07/06/2026
So instead of a cheat sheet, here is what I actually want you to know. Not to start a brand. To protect yourself as a customer, because the shortcuts are about to be everywhere.
Start with one word. Cotton.
There are three claims you will see, and they are not the same thing.
Cotton just means the fibre is cotton. It tells you nothing about how it was grown or what was done to it after.
Organic cotton means the fibre was grown without synthetic pesticides or GMO seed. But that claim stops at the farm. It says nothing about the dyes, the chemicals, or the people who made it.
GOTS is the one that covers all of it. Farm to finished garment, independently audited. The organic growing, the restricted and banned dyes, the wastewater, and the labour standards. It is the only one of the three that certifies the whole chain, not just the seed.
That is the first corner that gets cut. A brand says organic cotton, and quietly, the dyeing and finishing stays conventional.
Which brings me to dyes. Conventional dyeing can involve certain azo dyes that release carcinogenic compounds, formaldehyde, and heavy metals like lead and cadmium. None of it has to be disclosed to you.
We use OEKO-TEX certified dyes. The finished fabric is independently tested against strict limits for those exact substances. GOTS controls how it is made. OEKO-TEX tests what ends up in your hands. We do both.
Last one. Sizing. Watch how many new brands launch in a 6 to 16 and call it inclusive. Grading every size properly costs money, so it is the first thing dropped. We custom grade every style from a 4 to a 22. Not scaled up from a sample. Graded.
Here is the part I need you to hear. None of these corners show up in a photo. They show up in what you cannot see. That is exactly why they get cut.
I am not worried for me. I did the hard version. I am worried for you, because you are the one who ends up wearing the shortcut.