Miista
    Miista
    • Icons

    A Traceable Line In The Fashion Supply Chain

    A Traceable Line In The Fashion Supply ChainA Traceable Line In The Fashion Supply Chain

    BUILDING A BETTER BRAND FROM THE GROUND UP.

    Our plan has always been to show and tell. It’s not enough to say that we want to be different; we must show that our social and sustainable values are meaningful through action and then find ways to communicate what we’re doing to our customers.

    The whole process needs to be built on transparency, trust, and soon, total traceability.

    That’s why we often share videos of what happens in our factories through social media. We’re proud of our making process, the artisans we work with. We want people to see behind-the-scenes, to give an insight into all the different phases and elements that go into the shoes and clothes that we create in Spain and Portugal in our own factory, and partner factories.

    Miista Traceability: factory

    PEOPLE AND CRAFT HAVE ALWAYS BEEN AT THE HEART OF MIIISTA.

    We don’t just want to be known for providing the bare minimum, we want to set the standard. Build careers, maintain craft and manufacturing in Europe, show that we’re not another business that’s solely driven by profit. Be a better fashion brand.

    • Miista Traceability - Every thread, fabric, heel, lace
    • Miista Traceability - Every thread, fabric, heel, lace

    What we don’t often share is that our profit is reinvested back into the business. For the last number of years, we’ve been building our own factory.

    We believe, one of the best ways to improve, both ethically and environmentally, is by shortening our supply chain.

    The more of the production process we control, the less that’s outsourced to third parties. That means, more oversight and the ability to ensure that every part of manufacturing - the labour conditions, the production process, and the materials, every thread, fabric, heel, lace – and their constituent parts, adhere to a similar value system. And that’s what traceability is all about.

    • Miista Traceability: Video quote
    • Miista Traceability: Video quote

    The fashion industry has long been complicit in selling products that claim to be single origin, ‘Made in the UK’ or ‘Made in Italy’ but in fact, have a long supply chain that suggests something far more complicated. New regulations coming into effect in the EU in 2027, will mean that every product is required to provide a DPP (Digital Product Passport) a digital barcode that allows customers to see the provenance of a specific item’s component parts, giving more detail on the what, who and where the raw materials that go into making the product come from. This is progression. And we wholeheartedly agree with something that means more accountability at every stage of the making.

    In fact, this month, we were featured in a Vogue Business article that asked the question, ‘Is it possible to build a fully traceable outfit?’ and “invited seven brands to tell the stories of their supply chain traceability journeys through a single garment.”

    We told ours through a pair of Emile boots. 85% of the parts were traceable.

    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista Traceability - diagram
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista
    • Miista





    1. Insole

    Cardboard
    Raw material: Finland
    Cardboard supplier: Portugal

    Foam
    Raw material: Spain
    Foam supplier: Spain

    Metal shank
    Raw material: Spain
    Metal shank supplier: Portugal

    2. Heel

    Inside of the heel

    Raw plastic: South Korea

    Material supplier: Italy

    3. Top piece heel
    
Raw Thermoplastic
    Polyurethane (TPU): Italy

    Material supplier: Portugal

    4. Back counter

    Raw material (cotton): Italy

    Back counter: Portugal

    5. Reinforcement fabric

    Raw material: China
    
Fabric supplier: Portugal

    6. Metal eyelets
    
Raw material: Italy

    Metal eyelet supplier: Portugal

    7. Outsole

    Leather: Nominated vendor in
    Italy (80 per cent) / Nominated
    vendor in Pakistan (20 per cent)

    8. Leather laces
    
Raw material: Italy

    Production: Miista / Portugal.

    9. Zipper

    Raw material: China

    Zipper supplier: Portugal

    10. Upper leather

    Raw material: Italy
    
Leather supplier: Supplier Conceria 800
    / Pisa, Italy

    11. Leather lining

    Raw hide: Pakistan

    Vegetable tanning: Spain

    Lining supplier: Curtidos Manuel Sirvent
    / Alicante, Spain

    But becoming completely traceable is no mean feat for any small, independent business.

    Traceability doesn’t necessarily mean full transparency or sustainability.

    It’s the same rules for us, as the big brands, and the fashion industry is built in favour of mass production and huge conglomerates, who often have more sophisticated systems and more people power. And yet, whilst the big guys can already show that they’re fully traceable, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re ethical or transparent.

    Many do not own their own factory and it’s still all too common for their suppliers to sub-contract to other suppliers, further muddying the supply chain.

    • Miista Traceability - Emile Boots
    • Miista Traceability - Emile Boots

    For us, we hope that governments will see the benefits of subsidising supply chain traceability for small companies. And also that the middlemen, the privately-owned agencies, who smaller companies have to go to source parts they cannot make themselves or order from source due to minimum amounts, things like non-EU raw materials that make up a zip, or the raw hide used for the leather lining in boots - are required to implement auditing and oversight to ensure the ethical and environmental credentials of the products. But we’ll see. In the meantime, we’ll continue to take control and be accountable for the products we do make.

    SHORTENING THE SUPPLY CHAIN AND SHARING THE PROCESS AS WE GO.

    Next article

    Copyright © MIISTA 2026.

    • Instagram
    • TikTok

    Stores

    Product Care

    Shipping

    Returns

    FAQs

    Privacy Policy

    Contact Us

    • Stores
    • Product Care
    • Shipping
    • Returns
    • FAQs
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us