We CRAFT

The production and packaging of our products involves around 120 suppliers, consisting of raw material suppliers, garment manufacturers, and finished product suppliers according to the type of business (ready-to-wear, footwear or accessories).

For our footwear collections we rely on 12 shoe factories, all located in Italy. Based on our product designs and technical specifications, they are responsible for the overall production and for the sourcing of raw materials from preferred suppliers as per our indications – with the exception of specific materials provided by Golden.

Our ready-to-wear production mainly relies on raw material suppliers that supply fabrics, production accessories (embroidery, buttons, zippers, belts, bands, etc.), and packaging. These raw materials are provided to our garment manufacturers in charge of the realization of our collections. In 2023, we worked with 56 raw material suppliers for our ready-to-wear collections, with nearly all of them based in Italy. Meanwhile, 13 garment manufacturers were involved in the making of our finished products, all located in Italy, where the deep-rooted manufacturing heritage guarantees high technical expertise and adequate production capacity.

As regards accessories (such as bags, belts, fragrances, and jewelry), in 2023 we worked with 11 finished product suppliers, mostly based in Italy.

Craftsmanship, manual work, and Italian tradition are at the heart of the Golden Goose brand, blended with a strong commitment to preserving traditional artisanship.

With this in mind, in December 2022, we started a process of vertical integration of our supply chain by acquiring one of our key footwear suppliers based in Casarano (Lecce, Italy), welcoming its entire team, of over 250 people, into our Family as of January 1, 2023, reflecting our commitment to supporting Italian artisanal excellence. The genesis of each sneaker is rooted in the exchange, dialogue, and collaboration between the site’s team and Golden’s Design Department, leading to the item’s design, modeling, prototyping, and rigorous testing before full-scale production. The essence of the production process lies in the artisanal and manual skills of those involved, contributing significantly to the creation of each unique pair of shoes.

In 2023, we proceed with the acquisition of the entire share capital of a second key footwear supplier located in Gricignano di Aversa (Caserta, Italy) with effect from January 2024. The aim of our integration effort is to create a hub for manufacturing excellence in Italy, evolving towards a responsible and certified production system to bolster our growth, insourcing key manufacturing skills, and nurturing the next generation of artisans.

The external auditors performing the on-site audits at our suppliers’ facilities help us assess compliance and continuous improvement across our supply chain. Audits can be either planned or unplanned, and they follow a detailed checklist to verify: 

Since 2022, we planned and completed more than 160 on-site audits both direct and indirect suppliers (representing 100% of the footwear production volumes and approximately 90% of the direct ready-to-wear and accessories production volumes allocated). By the end of the year, more than 70% of them had already taken the necessary steps to align with our Social Compliance Framework (scoring a level 3 or 4 on a 1-4 scale), while the remaining are currently working on action plans to implement the corrective actions needed.

All our suppliers are required to respect and comply with the values and principles of our Code of Ethics and Supplier Code of Conduct, including those regarding the responsible procurement of raw materials of animal origin used in production processes. This means ensuring that such materials were not obtained through cruel breeding or harvesting practices – as we reject any form of mistreatment or other harmful behaviors against animals.  

We only accept animal hides that are a by-product of the meat industry, and not derived from animals raised exclusively for their skins. Moreover, we are committed to not using any of the following in the manufacture of our product: furs, skins of endangered animals (as per the CITES¹ Species List and the IUCN² Red List), leather from fetal or newborn lambs, angora or other rabbit hair, and wool coming from mulesed animals.

1 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. 

2 International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.