Where is Bik Bok clothing produced?

Bik Bok products are manufactured in a number of countries, but most clothing is produced in China, India, Bangladesh and Turkey.

Bik Bok has been part of family-owned company Varner, one of Scandinavia’s biggest fashion groups, since 1991. Varner accepts responsibility for our climate and environment, people and consumers, with sustainable development at the heart of everything it does. Vegard Neverlien, Global CSR Manager at Varner, explains how Bik Bok and the rest of Varner’s clothing chains work with international clothing production.

“Varner has been a member of Ethical Trade Norway since 2003,” explains Vegard. “That was when we established our ethical guidelines, which include using more sustainable materials, following up people in our supply chain and working towards a circular business model.”

Corporate social responsibility work and efforts in respect of sustainability measures commence long before Mathab Gargari, Bik Bok’s Junior Designer, starts developing a new product at the company’s offices in Asker, Norway. Varner has spent two decades working on achieving responsible production throughout the supply chain. Photo: Varner

Social responsibility is ours

Bik Bok currently has offices in Asker in Norway, and this is where all design and concept development work takes place. As part of Varner, Bik Bok has access to resources and suppliers that have already been vetted and approved by the CSR department.

CSR stands for Corporate Social Responsibility. Varner defines specific requirements for production so that it can work with international suppliers. Partners have to be approved by the CSR department before entering into a contract.

Vegard is responsible for initiating measures in respect of risk areas related to international clothing production, which includes ensuring good working conditions for factory employees.

Find out more about supplier follow-up and how we ensure good working conditions are in place at factories.

SUPPLIER: Bik Bok and the rest of Varner’s chains work in partnership with 335 or so different suppliers. Four H Group in Chittagong, Bangladesh is one of them. Photo: Farzana Afroz, Merchandiser, Varner, Bangladesh.

Trade with developing countries

Varner has a total of 335 suppliers in 13 countries outside the Nordic region, and its primary production takes place at 140 factories in China, India, Bangladesh and Turkey. Suppliers specialise in various product categories, which allows Bik Bok to identify the best manufacturer for each specific garment.

“Working with international trade with a developing country is fundamentally good for the country, as long as this is done responsibly and we help to bring about economic development, provide permanent and secure jobs and ensure safety,” explains Vegard.

“This requires us to invest in resources and people who follow up production,” he adds. “Our aim at Varner is to ensure that when we work with a manufacturer, we help to strengthen that supplier in areas relating to working conditions and employment rights. We couldn’t work in Bangladesh, for instance, without doing anything. Investments are needed from a number of angles.”

INSPECTION AT THE FACTORY: Varner staff visit the partner factories on a regular basis. Front from left; Kursun Kara, Varner Senior CSR Specialist, Turkey and Murat Akcay, Varner CSR Team Leader, Turkey. Photo: Varner

Own offices in production countries

Corporate social responsibility efforts and the requirements for responsible working conditions for Bik Bok’s suppliers have escalated since Varner established its ethical guidelines in 2003.

Varner established its own production offices in the biggest production countries – India, Turkey, Bangladesh and China – between 2002 and 2014. Maintaining a continuous presence and local knowledge of the community, the markets and the language are essential if the company is to follow up production responsibly. Local Varner employees work on production on a daily basis, and the offices follow up on suppliers in Europe, Pakistan and South-East Asia.

“At present, local offices employing 100 dedicated Varner staff who work with corporate social responsibility and working conditions are distributed around the markets where our suppliers have their factories. Functions working with the climate, the environment, production safety and durable, sustainable products are also in place at these local offices.”

All products in the Bik Bok online store are marked to indicate which factory manufactured them. View all first and second tier factories with which Varner has partnerships at the Open Apparel Registry.

A map is also presented here: Open Apparel Registry

Would you like to know more about Varner’s work with clothing production, sustainability and the environment? In the Varner Sustainability Report 2022, the Varner Sustainability Report 2021 and the Varner Sustainability Report 2020 you will everything you need to know, and a bit more.

You can also send an email directly to [email protected] if there’s anything else you’d like to know about how we work with sustainability.