our mission
We are committed to using our business as a force for good by taking responsibility for our impact on the planet, people and products we create.
Becoming a B Corp is an important step in our conscious journey, but it does not end here. We continually learn and take action to reduce our footprint while maximising social impact. By being transparent about our journey and conscious choices we make, we aim to create positive change and hope to inspire others to do the same.
We focus on three key pillars — Planet, People, and Product — to guide you on our conscious journey. As we learn and grow, our practices will evolve. We will update this page with any news, so keep an eye on us.
the 2024 impact report
We believe that transparency is key to driving real change, and by sharing our journey, we aim to not only hold ourselves accountable but also inspire others within our industry. As we present our 2024 Impact Report, we reflect on the journey we’ve undertaken to strengthen our commitment to the values that define by-bar: Planet, People and Product. This report offers an honest account of our progress, highlighting the milestones we’ve achieved and the areas where we still have work to do. Join us on our conscious journey—together, we can make a difference.
Embracing transparency
At by-bar, everything revolves around transparency. For some time now, you’ll find QR codes on many of our products. They allow us to take you along on each item’s
journey and the conscious choices we make along the way. Our goal? To inspire positive change and help build a more mindful future together. Every piece in our collection carries a story – from the origin of the materials and the craftsmanship to the people who bring it to life. By sharing these stories, we strengthen the connection between you and your garment. Simply scan the QR code on your product and discover its journey: from origin to your wardrobe.
our commitments
Reducing our impact by increasing the use of low-impact materials
Mapping our entire supply chain to ensure maximum transparency
Ensuring our supply chain meets our social and environmental standards
Embracing a more circular approach to extend the lifespan of our products
Giving back to the community through donations to charities and social projects
Measuring and reduding our carbon print
product certifications at by-bar
At by-bar, we are committed to making conscious choices and seeking responsible alternatives in every aspect of our work. One of our main goals is to increase the use of
certified, environmentally friendly materials throughout our processes.
Since January 2025, we have obtained several certifications that underline our dedication to sustainability and social responsibility. These include the following standards: GOTS, OCS, RCS, GRS, RWS, RMS, and RAS.
our milestones
In-house sustainability team
Since the beginning of 2022, we have established a dedicated sustainability team solely committed to realising our sustainability objectives.
B Corp™
Since July 2024, by-bar has officially become a B Corp-certified company. B Corp-certified companies are committed not only to profit but also to making a positive impact on people and the planet.
learn more about our B Corp journey
GOTS-certified
We have taken an important step by transitioning a large part of our cotton styles to fully GOTS-certified products. This means these items are produced using significantly less water, without harmful substances and under better working conditions. In this way, we continue to make our collection more conscious and responsible, without compromising on style.
Product journey
At the beginning of 2024, we started working with tex.tracer, an innovative platform that brings transparency to every step of our production chain. Today, almost all our styles comes with a QR code, allowing you to follow the journey of your item and meet the people behind the product. Together, we make conscious choices.
CO2 compensation
At by-bar, we take responsibility for our impact. For 2023 and 2024, we have offset our direct emissions and business travel by investing in certified climate projects. This included supporting the development of wind energy in Izmir, Turkey, and a household project in India.
In 2026, we take the next step. Together with a carbon accounting platform, we are mapping our full footprint, enabling us to set more focused and effective reduction goals.
more responsible packaging
In 2025, we made a meaningful step towards more conscious packaging in our warehouse. Our shipping bags are now made from 100% recycled and FSC-certified paper. Our shipping boxes are still FSC Mix-certified, and together with our packaging partner, we are working towards a fully recycled alternative.
In 2026, we will continue this progress with the introduction of 100% recycled polybags.
antic jackets
Since 2012, our antique collection has been a beloved part of our collection. These unique, upcycled styles are handmade from traditional Indian blankets, lovingly worn for generations. Each piece tells its own story. Barbara and her team carefully select the blankets and transform them into beautiful, one-of-a-kind pieces that take on new meaning within our collection.
discover here
animal welfare
At by-bar, we believe fashion should never come at the expense of animal welfare. We don’t use angora, down, fur, or leather from exotic animals. We are certified for RWS, RMS, and RAS, and have already converted part of our wool and mohair to certified yarns. Together with our suppliers, we’re increasing this share each season, aiming for 100% certified wool and mohair by 2030. We’re against mulesing and work with tex.tracer to trace the origin of all our animal fibers, ensuring transparency and care throughout the supply chain.
Becoming B Corp marks an important step in our journey toward high social and environmental standards, and we are incredibly proud of this. Being a B Corp embodies the essence of our conscious journey: working together to create positive impact, always seeking responsible alternatives, and collaborate with our partners to become more sustainable.
At by-bar, we choose not to participate in Black Friday; instead, we celebrate Conscious Friday. This initiative aims to raise awareness and inspire our customers to make conscious choices.
Our commitment goes beyond products. We see it as our responsibility to make a positive impact on the planet and people through everything we create. By being transparent about our journey, we aim to inspire positive change and invite you to join us on our conscious journey. Together, we can make a difference.
meet the people behind by-bar
“We are committed to minimising our impact, by making conscious choices and by offering high-quality styles for a wardrobe that will last.” — Barbara Brenninkmeijer, founder by-bar
our pilars
We are comitted to provide more insights and transparency into our journey towards becoming a more sustainable brand. We focus on three pillars, which will guide you on our conscious journey: Planet, People, and Product.
Our CO2 Footprint
At by-bar, we take responsibility for our impact. In 2023 and 2024, we offset our direct emissions and business travel through carefully selected climate projects, including wind energy in Izmir and clean cookstoves in India.
In 2026, we take the next step by working with a carbon accounting platform to map our full footprint, enabling more focused and effective reduction targets.
Animal welfare
In 2025, we achieved certifications for key wool standards (RWS, RMS, RAS). This allows us to take further steps towards using only certified wool.
For 2026, our goal is that at least 40% of the wool we use comes from certified suppliers, with the ambition to move to 100% certified wool by 2030. Step by step, we are building a more responsible and transparent supply chain for our animal-based materials.
Chemical management
All our suppliers have signed our restricted substances list, based on REACH guidelines. This helps us prevent the use of harmful chemicals.
Together with Bureau Veritas, we test selected items to ensure safety and compliance. Our list is updated annually, always with the wellbeing of people and planet in mind.
Low impact denim
Denim naturally has a significant impact on people and planet. That is why we continue to take steps towards more responsible alternatives.
In 2025, we started transitioning a large part of our cotton denim styles to fully GOTS- and OCS-certified products. We also use more responsible washing techniques that reduce water, energy and chemical use. At this stage, almost all our denim falls within the low-impact category, with the goal to reach 100% low-impact denim by the end of 2026.
Packaging
In 2025, we took an important step towards more responsible packaging. Our shipping bags are now made from 100% recycled and FSC-certified paper. Our shipping boxes are currently FSC Mix-certified, and together with our packaging partner, we are working towards a fully recycled alternative.
In 2026, we will continue this progress with the introduction of recycled polybags, further reducing our impact, down to the smallest details of every order.
Long-term relationships
Personal, long-term relationships with our suppliers and partners, including agents, retailers, photographers and, of course, our own team, are essential to us.
We work closely together and visit regularly to strengthen these connections. Together, we work towards ambitious sustainability goals, always exploring more responsible alternatives and continuously improving.
Working conditions
Ensuring good working conditions throughout our supply chain is a priority for by-bar. Currently, 80% of our partners meet external standards such as Sedex, BSCI, SA8000, ICS and Fair Wear.
We actively collaborate with the remaining partners to improve their practices, because we believe in collective progress to create lasting positive impact.
Transparancy
Since early 2024, we have been working with the transparency platform tex.tracer to map our supply chain step by step. This platform helps us gain better insight into who is involved in making our products and under which conditions. Currently, 90% of our tier 1 and tier 2 suppliers are included in tex.tracer. Our goal is to map 60% of our tier 3 partners by 2026.
Human Rights Due Diligence
At by-bar, we continuously work towards greater transparency in our supply chain. With the help of tex.tracer, we gain increasing insight into suppliers further up the chain (tier 2 and 3).
Based on risk assessments, we visit selected suppliers to better understand who they are and how they operate. During these visits, we focus on working conditions, human rights and overall wellbeing. We share these journeys on our socials, follow along.
Code of conduct
Ensuring good working conditions across our value chain is a top priority. All our tier 1 suppliers have signed our code of conduct, committing to uphold our social and environmental standards. By 2026, our goal is for 100% of tier 2 suppliers to also sign our Code of Conduct.
Female led company
As a female-founded business, we are proud to support equality and empower women. Our aim is to foster a culture of confidence, awareness and joy, within our team and across everyone we work with.
A wardrobe that last
By choosing more responsible materials and designing with longevity in mind, we create pieces that are made to last. We share care tips to help extend the life of your garments and encourage repairing over replacing whenever possible.
The journey of our product
Since 2024, we have been working with tex.tracer to make the full journey of our products visible, from raw material to finished piece. We are proud that nearly our entire collection now includes a QR code, allowing you to follow this journey and discover the story behind each item.
Growing our use of low-impact materials
Step by step, we are increasing the share of lower-impact materials in our collections, such as organic cotton and recycled polyester. Currently, 47% of our collection consists of low-impact materials. Our goal is to reach 60% by 2026. There is still work to do, but we are fully committed to this progress. Curious about the materials we use? Discover them in our fibre index.
Circularity
We are actively exploring circular business models for by-bar, taking greater responsibility for product care, reuse, repair and recycling. Stay tuned for updates.
Conscious Styles
We want to make it easier for our customers to make responsible choices. Look out for our blue brand logo, highlighting items made with at least 50% lower-impact materials or produced using more responsible methods. Discover our conscious styles and join us in creating positive impact.
Antic styles
Since 2012, our antic collection has been a beloved part of by-bar. These unique, upcycled styles are handcrafted from traditional Indian blankets that have been worn and cherished for generations. Carefully selected by Barbara and her team, each piece is transformed into a new by-bar item, each with its own story.
We are blessed with a dedicated team of talented and passionate people who work with the same passion and always give the very best they’ve got. Together, we make things happen.
most asked questions
This means we meet high standards for social and environmental impact across five key areas: governance, environment, workers, customers, and community. Additionally, it reflects our commitment to using business as a force for good. Being a B Corp is a milestone we are very proud of, but it is certainly not the end goal. It provides our team and our partners with a shared purpose and motivation to continually improve.
by-bar’s commitment to reducing our environmental footprint starts with measurement. Each year, we track our Scope 1 and 2 emissions, covering direct emissions from our office, stores, and business travel. To offset these emissions, we invest in a Climate Neutral Group project and have made additional improvements, such as switching to renewable energy for our warehouse.
Our roadmap includes plans to measure our Scope 3 emissions, our main challenge, at both total and product levels. Scope 3 covers emissions outside our direct control, primarily from our supply chain. In preparation, we are already taking meaningful steps to reduce these emissions, such as reducing air shipments, increasing our use of low impact materials, and implementing low-impact packaging.
Since the beginning of 2024, we have been working with Tex.tracer, a platform that makes the entire journey of our products transparent, from cotton field to final product. By now, 89% of our products feature a QR code, allowing you to follow this journey yourself. This way, we ensure greater transparency and you can discover the unique story behind each product.
We are committed to ethical and responsible production at every stage of our supply chain. We work only with suppliers who meet our social and environmental standards, with all partners signing our Code of Conduct for fair working conditions. Larger suppliers undergo third-party audits by organisations like Sedex or BSCI, while smaller suppliers complete our self-assessment. Tex.tracer enhances transparency, helping us monitor compliance closely and drive continuous improvements.
We're gradually increasing the share of materials with a lower environmental impact in our collections, such as organic cotton and recycled polyester. Using our fibre index, we consciously choose the most sustainable options. In 2025, 40% of our materials consisted of low-impact options, progressing towards our 50% target. Looking ahead, we aim to reach 60% by 2026, and by 2030 our ambition is for at least 95% of our collections to consist of more sustainable materials. So, there are still significant steps ahead of us, but we're working hard to achieve this. Curious about the materials we use? Find out in our fibre index.
We measure our CO2 emissions in Scope 1 and 2, which includes the direct emissions from our office, stores, warehouse, and business travel. The biggest challenge is measuring Scope 3 emissions, which primarily originate from our production chain. Our goal is to map all of these emissions by 2026 and set SBTi targets so we can track and reduce our impact even more effectively.
We are committed to sourcing wool and leather responsibly, with greater transparency through our partnership with Tex.tracer. To enhance our practices, we are increasing the use of certified Responsible Wool in our collections. As of November 2024, we have obtained certifications under the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS), Responsible Alpaca Standard (RAS), and Responsible Mohair Standard (RMS). While not all our wool products are certified, this step allows us to expand our use of Responsible Wool and ensure a fully certified and traceable supply chain. For leather, we collaborate with certified tanneries and are focused on continually improving our standards in this area.
Yes, we actively support charitable causes. We regularly contributing to social projects and community initiatives that reflect our values, aiming to give back and make a positive impact beyond our business. Over the past two years, we have donated around €45.000 to organisations such as Quiet Breda, the local food bank, and Ukraine relief efforts and to sponsoring a sports club in our hometown. Recently, our team also participated in a SUP Cleanup event in the Breda canals, collecting 75 kilos of waste while paddleboarding.
We believe sustainability is a shared responsibility and encourage our team to engage in our environmental and social goals. Employees participate in projects like clean-up events, sustainable practice workshops, and responsible consumption initiatives. Our sustainability specialists have set goals for each team, ensuring accountability in reducing our collective impact. By fostering a culture of sustainability, we empower our employees to make a positive impact within the company and beyond.
Customers can contribute to sustainability by choosing quality, conscious made clothing and extending each item's life through care, repair, and recycling. At by-bar, we offer tips to make products last. Look for our 'conscious choice' logo online for lower-impact items and use our size guide to reduce returns. When it is time to part with a piece, consider reselling, donating, or passing it on to someone who will enjoy it. Making conscious choices can make a big impact.
Tex.tracer is an innovative platform that provides insight into the entire journey of our products, from raw material to finished product. It allows us to better manage working conditions within the supply chain and offers transparency about the materials used and production processes. Many of our items feature a QR code on the product, allowing you to track this journey yourself and make informed choices.