Labour Lens

Fjällräven

On Track

On Track. Pays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.

Last researched 2 November 2026 · 6 sources

Swedish outdoor brand known for Kånken backpacks.

Fjällräven publishes its supplier list, and its parent group makes most of its products in China and Vietnam.

Also worth knowing

It's working towards a living wage through the Fair Labor Association's fair compensation programme, but can't yet show workers are paid one.

Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Fjällräven? Send a right of reply.

Compare Fjällräven with another brand

Why it's graded On Track

  • Not met: Meets 3 of 6 Good requirements.
  • Working towards a living wage. That's enough for On Track, but Good needs proof that workers are paid one.
  • Its red flag, no proof yet of a living wage, is allowed for On Track because it's working towards one.

How grades are decided

  • Checks its own supply chain. Fjällräven looks for problems in its own supply chain and publishes what it finds. It found forced and child labour in 2025 and is fixing it, so it doesn't count against the grade. It's listed below under Confirmed issues.

Good requirements 3 of 6

  • Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: working towards one
  • Not met: Respects worker rightsJudged on where its products are made: worker rights are poorly protected in China, Vietnam and Bangladesh.
  • Met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
  • Met: No child or forced labour findings it isn't fixingIts own checks found child and forced labour, which it is fixing. That's listed below and doesn't count against the grade.
  • Met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that listPublishes its supplier list
  • Not met: High-risk raw materials (cotton) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: cotton

Red flags 1

  • Red flag: No proof yet that it pays a living wage (it's working towards one)
Stars it would earn as Good:
StarAwarded for
Gives workers a real voice

Stars only show on Good companies. About stars

Estimates for its products

Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Fjällräven's evidence and, where it has product lines, that line's countries. They're estimates: we don't know which factory made any single item.

Jackets & coats, Pants & trousers, Shorts, Shirts, T-shirts, Hoodies & sweatshirts, Knitwear, Hats, Bags & backpacks: On Track, the same as Fjällräven overall, because nothing we know differs between them.

Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.

Where it's made

From Fenix Outdoor International's supplier list, which covers Fjällräven and its sister brands. Fjällräven publishes no breakdown of its own, so the countries shown are the group's. The rest is shown as where clothes and shoes are usually made.

Where it's made, and conditions there
CountryWorker rightsLegal minimum wageForced labour risk
ChinaNo guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageModerate
VietnamSystematic violationsWell below a living wageModerate
BangladeshUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageModerate
IndiaUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageHigh
CambodiaUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageModerate
TürkiyeUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsBelow a living wageVery high
IndonesiaUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsWell below a living wageModerate
PakistanUsual for the industryNo guarantee of rightsFar below a living wageHigh

Evidence

What we found

  • Publishes supplier list
  • Independent social audits of all its main factories
  • Modern slavery statement
  • Doesn't show where its cotton comes from. Cotton is linked to forced labour in Xinjiang and Turkmenistan, and child labour in several growing regions, so it can't be graded Good until it traces or certifies it.

Research notes Fjällräven's products are made mostly by independent suppliers in China and Vietnam, with others in Europe and North Africa; it lists its factories on Open Supply Hub but publishes no production shares. Parent Fenix Outdoor has been accredited by the Fair Labor Association since 2018 and works with about 138 factories; about 46% of direct suppliers were audited in 2025, when its audits found two forced labour cases and one child labour case. Fenix supports the concept of a living wage and is working on wage data with the FLA, but has published no wage figures or time-bound living wage target.

What independent sources say

SourceResultDetails
UK Modern Slavery Statement RegistryListedFenix Outdoor International files a UK slavery and human trafficking statement; the 2025 statement reports about 138 factories, 46% of direct suppliers audited, and two forced labour and one child labour case detected. View

Confirmed issues 1

Only confirmed problems are listed, and old ones drop off after 10 to 15 years. A problem the company has fully put right no longer counts against it, and nor does one it finds and is fixing itself. How problems are counted

Last recordedWhat happenedMade amends?
2025Link through a supplierParent Fenix Outdoor's own supplier audits detected two cases of forced labour and one case of child labour at suppliers in 2025, without naming the brands or countries involved (Fenix Outdoor UK slavery and human trafficking statement, 2025, approved April 2026). Source · search the archiveFound and being fixed by the company Not counted against the grade while the company is actively fixing it, because it found and published it itself.PartlyFenix says immediate action was taken in each case; it gives no details of remediation for the workers or which brand's suppliers were involved.

Sources and actions

Sources 6

Show all 6 sources
  1. Fenix Outdoor Post-Accreditation Report 2025 (FLA) · search the archive · FLA-accredited since 2018; 131 Tier 1 factories and 7 owned facilities; living wage next steps discussed; no wage targets published
  2. Fenix Outdoor accreditation assessment (FLA, 2018) · search the archive · FLA accreditation of Fenix Outdoor's social compliance programme, February 2018
  3. Fenix Outdoor CSR Report 2023 · search the archive · Suppliers mainly in China and Vietnam, also North Africa and Europe; own and external FLA-standard audits; 'supports the concept of a living wage'

Published by Fjällräven or its owner

  1. Fjällräven sustainable production · search the archive · FLA member since 2013; suppliers audited by Fjällräven and third parties under the Fenix Code of Conduct
  2. Fjällräven transparency · search the archive · Publishes a regularly updated list of manufacturing facilities through Open Supply Hub
  3. Fenix Outdoor UK Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement 2025 · search the archive · FY2025: about 138 factories; 46% of direct suppliers audited; two forced labour cases and one child labour case detected, immediate action

Company details

Headquarters
Sweden
Last researched
2 November 2026
Cite this page
Labour Lens, "Is Fjällräven ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/fjallraven, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
Method
Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What On Track means

Better-graded outdoor

Something missing or wrong?

Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Fjällräven.