered unethical due to inhumane sourcing practices.
While the vast majority of Coach’s products are made from genuine leather, the brand does offer a very limited number of items made with alternative or recycled materials, such as recycled nylon linings. However, these collections are small and not a core part of their business, which remains heavily reliant on animal hides.
Coach's main sustainability efforts include its repair program, which extends the life of its products, and stated goals to reduce GHG emissions by 2025. However, these goals are vague and lack public progress reports. Without audited data and a serious commitment to move away from conventional leather, its progress remains limited.
