Hiya Feminist Friends!
We all know buying clothes for our kids can be a real pain. Weighing up cost, the environmental impact, how hard wearing they are, getting something that isn’t hideously gender stereotypical plus… something they’ll actually like wearing.
That’s why I’ve pulled together this directory, to make it easy for us. I’ll be adding to it over time. If you find a shop that needs to be added to the list, please feel free to email me at kate@thevillagefeminist.org
Feel free to print this out, send it to a friend, whatever you need.
In Solidarity as always,
Kate BC x
The Village Directory
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International Label
Fast Fashion
Made: unknown.
Fabric: 95% cotton & 5% elastaneGenerally quite gender stereotypical patterns - occasional cute animal
Cost: $3.40 → $9/pair
Sizes: Most styles sizes 2Y- 12Y with some going up to 16Y
BONDS
Australian label
Made in China
Fabric: Cotton with nylon elastic waistband
Very gender stereotypical- lots of trucks
Cost: When on sale they can be as low as $4.50 but generally $14-$17/pairSizes: 2-10Y
In 2022, Bonds released a supposedly “genderfree” collection. However, while they still perpetuate such rigid gender stereotypes in their children’s range I feel like this is little more than rainbow-washing.
Target
Made: unknown.
Fabric: Cotton with nylon elastic waistband
Target is currently advertising their “Better Cotton Initiative” … who knows what that means?
Gender: quite gender stereotypical, lots of characters including paw patrol, jurassic park, minecraft and spiderman.Cost: $3 → $10/pair
Sizes: 2-16
KMART
Made: apparently 95% of kmart’s cotton comes from “better cotton” sources which is “100% sustainable?” Website doesn’t say where they’re made but most kmart clothing is made in Bangladesh.
Fabric: Cotton with elastic waistband
Gender: Extremely gender stereotypical - probably the worst I’ve seen. The only boys options are blue, green or grey.
Cost: $1/pair → $5/pair (definitely the cheapest option)
Sizes: 2-16
Marks and Spencers
Made: “responsibly sourced cotton”
Fabric: cotton with elastic waist
Gender: I’m pleasantly surprised that there are some purple pairs and some with stars on them but the majority of them are grey, red or blue.
Cost: $5/pair → $10/pair
Sizes: 2-16 years
BIG W
Made: Bangladesh, their website talks about their human rights standards and working towards a living wage for their garment workers. https://www.bigw.com.au/sustainability/people/human-rights
Fabric: cotton with elastic waist
Gender: A few more options than kmart but still very character-heavy with lots of blue, red and green and icons such as pizza, crocodiles and star wars.
Cost: $1/pair → $5/pair depending on buying in a multipack.
Sizes: 2-16
H&M
International label
Fast fashion - generally receives not great environmental reviews
Made in Bangladesh
95% cotton 5% elastane
Quite gender stereotypical patterns with the occasional pink or yellow
Cost: $4-$6/pair
Sizes: 2Y - 14Y
Lulu & Funk
New Zealand label
Really cute patterns
Bamboo and organic cotton
Made in India
Cost: $8.50-$16/pair
Sizes 2Y - 10Y
Oddo Body
Made: made in Peru
Fabric: 100% cotton - no elastic waistband
Gender: unisex designs - simple bright colours (pink, green, blue, yellow, red, white)
Cost: $10/pair
Sizes: 2-9 years
Available: Only available in the U.S and Canada at this point….
Made: Family-owned business, designed in America, made in India and Sri Lanka
Fabric: 100% organic cotton
Gender: Mostly “boy” colours but not too offensive- there’s a bit of a range there.
Cost: $8/pair →
Sizes: 2-14 years
Nature Baby
Made: Australian family business, designed in Australia, made in India, China and Fiji. Find out more about their labour practices here: https://www.naturebaby.com.au/our-sustainability-story
Fabric: Organic cotton
Gender: Green and blue for boys, white and pink for girls are their only options.
Cost: $10 → $20/pair
Sizes: 2-5 years
UNIQLO
Japanese company, international brand, most of their clothes are made in china.
Fabric: 100% cotton with spandex waistband
Gender: lots of green and grey…
Cost: $3/pair → $7/pair
Sizes: roughly 2-14 years.
Made: Designed in Sydney and “made in certified ethical factories across Asia”
Fabric: Certified organic bamboo
Gender: Seriously impressed with their cute little range of prints including strawberries and bananas.
Cost: $25/pair
Sizes: 6-14 years
Best and Less
Made: “Ethical Sourcing Code” but the website doesn’t list where exactly they’re made.
Fabric: Cotton with elastic
Gender: quite gender stereotypical (as expected) lots of blues and grey with the occasional yellow.
Cost: multipacks as low as 25c/pair → $5/pair
Sizes: 4-12.
Hanes
Made: American company, unsure where made.
Fabric: 100% cotton
Gender: white, blue, green, orange
Cost: $2/pair →
Sizes: 4-14 years
Made: Italian brand, designed and made in Italy. Free shipping to Australia for orders over 100 euros.
Fabric: 92% polyamide and 8% elastan
Gender: wide range of colours including bright pink and yellow.
Cost: pay in euros but works out at about $7.50AUD/pair
Sizes: roughly 5-12 years
American brand, strong focus on quality and durable clothes to hand down through the family.
Fabric: organic cotton
Gender: really cute range of colours and prints including rainbow! Yay!
Cost: approximately $6/pair → depending on multipack purchased
Sizes: approximately 3-14 years
Made: U.S. Brand,
Fabric: organic cotton
Gender: a fairly standard range of “boys” colours eg. blue and green but there are a few pink and orange pairs too. The natural cotton multipack is cute.
Cost:$2/pair →
Sizes: 4-16 depending on selected style
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