Dusseldorf, Germany – March 8, 2018 – Global fashion retailer C&A is pleased to announce that it has signed the United Nations Women's Empowerment Principles (WEP).
On the occasion of International Women's Day, Alain Caparros, CEO C&A Europe, described C&A’s commitment to gender parity as a key principle of the company’s culture.

“Gender parity and women's empowerment are extremely important to C&A. Women are the driving force behind the apparel industry and our brand: 80% of our employees are women, and approximately the same percentage is true of the workers in our supply chain and the customers who shop with us. The WEPs will guide us to further implement gender parity throughout our organisation and supply chain.”

C&A employs about 60,000 people worldwide. Its products are manufactured in over 2,400 supplier factories in 40 countries around the globe, employing more than 1 million people who are mostly women. “We recognize that many women around the globe face discrimination and structural barriers which impede their success. To address this, we work closely with our corporate foundation to create strong, resilient communities where we source from, and to support the many women in our supply chain that create our products, said Kate Heiny, Head of Global Sustainability at C&A.

In signing the WEPs, C&A commits to the following seven principles:

1. Establish high-level corporate leadership for gender equality.
2. Treat all women and men fairly at work - respect and support human rights and non-discrimination.
3. Ensure the health, safety and well-being of all women and men workers.
4. Promote education, training and professional development for women.
5. Implement enterprise development, supply chain and marketing practices that empower women.
6. Promote equality through community initiatives and advocacy.
7. Measure and publicly report on progress to achieve gender equality.

C&A Foundation, the company’s corporate foundation, is working to achieve gender equity in the apparel industry. Both C&A and C&A Foundation strongly believe that to fundamentally transform fashion into a force for good, gender inequality and violence against women must be addressed. In each of its philanthropic programmes, C&A Foundation works with partners to promote women's voices, leadership skills and capacities to exercise their rights. And C&A Foundation helps them influence decision-making in the supply chain.

In 2015, C&A became a signatory of the United Nations Global Compact (UN Global Compact), the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative. With this, C&A committed to complying with the ten universally accepted principles, which focus on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and to take action that advances societal goals.

- Notes to the editor -

About the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs):
The Women's Empowerment Principles are the result of a collaboration between the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC). The Women's Empowerment Principles offer seven steps to guide business on how to empower women in the workplace, marketplace and community.

About the International Women's Day
International Women's Day (March 8) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. For more information please visit www.internationalwomensday.com.

About C&A
With nearly 2,000 stores in 21 countries worldwide and around 60,000 employees, C&A is a leading fashion retail business. C&A welcomes and provides millions of visitors each day with good quality fashion at affordable prices for their entire family. C&A is an enterprise of COFRA Holding AG with a presence in Europe, Brazil, Mexico and China. For more information, see www.c-a.com.

C&A’s 2016 Global Sustainability Report is available at www.c-a.com/sustainability-report.
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For further information, please contact
C&A Europe
Wanheimer Straße 70
40468 Dusseldorf

Jens Völmicke
Corporate Communications Europe
Phone:     +49 211 9872 5264
Fax:     +49 211 9872 4466
jens.voelmicke@canda.com

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