OVERVIEW

Free2Work & BuyFair:

Help corporate teams end supply chain slavery.

About: Free2Work was an index and consultancy that helped companies address labor issues in their supply chains. The project also released a consumer shopping app called BuyFair.

Role: Product Designer (Built and directed Free2Work's research, publication and consulting functions; redesigned BuyFair app)

ABOUT THE PROJECT

Many of our products are made by modern slaves.

Free2Work was an index that rated brands on their risk mitigation steps.

Along with the index, our team released an app and widely-read industry reports. In parallel, we consulted companies on supply chain management strategies.

  

Free2Work's index spun off to become Know the Chain, which continues to be influential. The app was acquired and re-branded under the name BuyFair. 

INDEX DESIGN

In Phase 1, I designed the Free2Work index in consultation with industry and advocacy experts.

In order to create the index, I needed to understand the range of brands' operations and strategies. To accomplish this, I spent months interviewing experts, conducting desk research, and, eventually, using case studies to design and calibrate the index's algorithm. 

RESEARCH

In Phase 2, I created and directed a small research team, which populated the index. I also wrote widely-read industry reports based on our findings. 

Once I had designed the Free2Work index, I used it to lead a small team in researching and comparing company practices. Our industry reports were read by tens of thousands of people and used globally by corporate responsibility teams. 

CONSULTANCY

In Phase 3, I developed a consultancy arm, through which we advised Fortune 500 brands.

Under my leadership, our team consulted small brands like Maggie's Organics and the teams of multinational companies including Gap, Patagonia, Levi's, Zara and Eileen Fisher. We leveraged our index research to provide companies with customized roadmaps to improve their supply chain management processes.

RECOGNITION

The project received significant industry attention and international press.

Free2Work was featured in Forbes, the Guardian, Fast Company, Al Jazeera, CNN, CBC, the Stanford Social Innovation Review, Mother Jones, Deloitte Insights, and on the front page of the International Labor Organization’s website. Below, it's discussed in Japan.

CONSUMER-FACING PRODUCT DESIGN

Free2Work also released a consumer-facing app under the leadership of my co-worker. In a later phase, I updated the app's UX design.

Product supply chains can seem boring. The app made our complex index digestible and actionable. Shoppers could find brands that aligned with their values by browsing through A-F grades, which could also be accessed by scanning product barcodes. 

  

Below is a snapshot of a section of my updated wireframes. In partnership with a visual designer, I created them for The Abolish Foundation, which had by that point acquired the app.

While it relied on the same underlying index, the app was never as successful as our publication or consulting functions. In retrospect, I believe this is because it was not as well researched as our other arms, lacked sufficient funding, and was subject to unrealistic owner product requirements.

LEGACY

Free2Work eventually spun off to become two projects: Know the Chain and BWA's Ethical Fashion Guide. Both continue to be influential.

While the app was eventually abandoned, the enduring elements of Free2Work transitioned to become two offshoots. The first, Know the Chain, is run by the project's former funder and is particularly well-known in the corporate responsibility realm. The second, The Ethical Fashion Guide, is led by BWA, which has licensed the Free2Work index and report structure and updated them to include environmental indicators. 

(Please note that Free2Work.org is now an unaffiliated website that uses site traffic generated by our project.)