Alton’s product development process is guided by the long-standing bushcraft principles of respecting your environment, using only what you need, and making do with less. 

In action, this looks like considering impact, longevity, and repairability in our earliest stages of product design; prioritising utility and adaptability over seasonal aesthetic trends; and limiting our product range and colourways to reduce waste and discourage overconsumption. 

By designing high-quality, function-first gear that outlasts seasonal trends and performs in a large variety of environments, we equip our customers to go further with less. That equals less resources, less waste, and less gear you don’t need.

The most effective way to reduce the environmental footprint of outdoor gear is to extend its lifespan. To accomplish this, we source materials with proven performance, durability and longevity in wilderness environments, prioritising lower impact options when we can.   

Currently 27% of our range utilises materials that have been independently verified to meet global sustainability standards by organisations such as bluesign® and the Responsible Down Standard (RDS), with a roadmap to increase this across our entire product range to reach 50% by 2030. 

In 2023, we worked with global pioneers in textile engineering to launch Nanopore™, our innovative breathable-waterproof shell fabric that requires fewer resources to produce and is free from PFCs, PFOAs, DMF and TDO.

We take a hands-on approach to manufacturing, working closely with our manufacturing partners and performing bi-annual factory visits to ensure we have full oversight of production. 

Our primary manufacturing facility holds ISO 9001 quality and ISO 14001 environmental management certifications, while our packaging manufacturer holds BSCI, FSC, BRC, ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 50001, and CE certifications that demonstrate safe, ethical, and environmentally responsible practises. 

We manufacture in small batches, achieving a 100% sell-through rate on all products. This allows us to carefully monitor quality and identify issues early, reducing overproduction, and enabling us to maintain a gear defect rate under 1%.

At present, 97% of our packaging is made from recyclable materials. However, we continue to invest in our packaging strategy to support waste reduction and lower emissions throughout the supply chain. 

When designing our product packaging, we intentionally set out to reduce complexity; Alton products come in simple cardboard packaging with minimal use of inks/dyes. As a result, our packaging is less resource intensive to produce and is easier for customers to recycle through standard waste streams. 

Less than 1% of products are shipped in poly bags. We are on track to reduce this to 0% by 2027. For shipping packaging, we predominantly use custom, fit-to-size cardboard boxes that reduce waste and take up less space during transport. When large or extra large boxes are required, we source from sustainable packaging expert, Visy Australia, and use FillPak®, a paper-based void-filler.

Since day one, Alton has invested heavily in our logistical operations, opting to manage inventory on the ground in Australia instead of relying on off-shore shipping fulfilment services.  

We have a strict no air freight policy. All stock is sea freighted to our warehouse in Brendale, QLD, where our local team fulfils orders using Australia Post. Sea freight produces up to 50x less CO₂ emissions than air freight, and dispatching orders from our warehouse cuts emissions by as much as 30x compared to direct-to-consumer shipping from overseas, while also ensuring faster, more reliable delivery to our customers.   

Within our warehouse, 100% of our equipment and machinery is electric, including forklifts. All packaging that comes through our warehouse is reused or recycled using a commercial recycling service to ensure materials are diverted from landfill.

We strive not only to produce better quality gear that lasts longer, but to support our customers to take a more conscious approach to outdoor gear ownership. 

As a part of this, we provide detailed cleaning, care and repair instructions for our core product range, supply repair kits with relevant gear, and stock replacement parts on our website. Samples and items with minor defects are resold through our community channels or donated, keeping functional gear out of landfill. 

On our blog, which gets approximately 5,000 readers each month, we encourage our community to do their research before making purchases, develop essential outdoor skills, and take responsibility for their gear – and themselves – in the wild.

As an independent, privately-owned company with no external shareholders, wholesalers, or corporate middlemen to appease, Alton’s free to focus on making better quality gear, not hitting sales targets. 

We set fair, consistent pricing and create simple, effective products, avoiding the seasonal trend cycles that drive overconsumption. We rarely have sales and run just one major promotion every year, our Black Friday Gift with Purchase event. 

For this event, we launch two new products that meet the same strict quality standards as everything else we make and go on to become a permanent addition to our product range. This reduces the incentive for customers to purchase unless they have a genuine need for the products, and prevents stock wastage typically associated with seasonal sales.

We believe that a healthy business starts with a healthy workplace. We don’t expect everyone to ‘fit’ a predetermined culture; instead, we learn to work with each other as we are, creating a safe, supportive environment where diverse ways of thinking and working are recognised as strengths. 

Across our full-time and part-time staff, we currently have a healthy gender split at all levels of the business. We actively review salaries to ensure there is no gender pay gap and that our female employees are not unfairly disadvantaged. 

We offer flexible working arrangements to support work-life balance, and our office team works remotely one day per week, reducing commuting emissions and office power use. Our entire team, including our warehouse staff, are involved in product development and testing so that every person at Alton feels ownership over the gear we make.