Slow & Enduring

Why Sustainability

Our journey toward conscious living made us rethink the impact of our everyday choices — especially the waste we create, and the world we're leaving behind for future generations. As we embraced a simpler, more mindful lifestyle, it became clear that TURTLEGROOVE had to reflect the same values.

Fashion is a powerful form of self-expression, and we believe it should also honour the planet we call home. That's why sustainability isn't an add-on for us — it's the foundation of our brand.

At TURTLEGROOVE, we create clothing that feels good, looks good, and does good. Our mission is to prove that style and sustainability can move together, inspiring people to choose consciously without compromising on joy, comfort or creativity.

Everything below is our attempt to show our work — the facilities, the certificates, the numbers, and the things we haven't managed yet.

Made to Order & Slow Fashion

Every TURTLEGROOVE product is made with intention. We believe in creating beautiful apparel without contributing to unnecessary waste — so we produce each item only once it has been ordered. We never overproduce, and no valuable resources end up in landfill because a garment didn't sell.

This made-to-order approach means your TURTLEGROOVE piece is crafted especially for you. It also means we hold zero deadstock: the single biggest source of waste in fashion is clothing that is made and never worn, and we simply don't create it.

We are seasonless. We do not run seasonal collections, we do not chase trends, and we do not release new styles on a weekly drop cycle. Our range is small and deliberate — designs meant to be worn for years, not for a season. That is what “Slow & Enduring” means to us.

Built to last. Our designs are embroidered, not printed. A print is a plastic coating sitting on top of the fabric; it cracks, peels and washes away. Stitching is part of the garment itself, so it lasts as long as the cotton does. Durability isn't a marketing line for us — it's a manufacturing decision.

We never destroy product. We do not incinerate, shred or landfill unsold or returned garments to protect brand value. Because we are made-to-order we hold no unsold stock in the first place, and returned items in saleable condition are resold rather than destroyed.

Our Materials at a Glance

• 100% of our garments are made from organic cotton.
• 0% conventional cotton. 0% virgin synthetic fabric. No fibre blends.
• 0% wood-derived fibre. 0% leather. 0% animal-derived material of any kind.
• Embroidery thread: 100% recycled polyester (GRS- and OEKO-TEX-certified) — a recycled material used in every product we make.
• Packaging: 100% D2W biodegradable. No plastic tape.
• Fabric and garment manufacturing: 100% in Ontario, Canada.
• Cotton fibre: grown and spun in India. Canada's climate cannot support cotton — this is the one stage we cannot bring home, and we say so rather than hide it.

On GOTS certification, we are being precise rather than flattering. Our garments come from two Ontario manufacturers. The fabric used by one of them is covered by a current GOTS Scope Certificate that we hold, publish and can prove. For the other, we have not been given a current certificate — so we make no GOTS claim on that line at all. The detail is below, in full.

Our Production Hubs

Every TURTLEGROOVE garment is made in Ontario, Canada, from fabric milled in Ontario. We use two manufacturing lines. We publish both — including the one where our documentation is still incomplete.

Line 1 — Jerico (approximately 60% of our production)

Fully disclosed to us. Fully certified. We hold the certificate.

Line 2 — Peros Garment Factory (approximately 40% of our production)

Peros sources and manages the fabric for the garments it makes for us. It has not yet named the knitting or dyeing facilities to us, so we name Peros as the responsible partner for those stages rather than guess.

Why we're publishing an incomplete table — and no GOTS claim on this line. The fabric Peros supplies is 100% organic cotton and, they tell us, milled in Toronto. We have no reason to doubt that. But we have not been provided with a current certificate for the fabric, the knitting facility or the dyehouse — and until we are, we will not make a GOTS claim for these garments. Not a hedged one, not a soft one. None.

We have asked Peros for the certificates and the facility names, and we will publish them here the moment we have them. We would rather show you a gap than fill it with something we cannot back up. If it turns out we cannot get this documentation, that will tell us something too, and we will act on it.

Embroidery, finishing and packing — 100% of our production

Every order, from both lines, comes to our own facility in Burlington, Ontario — the place where the magic happens. Our team uses state-of-the-art embroidery technology to ensure vibrant colour and lasting quality in every garment. We oversee the entire finishing process ourselves, from precise digitisation and embroidery through to careful packing, so that each TURTLEGROOVE piece meets our standards before it leaves our doors.

Our GOTS Certificate

This certificate covers the fabric in Line 1 — roughly 60% of our production. It is held by our fabric supplier, Fine Cotton Factory Inc. (Etobicoke, Ontario).

• Scope Certificate: CU848243GOTS-2026-00010952
• Certifying body: Control Union Services, accredited by the ANSI National Accreditation Board
• Standard: GOTS version 7.0 — valid until 27 January 2027
• Audited facilities on the certificate: Fine Cotton Factory Inc., Etobicoke (knitting) and Canadian Textiles Services, Brampton (dyeing and washing)

Verify our GOTS certificate → (search for certification number 848243)

GOTS and OCS are not the same thing

Most brands never explain this, and it lets a lot of vague claims through. GOTS verifies organic content and restricts hazardous chemicals and dyes, and requires wastewater from wet processing to be treated, and carries ILO-based social criteria audited on site each year. OCS verifies organic content and chain of custody — and nothing else. It says nothing about dyes, effluent or working conditions.

So when we say our Line 1 fabric is GOTS-certified, we mean the chemistry, the wastewater and the labour standards were independently audited. That is a different and much larger claim than organic content alone, and we will not blur the two.

A further note on what GOTS does and doesn't cover: a Scope Certificate certifies the fabric and the facilities that make it — not the finished garment. The certificate says so itself. We therefore do not claim our garments are GOTS-certified, and we do not use the GOTS logo. Neither of our cut-and-sew partners is GOTS-certified either.

Read our guide: what is GOTS certification? →

Chemicals & Water

The GOTS standard our Line 1 fabric is certified to restricts the chemistry used to turn fibre into fabric. It prohibits toxic heavy-metal dyes, formaldehyde and chlorine bleaching; requires all chemical inputs to meet strict toxicological and environmental criteria; and requires wastewater from wet processing to be treated before discharge.

Our Line 1 fabric is dyed and finished at Canadian Textiles Services in Brampton, Ontario — a facility named and audited under our GOTS certificate. Our manufacturing partner reports that the dyehouse uses cruelty-free, non-toxic dye materials; that its trifunctional dyes reduce water consumption by 45%; and that its wastewater is treated for particulates, acidity and temperature before discharge to the municipal sanitary authority, exceeding Canadian environmental standards for effluent discharge.

For Line 2 we cannot make the same statement. Peros has not told us where that fabric is dyed, so we cannot tell you what chemistry is used or how the wastewater is handled. We have asked.

Across our whole range, we use no PFAS “performance” finishes and no plastisol prints — because we embroider rather than print, no print chemistry is used on any garment we make.

Read: what chemicals are actually in your clothes →

Embroidery

We embroider our designs rather than print them. A stitched design cannot crack, peel or wash away the way a plastic print does — it is part of the garment, not a coating on top of it.

Our thread is 100% recycled polyester — ISACORD Recycled, which is certified to both the Global Recycled Standard (GRS) and OEKO-TEX Standard 100. OEKO-TEX certification means the thread has been laboratory-tested for harmful substances and is safe for both adults' and children's clothing.

Read: embroidered vs printed — which lasts longer? →

Smarter Packaging

For our mailers we have partnered with NOYO. Every online order ships in a D2W biodegradable mailer that breaks down naturally in roughly two years — plastic-free packaging that works for the environment rather than against it. You can learn more about the D2W material and its certifications on NOYO's certifications page.

We use no plastic tape on any shipment.

Our shipping labels are BPA- and BPS-free direct-thermal labels. Most thermal paper contains BPA or BPS — endocrine-disrupting chemicals that transfer readily to skin — and we would rather not handle them or send them to you. Direct-thermal printing also means no ink, toner or ribbon cartridges, so there is no cartridge waste.

Where we're not there yet: thermal label stock is coated, and it is not widely recyclable or compostable. Our labels are now the last part of our packaging that isn't plastic-free, and finding a better option is exactly what our end-of-2026 packaging target is for. We'd rather tell you that than dress a shipping label up as an achievement.

Forests & Deforestation

This is our deforestation policy. Fashion drives deforestation mainly through two material categories. The first is wood-derived fibre — viscose, rayon, modal, lyocell and bamboo viscose are all made from dissolved wood pulp, and a significant share is sourced from ancient and endangered forests. The second is leather, whose production is one of the world's leading drivers of cattle-ranching deforestation.

We use neither. TURTLEGROOVE garments contain 0% wood-derived fibre and 0% leather. Our entire range is 100% organic cotton with recycled polyester embroidery thread. This is not a preference — it is a binding requirement on our suppliers, published in our Supplier Code of Conduct: no partner may supply us with wood-derived (man-made cellulosic) fibres or any animal-derived material, and paper and packaging inputs must come from responsibly managed sources.

Where we still have a forest footprint. Paper. Our shipping labels are thermal paper, and our supplier has not been able to provide an FSC chain-of-custody certificate — so we cannot honestly tell you that our label stock comes from responsibly managed forests. We would rather admit that than assume it. Sourcing certified label stock is part of our end-of-2026 packaging target.

Planting more than we take

We partner with GoodAPI, a Canadian organisation that funds verified reforestation and ocean-plastic recovery projects. Every TURTLEGROOVE order plants 2 trees and removes 3 ocean-bound plastic bottles. The running totals are published live further down this page — they are real numbers tied to real orders, not a rounded marketing figure.

One thing we want to be precise about: this is funded restoration, not a carbon offset, and we don't present it as one. We have not measured our carbon footprint (see our targets below), so we are in no position to claim these trees cancel it out. Planting trees is a good thing to do. It is not a substitute for knowing your own emissions, and we won't pretend otherwise.

Animal-Free Materials

TURTLEGROOVE products contain no animal-derived materials. We use no wool, leather, fur, down, silk, feathers or exotic skins, and no animal-derived dyes, glues or finishes.

Our garments are 100% organic cotton, embroidered with recycled polyester thread — suitable for vegan customers.

People & Labour

Because all fabric milling, cutting, sewing, embroidery and finishing happens in Ontario (see Our Production Hubs above), all of it is covered by Canadian labour law — legally enforced minimum wages, regulated working hours, occupational health and safety standards, and no child or forced labour.

On top of the law, our Line 1 fabric supplier holds GOTS certification, which requires on-site audits by an accredited, independent certification body as a condition of certification, renewed annually. Our GOTS certificate names the certifying body, lists every audited facility and carries an expiry date. GOTS also carries social criteria based on International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions: no child labour, no forced labour, freedom of association and collective bargaining, safe and hygienic working conditions, no discrimination, and fair wages.

We are straight about the limits, too: neither Jerico nor Peros holds GOTS certification; the fabric supply chain behind our Peros-made garments has not yet been disclosed to us; and we have not commissioned our own social audits. We would rather say so than imply assurance we don't have.

Our commitment: we publish the facilities that make our clothes, the certificate numbers, the certifying body and the expiry dates — so anyone can verify them at source. Where we can't yet do that, we say so instead of going quiet. We will not work with a supplier who cannot demonstrate compliance with our standards.

Read our full Supplier Code of Conduct →

Our Targets & Progress

We publish our targets so we can be held to them — and we report honestly on progress against them.

Maintaining

Working towards

Last reviewed: July 2026. We update this page as we make progress.