It is the people that make us who we are
Thirty years ago, a group of guys in Denmark set out to make their first jeans collection. Now, that group of “guys” is a global team, making and selling JACK & JONES clothes around the world. We call it the brotherhood. What bonds us is a “never give up attitude”, a drive to do things better and, of course, a devotion to denim.
We are a family, and families support and challenge one another to be the best they can be. We know a person’s career is only one piece of life’s pie. So, we have created a philosophy called the “Human Collection” — based on principles from the world of sport — to support our colleagues’ personal growth as well as their professional growth. We are also revisiting how best to bring diversity and inclusivity into everything we do. With a focused team within the BESTSELLER group, we are updating our policies and delivering awareness training.
Your purchases also help us to contribute to the BESTSELLER FOUNDATION, which invests in awesome initiatives around the world. We are also super excited to be the official clothing partner for Denmark’s Olympic and Paralympic teams.
That leaves you, our extended family. No matter your gender, age, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, abilities or religious background, you are part of our story. That is why we are starting to move away from using professional models and asking you and your mates to be the new face of JACK & JONES to show the world exactly who makes us what we are.
The brotherhood starts at JACK & JONES HQ
The most important collection of the year? The “Human Collection” — our talented colleagues who work behind the scenes here at JACK & JONES. Together, we work with passion and grit, wear head-to-toe denim with pride and obsess about how we can do better. We’re all part of what makes JACK & JONES unique, so we support each other in every way we can. With development programs like our “Human Business Plan" and BESTSELLER’s Academy, we are not only super-charging our careers but take care of our crew’s mental and physical health too. So, while it is true that we make epic jeans and clothes, really, we make epic people.
Our approach to people is inspired by the world of sport. We believe that mindset is everything, and we coach the people on our team to reach their fullest potential — professionally and personally. A person is not just their job description, so why would that be the only measure of growth or success? Here are some of the things we focus on:
● JACK & JONES employees get a “Human Business Plan”, which works
like a regular business plan with goals, KPIs and a plan of action — but is instead applied to each individual’s professional development, state of mind and sense of wellbeing. Think mental health and behavioral strategies, human-based KPIs and more. This tool allows us to check-in with team members to see how they are developing and what we (managers, project leaders, the wider organization) can do to support.
● We believe people learn best by doing so we make sure our training involves watching those who have done it before. That means on-the-job education is woven into our colleagues' day-to-day life. Some programs are very specific and structured, others consist of routine check-ins that happen more informally on a daily or weekly basis. Imagine it like a sports field, with our team cheering and guiding one another during the match!
● Because everybody is at a different stage in work and life, with different strengths and challenges, we tailor our “Human Business Plans” to suit our colleagues’ unique needs. Whether it is support from the sidelines or a full team analysis, we take into account each person’s context and develop a plan that is both personal and effective.
● Each year some of our leaders join in with new initiatives that build their self-leadership as well as team management skills. Colleagues in this program get hands-on experience by working closely with existing leaders in the organization.
Through the BESTSELLER Academy, JACK & JONES colleagues have access to a range of other development opportunities and benefits as well. Like a robust training program with courses on vital job skills like planning, prioritization and communications as well as an internal platform for further resources and peer-to-peer support.
These programs provide opportunity for colleagues at all different levels, not just senior leaders. For those early in their career, BESTSELLER offers a unique apprentice program that includes partnerships with business schools as well as our own teaching facilities at HQ. In fact, more than half of our JACK&JONES colleagues started as apprentices and quite a few have been with us for decades — so we must be doing something right.
Brotherhood is not a ‘thing’, decided by people at the top. It is a bond, an energy, a vibe created and felt by everyone — we would not have it any other way.
Taking further steps on our diversity and inclusion journey
When it comes to diversity and inclusion, we are committed to taking a good hard look at how we operate to make sure that our culture, policies and initiatives reflect our values. We are moving away from professional models to feature real guys doing real-life things. BESTSELLER has a team focused on increasing Diversity, Equality & Inclusion (DEI) across the group. Through the BESTSELLER FOUNDATION we make sure to support projects and organizations around the globe.
When it comes to diversity and inclusion, we are committed to taking a good hard look at
how we operate to make sure that our culture, policies and initiatives provide equal opportunities for everyone. BESTSELLER has a team focused on increasing Diversity, Equality & Inclusion across the group. After undertaking an internal research how DE&I is perceived across the company. BESTSELLER’s DE&I team has published a new Diversity, Equity & Inclusion policy in end of 2023. The policy includes five commitments for a more diverse, equitable and inclusive BESTSELLER:
• Engage everyone in a conversation on DEI by launching communication and events on DEI.
• Bridge global and local DEI work through a steering committee from different teams and markets.
• Build further inclusion capability at BESTSELLER by training our leaders.
• Establish equitable people processes by ensuring that our hiring, development and growth processes are perceived as fair.
• Track our progress by establishing a diversity dashboard.
We are encouraging our markets and brands to achieve local goals to support initiatives that back up our overarching policies.
We are also starting to feature more “real guys” from all types, shapes, ages and ethnicities in our campaigns. Because who needs chiseled abs when you are feeling good and looking great? Take part here.
Supporting impactful initiatives across the world — and in our own backyard
Beyond our work to drive sustainability across every area of the business, we are simultaneously using our sales to philanthropically support some incredible organizations around the globe, through the BESTSELLER FOUNDATION. Through our world environmental day campaigns we support NGOs in our sourcing countries to address certain social and environmental issues. Closer to home, we take huge pride in our annual sponsorship program where we get to support impactful, community-based initiatives in and around our home town of Brande, Denmark.
Even though we are a big company now, we still remember where we came from. So every year, we proudly fund and support community projects around Brande, Denmark, where our HQ is located. Organizations can apply each year. 8 different initiatives in Brande, Ikast and Herning from clubs to sporting tournaments will be chose based on their positive impact on Brande and the local area.
And how cool is it
that we have been the official clothing partner for the Danish Olympics and Paralympics for the last five Olympic Games, going back to 2008? Better still that we are always ambitious that these outfits are made with organic, recycled and innovative materials. For Paris 2024, we chose to make the clothes with organic cotton sourced through our direct-to-farm project and recycled polyester. And best, we partnered up with the finish innovator SPINNOVA® for some of the tees.
From 2023 on we annually support six organizations to different World Environmental Day. This is to raise awareness on environmental issues as marine pollution, global warming, climate injustice and animal welfare crime. On one hand we cooperate with a NGO, which works on fighting a certain issue of a World Environmental Day, to support their work or a specific project. On the other hand, we create a product which is with it’s material or way of manufacturing addressing the same topic. One example is the Water Day 2023: We gave a school with 500 students in Bangladesh access to clean water and sanitary facilities through our donation to charity:water. Our buying team created the Summer Shirt which is made of recycled cotton and linen. Recycled cotton does not only reduce waste going to landfills, but also saves water which usually would be used for growing cotton. Linen is a fibre made from flax. The flax plant only requires rainfall for watering and few fertilizers, but no pesticides. This saves water and keeps the soil and fresh water systems clean. We support the following World Days: Forest Day, Water Day, Ocean Day, Earth Day, River Day and Mountain Day.
