Retailers Support CEA Accreditation Plans

These prominent retailers have assured us and their customers that they will continue to buy and stock Egyptian Cotton™ from accredited manufacturers and suppliers. These companies can be identified by our distinctive trademarked logo or by perusing our online list of accredited manufacturers.

What The Retailers Say

Commenting on their position, John Lewis Category Technical Manager (Home), Tracy Saunders stated: “We support the measures being taken by the CEA to root out dishonest manufacturers and counterfeit goods from the supply chain and have welcomed the opportunity to work in collaboration with the CEA in setting out requirements to assure the provenance of Egyptian Cotton™ product.

While we are confident that all Egyptian Cotton™ products sold through John Lewis are 100% genuine, we support the need for auditing and testing. We will continue to insist that our suppliers mee the CEA standards as a condition of trade with John Lewis.”

Catherine McCann, Dunelm Technical and Sourcing Director also voiced her approval: “We fully support the new accreditation process put into place by the CEA to protect the Egyptian Cotton™ brand, and will be continuing to insist suppliers meet those standards as a condition of trade with Dunelm.”

Pauline Woods, The White Company Technical & QA Manager, Home said: “The CEA are to be applauded for listening to retailer concerns. We support their drive to create a single, clear, and transparent accreditation process, which we believe they have done with the Bureau Veritas and DNA-based approach. It will make identifying authentic Egyptian Cotton easier for retailer and consumer alike. We will continue to support them and continue to insist that all our suppliers meet those rigorous standards.”

What We Say

Executive Director of the Cotton Egypt Association, Khaled Schuman said: “We welcome the support from these key retailers. Their support and confidence in the process is what we need to overcome the spectre of falsehood, which has sought to tarnish the Egyptian Cotton(™) brand name.

Our cotton is the most luxurious in the world, and our commitment to retailers is to ensure that everything licensed as Egyptian Cotton, will be 100% Egyptian Cotton. Our goal is to bolster confidence, assure retailers that they will not encounter any compliance issues and reclaim Egyptian Cotton as the ultimate luxury cotton brand.”

Our Egyptian Cotton Accreditation Procedure

For hundreds of years, Egyptian Cotton(™) has stood for luxurious, excellent wear and unparalleled quality. Unscrupulous manufacturers and suppliers threatened to tarnish that, which is why we have taken steps to protect our reputation.

The well-regarded testing and analysis specialists Bureau Veritas have introduced a remarkable DNA testing process to the Egyptian Cotton(™) supply chain. In laboratory conditions, scientists can extract DNA from a variety of samples, ranging from the raw cotton fibres all the way through to the finished article. From this DNA, scientists can then establish the following:

• The origin of the fibre
• The percentage of Egyptian Cotton™ within the product

This data is then used to inform our decision about whether the manufacturer or supplier will be awarded a Cotton Egypt Accreditation, licensing them to use the Egyptian Cotton™ name and our logo.   

Maintaining the reputation of Egyptian Cotton™ for future generations is our priority. To do that, we must ensure that every labelled product meets our high standards. Egyptian Cotton™ is the finest form of cotton in the world and we want it to remain that way. With the support of retailers like John Lewis and Dunelm, the future of Egyptian Cotton™ is secure.