Thrift stores are probably the most ethical because it's all donated and second hand. It's already been created, bought, and worn before you see it.
The selection isn't bad at all. Just go look.
this post was submitted on 29 Oct 2023
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What about the ethics of getting things for free, then selling those things for profit, even price gouging the items like good will? Shouldn't the clothing be free in an ethical world? Just spitballing ideas for a brighter tomorrow.
Price gouging? All the clothes at my goodwill are cheap. They even had a sale recently where any piece of clothing was $2 flat.
What kind of price gouging have you seen?
As others have said charity shops are definitely a good choice. Here's two websites that list ethical/environmentally councious clothing companies if you do want to shop brand new:
https://www.ethicalconsumer.org/fashion-clothing/a-to-z-ethical-fashion-brands
https://thegoodshoppingguide.com/subject/ethical-fashion-retailers/
This is ridiculously hard, I have spent hours searching. Much of what you can find is either greenwashed, or doesn't touch social issues like sourcing.
In the end, (beyond thrifting, as noted), the most success I've found is with small-time social enterprises and/or B-Corps, and through them i found out which (if any) certifying bodies exist who audit transparency were around and not just a bought certificate.
I was looking local to Australia and found the Social Traders, but the global body is SEWF and WTFO who can point you in a good direction for your locality.
Having said that, I'm at the point where I'm just considering finding ethical fabric, because I'm both too picky and have unusual adaptive requirements to accommodate.