This article appeared in the Nov. 19, 2004 Jewish Advocate.

From Schmatahs to social justice:

Manufacturer wears his heart on his clothing

By Susie Davidson
Advocate Correspondent

At last Sunday’s Free Trade Fair in Brookline, the knit hats, fleece and t-shirts selling briskly at No Sweat Apparel’s booth represented more than good, safe bets for wintertime presents.

No Sweat was launched in October of 2002 by CEO Adam Neiman, his wife and V.P. Natalia Muina, and COO Anne O'Loughlin with an eye toward the fair marketing of solely union-made wear. Formed as an alternative to all the Nikes and Gaps out there, which are often criticized for labor practices, the company, which today employs four full-time workers, has attracted customers in all 50 US states, 36 countries and six continents solely by word of mouth, with no advertising or publicity. Products include outer, business and casual wear and athletic, women’s and kids clothing, which include tees and tanks, fleeces, sweats and hoodies, workout clothing, crews, polo and twill shirts, jeans and denim, and accessories and music items as well. The company also walks the walk with the world’s only 100% union made sneaker, made at a union shop in Jakarta, Indonesia, sold for the very fair price of $42. For the season, a fair trade holiday sampler contains the fair trade organization Equal Exchange’s organic French roast coffee, Earl Grey tea and cocoa mix as well as organic dark chocolate with almonds.

The Web site includes business-related as well as philosophical information on the anti-sweatshop and global trade movement. Links are provided to sweat-free communities in the areas of ethics, union shopping, fair trade stores, public interest, globalization and justice, civil and human rights, activism, economics, sustainable development, fair trade promotion, journalism, online news, food, agriculture, women, environment, children, child labor, and education.

Neiman grew up in Atlanta in a politically-active Jewish family. “Our reform synagogue on Peachtree Street was the one synagogue in the South to get bombed during the Civil Rights movement, in 1957,” he recalled. Neiman’s mother was a publicist for the International Ladies Garment Workers’ Union and was active in the civil rights movement in Atlanta. Both parents, originally from Chicago, were also involved in Hadassah. His father was in the food business. “I got activism from my mother and an entrepreneurial streak from my father,” he said.

While studying history at Harvard, Neiman noticed that the progressive movement in the US, which had passed labor laws and built the middle class, were a combination of moderate labor leaders and manufacturers operating out of enlightened self-interest. “They realized that if workers were making a decent living, they could not only produce products, but could also buy them,” he thought. “The only viable solution to the inequalities of globalization is a global labor movement.”

He became more Jewishly observant when his son, Raphael, was born. “His second-grade teacher at the Rashi School, Stephanie Rotsky, kept sending home assignments with probing questions about social justice and tzedakah. Neiman, who had founded the Rosebud Roofing Company in 1986, asked himself, “what am I myself doing? What could I do to change the world, and hopefully make a living, that might best utilize the abilities I have?” He located people in the progressive movement who were interested in the formation of a fair trade fashion company. “Jews have always been on all sides of the schmatah business, labor and manufacturing,” he quipped. “It seemed like a logical step to pull both halves together.”

The company, Bienestar International, Manufacturers of No Sweat Apparel, began in Newton; its headquarters are now located at 14 B Felton St. in Waltham.

Customers can pay online by credit card or PayPal, or by mail with a check or money order. The site offers free shipping; there is a $3 handling fee for most orders. Products are also available at many independent retail locations. “In the six months since we rolled out the sneaker, we have established 24 retail outlets in the US, two in Canada, 60 in Australia and New Zealand, about a dozen in the UK, and are negotiating with distributors in Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Scandanavia),” he said, noting that although people enjoy shopping online these days, when it comes to shoes, many prefer to actually put their foot into them. Locally, No Sweat products are available at Cambridge Naturals, 1670 Mass. Ave. in Cambridge.

The couple have a daughter, Raquel, who also attends Rashi. Natalia has three older children. All are models for the company’s items.

“I was raised with the notion that tzedakah was a different sort of helping from Christian charity,” he said. “Justice was not something you purchased simply by writing a check.”

For information on No Sweat Apparel, call 877-99-BSTAR (1-877-992-7827), or visit www.nosweatapparel.com.