Sportmax
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 7 sources
Max Mara's contemporary womenswear label.
Sportmax publishes no supplier list or independent audits, which Italian fashion needs before we presume a living wage, because Milan prosecutors have found luxury brands' subcontractors exploiting migrant workers.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 2 red flags: no evidence of a living wage and a hidden, unaudited supply chain in high-risk countries. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 1 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsMost of its products are made in countries such as China and Bangladesh, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Met: No confirmed child or forced labour findings or linksAn unconfirmed report of forced labour is listed below. It doesn't affect the grade.
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: High-risk raw materials (cotton, leather and cashmere) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: cotton
Red flags 2
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Hidden supply chain, mostly in countries with poor worker rights
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
These are its parent group's countries across all its brands; Sportmax doesn't say where its own products are made. The rest is shown as where clothes and shoes are usually made.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| ChinaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| BangladeshUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| VietnamUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| IndiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| CambodiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| TürkiyeUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Very high |
| IndonesiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| PakistanUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Far below a living wage | High |
Evidence
What we found
- Being made in Italy doesn't count towards a living wage or audit here: Italian fashion and leather goods, where Milan prosecutors have found luxury brands' subcontractors exploiting migrant workers. It would need to publish its suppliers or have them independently audited.
- 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.
- Uses leather and cashmere in only a few products and doesn't show where they come from. That doesn't count against it for Good, but the "Open supply chain" star needs all of them traced, certified or upcycled.
Research notes Max Mara Fashion Group runs its own production sites in Reggio Emilia, Italy, and some retail listings show Sportmax garments made in Italy, but the group does not say where Sportmax is made or what share is outsourced. Outside suppliers of the group have been named in Armenia, Myanmar and Romania. The group publishes no supplier list, modern slavery statement, audit results or living wage commitment, scored 0% for transparency in 2023 and reported no certified cotton in 2025.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Fashion Transparency Index (Fashion Revolution) | Listed | Max Mara Fashion Group scored 0% in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index, against a 26% average. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Listed | Group profile lists stories on supplier factories in Myanmar, Armenia and Romania; four response requests with a 25% response rate. View |
Unconfirmed reports
Credible reports that haven't been confirmed by a regulator, completed investigation or the company. They're shown for your information and don't affect the grade.
- Armenia's labour inspectorate found violations and fined the director of Sartex, a Yerevan factory said to make clothes for MaxMara, after workers struck over unpaid overtime and low pay in 2022; no link to the Sportmax label was reported and Max Mara did not respond (BHRRC, 2022). Source
- Workers at the Tristate Myanmar garment factory, linked to Max Mara Fashion Group, reported forced daily overtime, denied sick leave and a worker who miscarried being refused leave in 2024; Max Mara did not respond (BHRRC, 2025). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Max Mara Fashion Group (Good Shopping Guide, ethical.org.au) · search the archive · Rated F; FTI 2023 0%; 0% in 2025 Cotton Rankings with no certified cotton
- Max Mara Fashion Group company profile (BHRRC) · search the archive · Stories on Myanmar, Armenia and Romania suppliers; 4 requests, 25% response rate
- Armenia: Overtime without pay and bad treatment, Sartex employees on strike (BHRRC) · search the archive · Sartex works with MaxMara and others; 2022 inspection found violations and fined director
- Myanmar: Women workers reportedly suffering miscarriage in garment factory (BHRRC) · search the archive · Tristate Myanmar 2024 allegations; Max Mara did not respond
- Sportmax Ebbri draped maxi dress (Mytheresa) · search the archive · Example Sportmax dress woven, dyed and made in Italy
Published by Sportmax or its owner
- Sportmax official site · search the archive · Contemporary women's fashion and Italian tailoring; leather garments, bags and shoes; owned by Max Mara S.r.l.
- Max Mara Fashion Group - Places · search the archive · Group sites in Reggio Emilia, Italy, with knitwear and jersey production and the San Maurizio coat and suit plant
Company details
- Headquarters
- Italy
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Sportmax ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/sportmax, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Better-graded luxury and designer
No luxury and designer brand selling new goods is Good yet. These are the strongest so far. Second-hand and refurbished goods create no new factory work, so they're Good by rule and come first.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Sportmax.