Creating Responsible Jewellery
The fashion and costume jewellery industry are riffe with cheap products and questionable labor practices. At Star Creations International Ltd., we have a sincere ambition to do business differently and have always been committed to sustainable, ethical business practices.
Though greener options are often expensive we believe that they are worth the cost. We are always looking for new ways both big and small to help be part of the solution to climate change. Many of our younger customers (millennials) are choosing sustainability over everything else.
Brands are now also looking for sustainability, transparency, and ethical manufacturing in the factories they work or partner with. Thus, as a manufacturer, we believe we are in a unique position to support independent brands in working more sustainably while delivering real impact across the industry. We are very excited to be part of this journey and are therefore in the process of fully integrating the required standards for a "green" manufacturing facility in order to create "responsible jewellery".
Jewellery by its very nature is a recyclable product. It can be repaired endlessly or recycled into new pieces. All our metal scrap from our factory is recycled back into production, thereby creating minimal waste.
Additionally, by utilizing the latest materials and manufacturing practices, Star Creations International Ltd. produces jewellery that is made from 100% recycled gold and silver, sustainably sourced, and ethically made. We are very passionate about conscious production, and we aim to become your trusted supplier for sustainable quality jewellery. We want your customers to own pieces that will last them a long time, and consciously avoid fast fashion and materials which are harmful to both people and the environment.
In order to keep pace with rising global standards for sustainable manufacturing processes, below are a few small changes we have made as a company to ensure we continue to keep improving in every aspect of our business - for us, for you, and for the planet.
Our Products
We proudly run our own factory which allows us to maintain a high level of quality, and more importantly, produce our handcrafted jewellery on demand (made to order) so no excess product is created. This reduces our greenhouse emissions and ensures the sustainable consumption of resources.
We're encouraging all our customers to start practicing more responsible consumerism. We want to make heirlooms instead of fast fashion. We produce high-quality jewellery so customers can enjoy their jewellery for life.
Currently, we meet the European Union’s REACH (Restriction, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals) regulation, which aims to restrict hazardous substances such as nickel, lead and cadmium in all parts of jewellery production to keep our customers and workers safe and ultimately reduce the number of harmful chemicals in the environment.
Our Process
Our manufacturing company is a certified member of the Business Social Compliance Initiative (BSCI), which is a leading supply chain management system that supports companies to drive social compliance and improvements within the factories in their global supply chains. The full audit covers the following 13 Performance Area (PA). We are very proud to announce that we have received a Score A for at least 10 of the PA listed below.
PA 1: Social Management System and Cascade Effect
PA 2: Workers Involvement and Protection
PA 4: No Discrimination
PA 7: Occupational Health and Safety
PA10: No Precarious Employment
PA 5: Fair Remuneration
PA 8: No Child Labor
PA 12: Protection of the Environment
PA 3: The rights of Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining
PA 6: Decent Working Hours
PA 9: Special protection for young workers
PA 13: Ethical Business Behaviour
Our Stones
We want to make sure that all of the materials that we use come from a good place, which is why we are committed to ethical sourcing. We work exclusively with our longterm trusted suppliers who guarantee ethical sources of our materials. This is especially true of our gem stones.
Cubic Zirconia (lab-grown) are used wherever possible as they are fully traceable and it offers a very similar look to mined gemstones. We do work with natural stones on request but are careful to keep them at a minimum.
We work with lab-grown diamonds, also known as conflict-free or cultured diamonds. Lab-created diamonds are 100% diamonds and can only be distinguished from mined diamonds with sophisticated lab equipment.
These diamonds are never mined but possess the identical chemical composition, hardness, and brilliance as mined natural diamonds. The only difference is the origin is a laboratory not the earth. Research suggests that the carbon footprint of lab-grown diamonds is around 5 to 10% of mined diamonds. Just like mined diamonds, the lab-grown diamonds are hand-selected and graded per the 4Cs of clarity, colour, cut and carat weight.
Our Packaging
We try to limit the use of polybags as much as possible and are currently sourcing eco-friendly poly bags made from plant-based/bio-based materials to pack all our jewellery. This is currently an objective that has yet to be fully implemented.
Changing Perspectives To Fight Poverty
Since the company first started, philanthropy has been inextricably tied to the Rauschmayer wedding ring manufacture in Pforzheim. Now in the second generation, father and sons share not only a passion for unique jewellery but also the ambition to share their hard-earned success with those those less fortunate in the world. “Being successful automatically makes you responsible – not only in daily business decisions but even more so in dealing with your fellow man.”, explains Chris Roy Rauschmayer, Managing Director and son of the company founder Roland Rauschmayer. This responsibility is not only preached for PR reasons but is actively lived in a number of ongoing projects such as the annual charitable activities in cooperation with Europa Park Rust or the donation of land for a school in Uganda.
“Our cooperation is promising since we understand involvement in the community in the same way and tackle poverty at its roots,” says Roland Rauschmayer with regards to the partnership with Fly & Help. In a country like Ghana, the hunger for education is as strong as the hunger for food. This is particularly the case in the north of the country, where the infrastructure for education is very limited.
The Rauschmayer Family School should offer a way out of this dilemma. The project has one goal: to provide grammar school education and technical education to young people between the ages of 14 and 18. The pupils will then have the option of continuing vocational training in craft trades.
“Children are our future! It is our responsibility to support them on their way and to provide them with an education, no matter where they are in the world. This is the only way we can change perspectives and fight poverty,” explains Roland Rauschmayer. A solid education is the best solution to tackle the poverty problem in West Africa.
Managing Director Chris Rauschmayer described the involvement in the community as follows: “It is very important to us in the Rauschmayer family to give disadvantaged people a piece of our success back, which is ultimately only made possible by our customers!” The creation of beautiful jewelry is just a means to creating far more beautiful things in the world.
Empowering Women
At our company, we respect and empower women in the workplace every single day in the strive towards gender equality. In fact, our current male to female ratio (factory and office combined) is 1:1 as of January 2020. To be more specific, 52 per cent of our workforce is female, while 48 per cent is male.