Konges Sløjd is a bold team of positive, caring and creative-minded people focused on designing sparkling and thoughtful products that enchant everyday life. We want to design products that are perfectly made for everyday life struggles and bring a sparkling experience to our customers.

We are a responsible company promoting responsible production, and the capacity to bring a positive impact to all our stakeholders, with a strong commitment to fair, respectful and ethical behavior.

This Code of Ethics reflects our values:

• Enchantment: Bring magic and fun into our lives
• Boldness: Use creativity to twist & improve the lives of mothers
• Care: For mothers, families and our planet

… and aims at defining for our employees, and our stakeholders in general, how we intend to achieve our growth and success, with respect for high ethical standards, following UN Global Compact principles, ILO standards, GOTS, UN Convention against corruption, OECD business guidelines and UN Women empowerment principles.

The management is overall responsible for Konges Sløjd’s Code of Ethics. In addition, the individual manager is responsible for ensuring that employees in the team know and comply with Konges Sløjd's Code of Ethics.

1. Personal responsibility & non-retaliation

We ask all our employees to act according to this code. Failure to do so can result in disciplinary action and might have consequences for the employee and/or resolve in contacting the law enforcement, if applicable.

Same consideration applies to any member of the managing team for their direct actions, as well as for any failure to apply this code or report on its violation.

If an employee is unsure whether a particular behavior is acceptable, the employee should always contact their manager.

Managers and HR are obliged to report significant violations and other matters in connection with Konges Sløjd’s Code of Ethics directly to the top management and/or the board.

No employee or manager will be penalized for any loss of business resulting from adherence to the code.

No employee or partner who report a breach of this code can be subject to any form of retaliation. We empower all our employees and partners to speak up and use appropriate means to report any infringement. Disclosure is key to transparent, fair and ethical business practices and we value honesty and collaboration.

See all details in our Personnel Handbook:

• Chapter 6 on Whistleblowing

 

1. Labor rights and Freedom of association

All employees at Konges Sløjd are free to enter and leave their job after a mutually agreed notice period as described in their contract agreement, following Danish laws and international labor standards.

Freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining is fully enforced, and employees with no distinction have the right to join or form trade unions. Konges Sløjd support the activities of trade unions and will never hinder or interfere with their activities or engage in surveillance on their activities.

Our Working Environment Organization (WEO) oversees occupational health and safety problems and is freely elected by our employees.

See all details in our Personnel Handbook:

• Chapter 4 on Working environment at Konges Sløjd

 

1. Child labor

Child labor is forbidden in all our activities, in conformance with ILO standards on child labor. Our direct employees that might be under 18, such as student helpers, shall not be employed at night or in hazardous conditions, and no longer than 8 hours a day.

Child modelling is frequently used in our marketing activities, in several countries of setting. Konges Sløjd commits to enforcing the highest legal standard, either Danish law or local legal requirements including allowed time of activity per age, appropriate days of setting, and to never remove a child from school for this purpose.

A contract is signed with each child´s representative before the photoshoot, describing the conditions of the photoshoot, and collected after the photoshoot for traceability.

 

1. Fair remuneration & working time

Wages and benefits paid for a standard living working week meet, at a minimum, national legal standards, and shall always be enough to meet basic needs for living.

All contracts provide clear information about the working conditions including wages and social benefits and are provided before employees enter their employment. Pay transfer and the matching pay slip are sent monthly.

Working time is described in each employee´s contract, and general good practices on working hours and overtime is fully described in our Handbook. Student helpers and other employees with limited hours contracts are all employed following Danish laws, and with full transparency on their working hours in their contract and through monthly hours reporting.

Foreign and migrant employees are subject to the same applicable laws as Danish citizens. Employment contract shall be available in a language that the employee understands.

See all details in our Personnel Handbook:

• Chapter 2 on Regular staff appraisal
• Chapter 3 on Day at the office

 

1. Business ethics

• Working with third parties

Konges Sløjd´s activities are based on operations partnerships with a wide network of suppliers. We commit to applying ethical business practices, and to be a good and reliable partner, capable of listening and to consider and adapt to the needs of our stakeholders. We also expect our partners to live up to our standards and requirements.

Each new supplier is asked to follow our code of conduct and to summit to a due diligence covering various aspects of operations like social and environmental commitments, as well as transparency and regulatory compliance. We ask our suppliers to adhere to our ethical, social and environmental standards, and to apply both their country and international standards of business ethical practices.

No business relation with Konges Sløjd can be initiated without a prior sign-off on our different contracts and policies. Employees managing the direct selection and business relation with our suppliers are responsible for enforcing those requirements and should disclose any issue or noncompliance of a supplier before any order is placed.

 

• Bribery & corruption:

Konges Sløjd is an ethical, honest and transparent company, committed to acting responsibly and with integrity in all its operations.  We have a zero-tolerance on bribery and corruption: it is illegal in all our countries of operations, and it is contrary to our values.

Bribery can be defined as the giving, soliciting or accepting of an undue advantage or reward that may influence the actions and decisions of people in position of power. Corruption is the result of such action, and the dishonest behavior and decision-making induced.

Bribery is forbidden by law in most countries and can result in severe legal, financial and reputational issues for both Konges Sløjd and the employee or partner entity involved.

Bribery can take many shapes: cash but also gifts, access to services or entertainment, meals and hospitality…

All employees of Konges Sløjd must take extra care before agreeing to any of those:

• only accept or give gifts of modest value, that are appropriate and legitimate, and on rare occasions
• no gift can be given or accepted by procurement and from/to public officials
• always register any gift and disclose them to your direct management for approval
• refuse gifts that are given in return for or in expectation of a direct or indirect favor
• refuse gifts to family members
• refuse, return when possible, and report any infringement to your direct management level

Facilitation payments or payments with no deliverables are prohibited by Konges Sløjd in any case.

If in doubt, please contact your direct manager.

 

• Conflict of interest

A conflict of interest can be described as a situation in which an employee of Konges Sløjd, can find him/herself in a position to derive personal benefit from actions or decisions of the company.

Conflict of interest occurs with or without an active participation of the person concerned. Hence, every employee at risk, should first avoid any situation with conflict of interest, and when not possible, disclose it immediately. Management will then analyze the situation and decide if removing the person from the situation is possible and justified and whether the influence is effective or perceived.

If the conflict of interest cannot be avoided, management needs to identify and take action to mitigate its impact and prevent a decision from being influenced by the context. Employees are responsible for disclosing such a risk before it might occur.  It will always apply that an employee can’t make a decision in regard to hiring a close family member, or be part of the decision to use a supplier with a close family connection. Please seek advice with your manager if in doubt.

 

• Illegal activities and money laundering

All employees with a purchase capacity must take extra care in not participating in or financing any illegal activity, that might include money-laundering, terrorist or criminal activity, financial crime…

We ask every employee to be extra careful with any cash payments, request for false invoices or any activity that is outside of general good business practices. Please report incidents to your manager immediately.

 

• Political activities & donations

Konges Sløjd expresses no political view as a company. If an employee gets involved with a political structure, and/or wants to share political opinions on social media or other channels, it is essential that he/she states that those views are personal and don’t reflect the company´s opinion.

All our company participation in activities and support of NGOs or other structures are made in full transparency, and with no connection to any personal commitment of any of our employees.

 

• Fair competition

By law, fair and transparent competition is required in all our markets, as it is key to a just offer for all our customers. Any infringement of the law, in any of our market of sales, might cause strong damages both financially and to the reputation of the company, and will not be tolerated. All employees must take extra care in any communication with both competitors and customers and must assure no ambiguous or wrongful requirement or suggestion is made in the name of Konges Sløjd. Employees will be held responsible and face disciplinary issues if such a case is identified:

• Agreement on price, sales conditions or customer allocation with competitors
• Mandatory resale prices, minimum prices and/or any incentive enforcing a price regulation of our customers
• Payment or transaction outside of the trade purpose, or without any approbation of a direct manager, that might be identified as wrongful trade influence

 

• Forbidden trade

As an international company, we sell to an extensive number of countries. Some might fall under custom and/or legal restrictions and sanctions over time.

We do not allow any employee to trade with sanctioned business entities and countries. Before establishing business partnerships with suppliers or customers, Konges Sløjd´s employees must ensure a screening that includes country and business-based sanction assessment.

 

1. Product safety and compliance

We commit to designing safe and compliant products in our key markets of sales, with a zero tolerance on safety issues for our customers and consumers. No compromise on the safety and health of our stakeholders can be accepted. All our products are subject to mandatory tests that include chemical, mechanical and use tests, as well as flammability or electrical tests when relevant. We work in close partnership with Bureau Veritas who acts as our international testing partner, and with the help of a dedicated internal expert team and external partners, we follow a wide list of product regulations across the world.

We ask any employee or partner who would be aware of an issue on one of our products to report it immediately to product quality and product compliance teams. We then apply a defined procedure to assess the risk level and necessary action plan to assure our products are safe for all, and eventually recall them if a safety issue is identified.

We strictly respect REACH requirements on chemicals and are expanding our certifications to all over ensure safe use and chemical-free products for our children.

 

1. Data protection and privacy

See all details in our Personnel Handbook:

• Chapter 6 on IT Security
• Chapter 13 on GDPR and personal data
• Chapter 14 on Confidentiality

 

1. Working at Konges Sløjd

 

• Inclusion and diversity:

Konges Sløjd is an open, international, and positive workplace, that promotes respectful and inclusive practices and communication. We support and respect internationally recognized human rights.

We believe diversity and equity are not only a basic requirement for the well-being and effective work of our employees and stakeholders, but a true chance for our company. We do not accept discrimination based on gender, sex, ethnical background, sexual orientation, religion or political conviction or age, just as harassment is not tolerated. Konges Sløjd does not interfere in the private affairs of employees. Any employee is expected to – at any time – conduct themself in a respectful and orderly manner, that does not harm the reputation of Konges Sløjd.

As a signatory of the UN empowerment principles, we are particularly aware of gender-bias that might occur through our activities and aim at empowering every woman in our chain of value.

We recognize the importance of monitoring performance against inclusion, diversity and gender-equality. Furthermore, we commit to tracking and building data anonymously or directly, and to adjust our initiatives according to the results of those inquiries.

Through our Code of conduct, we share the same commitments with our supply chain, and aim at building dedicated programs with them, as we move toward a deeper social and environmental assessment of our chain of value.

 

• Discrimination or harassment:

We do not tolerate any form of discrimination (distinction, exclusion or preference) based on gender, sexual orientation, origin, skin color, disability, age, religion or political beliefs or other visible or alleged particularity. We aim at creating a work environment that celebrates differences, and creative thinking and that brings opportunities for all, always.

Human Resources decisions must be solely based on objective criteria such as performance, qualifications and experience.

To ensure a positive workplace for all, we commit to treating all employees with respect and dignity. No verbal of physical abuse will be tolerated, nor any form of bullying, harassment or threats by any employee, manager or partner.

Any unacceptable behavior and/or practice causing physical, psychological, sexual or economic harm is strictly forbidden and should be reported directly to the direct manager or via our whistleblowing mechanism.

See all details in our Personnel Handbook:

• Chapter 5 on Whistleblowing
• Chapter 13 on Abusive behavior

 

• Safety and well-being

Konges Sløjd commits to providing all employees with a safe and healthy work environment, that prevents employees from accidents or occupational illness.

Fair and decent working conditions are minimum requirements, we enforce at our headquarters - but also with all our business partners as described in our Code of Ethics.

Konges Sløjd is compliant with the provisions of the work environment legislation.

See more details about our commitments at our headquarters in our Personnel Handbook:

• Chapter 4 on Working environment at Konges Sløjd.

And about our commitments towards our Suppliers in our Code of Ethics

 

This code does not cover all specific cases that might occur during our operations. If in doubt, please refer to your manager or to our Head of people for advice.

This code will be updated on a regular basis to adjust to future needs for clarification and to answer new challenges of our growing activities.

 

1. A conscious approach to the environment

At our head office in Copenhagen, we sort our waste into nine different fragments.

We don’t allow to-go coffee cups in the office

We minimize food waste in our canteen by offering our employees to take home excess food.

We use materials from recycled sources in our packaging and aim to reuse as much as possible

We work to increase the amount of certified, organic and recycled materials in our products.

We limit the use of hazardous substances in our products and processes.

At Konges Sløjd we expect every employee to contribute to the realisation of these principles and to be mindful of our environmental footprint.