Tom Ford

Lacks transparency

Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.

Clothing & footwear

Partly verified

Last researched 2 November 2026 · 6 sources

Luxury fashion brand selling clothing and leather goods.

Tom Ford publishes no certification, independent audit or supplier list.

Better-graded suits and tailoring

Graded higher than Tom Ford, selling the same kinds of things. Second-hand first.

15 op shops and resale platforms, Good by ruleBuying second-hand or refurbished: GlamCorner and Blue Spinach and 13 more · See them allGood Bianca SpenderMissing: where its earlier stages happen and a named supplier list · Clothing & footwearSydney-made women's designer fashionPays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.On TrackPartly verified MandatoryMissing: where its earlier stages happen and traced raw materials · Clothing & footwearWellington-made menswear and suitingPays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.On TrackPartly verified SuitsupplyMissing: living wage proof and traced raw materials · Clothing & footwearMen's and women's suitsPays or is working towards a living wage, with gaps still to close.On TrackVerified

No suits and tailoring 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.

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Why it's graded Lacks transparency

Not met: Meets 2 of 6 Good requirements.
Holds the grade back: It doesn't show that workers are paid a living wage, and isn't certified as working towards one. On Track needs at least one of these.
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.

How grades are decided

Good requirements 2 of 6

Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
Met: Respects worker rights
Not 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 or links
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 and leather) traced or certified, or not a major part of its rangeNot traced or certified: cotton and leather

Red flags 2

Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
Red flag: Hidden supply chain: no certification, independent audits or supplier list

Stars it would earn as Good

None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars

Estimates for its products

Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Tom Ford'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.

Suits, Shirts, Knitwear, Pants & trousers, Jackets & coats, Shoes, Boots, Bags & backpacks: Lacks transparency, the same as Tom Ford 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

These are Ermenegildo Zegna's countries across all its brands; Tom Ford doesn't say where its own products are made. The rest is shown as where clothes and shoes are usually made.

Where it's made, and conditions there
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.
Doesn't show where its leather comes from. Leather is linked to hazardous tannery work and forced labour on some cattle ranches, so it can't be graded Good until it traces or certifies it.

Research notes Tom Ford clothing is made under licence from Estée Lauder by Zegna Group, partly in group plants and partly by outside suppliers it says are largely in Italy. The group says Made in Italy is the large majority of all its brands' production, but gives no Tom Ford factory list or country split, so no share is shown. Over 95% of group yarn and fabric spending is with Italian suppliers. Zegna has no living wage commitment and publishes no audit results. 99% of group bovine leather comes from Leather Working Group tanneries, which does not show where hides come from. Not rated in the Ethical Fashion Report.

What independent sources say

Source	Result	Details
Fashion Transparency Index (Fashion Revolution)	Listed	Tom Ford scored 0% in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index, among the lowest of 250 brands (average 26%). View
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre	Listed	Company profile records no labour allegations or response requests; Fashion Checker found no evidence suppliers pay a living wage. View

Sources and actions

Sources 6

Show all 6 sources

Tom Ford - Business & Human Rights Resource Centre · search the archive · No allegations recorded; no evidence of living wage in supply chain
Tom Ford and Savage X Fenty give 'bare minimum' in transparency ranking (Euronews, 2023) · search the archive · Tom Ford scored 0% in the 2023 Fashion Transparency Index
Zegna Group completes acquisition of Tom Ford International (Business Wire, 2023) · search the archive · Zegna licenses all Tom Ford men's and women's fashion, accessories and underwear from Estée Lauder
Zegna supply chain presentation (Filiera), December 2025 · search the archive · Hand-stitched jackets and suits for Zegna and Tom Ford Fashion; no Tom Ford production split
Zegna Responsibility (2022) · search the archive · Group supplier code of conduct; wages must meet legal minimums

Published by Tom Ford or its owner

Zegna Group Annual Report 2025 · search the archive · Outsourced suppliers largely in Italy; Made in Italy is large majority of all brands; leather goods and shoes a Tom Ford priority; 99% LWG leather

Company details

Owned by: Ermenegildo Zegna N.V. (owns Tom Ford Fashion since 2023 under licence from Estée Lauder)
Headquarters: Italy
Last researched: 2 November 2026
Cite this page: Labour Lens, "Is Tom Ford ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/tom-ford, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
Method: Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means

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