My 1st Years qZERO®
Sustainability Score
Founded in 2010 in the UK, My 1st Years was created to celebrate life’s earliest milestones with thoughtful, personalised gifts for babies and young children. From embroidered blankets and clothing to keepsake toys and nursery essentials, the brand has built its reputation on quality, craftsmanship and meaningful design.
Personalisation sits at the heart of its innovation. By creating items specifically for someone's child, My 1st Years encourages products to be treasured, reused, and passed on rather than quickly replaced. This focus on longevity supports more responsible consumption and helps families choose pieces that last beyond a single season.
According to the company’s published information, the business is taking steps to improve material selection, packaging, and supply chain oversight, while providing clearer updates on its progress. In a market where claims can often be vague, transparent updates and specific commitments matter. My 1st Years positions itself as a brand that combines heartfelt gifting with practical steps towards lower-impact production and long-term value.
My 1st Years business sustainability position is in line with average compared to other companies in the Clothing, Shoes & Accessories.
My 1st Years positioning within the Clothing, Shoes & Accessories
The clothing, shoes and accessories sector shapes everyday choices, yet it comes with complex impacts that matter to families and future generations. From energy and water use in fabric production to chemical processing, packaging, and product end-of-life, each stage carries a footprint. Waste remains a key challenge, especially where products are used for a short time and not designed to be reused or recycled. Microfibre release during washing is another growing concern, alongside the need for safer materials and clearer product information.
People are at the heart of this industry. Across global supply chains, fair pay, safe working conditions and respect for workers’ rights are essential. However, these are not always consistent, particularly where supply chains are long or difficult to trace. For consumers, this makes transparency especially important, so they can understand where and how products are made.
When compared with the wider sector, My 1st Years shows a balanced position. Its environmental approach appears slightly ahead of typical industry practice, suggesting some attention to materials and product impact. At the same time, social factors sit below the stronger examples seen across the sector, highlighting an opportunity to build clearer visibility over suppliers and strengthen support for workers throughout the value chain.
Governance is broadly aligned with industry norms. This means the brand has a foundation in place, but there is room to go further by sharing more detailed, evidence-based information on its practices. This is increasingly important as expectations grow for clear, verifiable claims that reflect real impact across a product’s full life cycle.
For shoppers, this places My 1st Years in a middle-ground position within its category. It offers signs of progress while also leaving room for greater transparency and stronger social commitments over time. Looking ahead, clearer reporting and independently supported claims will help build trust and make it easier for families to choose with confidence.
My 1st Years by MY 1ST YEARS LIMITED offers personalised baby and children’s gifts designed to mark life’s earliest milestones. The collection includes embroidered clothing, organic cotton babywear, soft toys, wooden toys, blankets, nursery accessories, keepsake boxes, books and school bags. Many items can be customised with a child’s name or initials, transforming practical essentials into meaningful keepsakes. The brand sells directly online, making it simple for families and gift-givers to choose, personalise and send items for newborn arrivals, birthdays and special occasions.
The brand offers a wide range of price points and focuses on product longevity. Personalisation plays a central role: when a child’s name is added, items are more likely to be kept, reused or passed down, rather than quickly replaced. According to its published sustainability information, the company is increasing the use of organic cotton in selected ranges and reviewing packaging and sourcing practices. For shoppers, this means the option to choose durable, practical pieces with longer life and emotional value, helping balance upfront cost with long-term use and reduced waste.
My 1st Years brings a thoughtful approach to the products families choose for life’s earliest moments. The brand focuses on creating items that are made to last, encouraging keepsakes that can be treasured, reused or passed on rather than quickly replaced. This helps reduce unnecessary waste while keeping gifting meaningful and personal.
Materials and packaging are an important part of this journey. The brand highlights efforts to use more considered materials and reduce excess packaging where possible, while still delivering the quality and presentation expected for special occasions. Clearer information on these choices can help families better understand the impact of each product.
Behind the scenes, attention is given to how products are sourced and made. This includes setting expectations for suppliers around safe working conditions and fair treatment. There is an opportunity to go further by sharing more details on how these standards are checked and improved over time, giving customers greater confidence in the people behind the products.
Overall, My 1st Years shows a balanced and evolving approach. It combines care for product longevity, thoughtful sourcing and structured decision-making, while leaving space to strengthen transparency and evidence. As expectations for clear, verifiable information grow, continued progress in sharing measurable outcomes will help families make informed, confident choices.
My 1st Years is at a developing stage in its environmental journey. Based on publicly available information, the brand recognises that weather extremes, supply chain disruption and resource use can affect long-term business resilience. This awareness is an important first step. The company has begun reviewing materials, packaging and operational impacts, and highlights increased use of organic cotton in selected ranges.
However, clearer data on total emissions, defined reporting boundaries and a time-bound reduction pathway would strengthen trust. Under evolving EU guidance on environmental claims, detailed measurement and transparent progress reporting are becoming essential. For shoppers, confidence, consistent updates, and measurable goals will be key indicators of progress.
My 1st Years is built around celebrating children and families, and this naturally places inclusion at the heart of its brand story. A family-focused business has an opportunity to reflect the diversity of modern parents, carers and communities in its products, imagery and workplace culture. Public information indicates awareness of fair and responsible working practices, particularly regarding product safety and sourcing standards.
That said, there is limited detailed public reporting on diversity metrics, pay equity or structured inclusion targets. As expectations increase across the UK and EU for clearer, evidence-based disclosure, measurable goals and transparent updates will become increasingly important.
Strongest signals include a clear family-first brand identity and responsible sourcing principles. Areas to strengthen include publishing time-bound diversity commitments, leadership accountability measures and regular progress reporting.
For shoppers who value fairness as well as quality, visible action and transparent reporting will be key to building long-term trust.
My 1st Years presents a solid governance foundation, with visible commitment to compliance, ethical standards and open communication. Publicly available information suggests that the company maintains clear policies and structured internal processes, thereby helping to build trust among customers, suppliers, and partners. Transparency is a positive signal, particularly at a time when consumers expect clear, evidence-based communication around environmental and social performance.
Where the picture is less developed is in long-term resilience planning. There is limited public information on how the business prepares for supply chain disruptions, regulatory changes, or evolving consumer expectations. As sustainability-related regulation strengthens across the UK and EU, forward-looking risk management and measurable targets will become increasingly important. Strengthening these areas would help translate today’s governance strengths into durable, future-ready performance.
My 1st Years stands out for turning everyday baby essentials into personalised keepsakes. Its core strength is high-quality embroidery and customisation, completed in-house, that transforms clothing, blankets, and toys into meaningful gifts for one child. This personal touch encourages longer use, emotional attachment and passing items on, rather than short-term buying. Additionally, the brand highlights its selective use of organic cotton and its focus on durable design. For shoppers, the unique value lies in combining thoughtful gifting, quality craftsmanship and longer product life — creating pieces that feel special today and remain valued tomorrow.
When you see a certification logo, it means an independent third party has verified a part of the product or process. That makes shopping easier and more trustworthy. Based on the My 1st Years website and the sustainability page at the time of review, the following certifications are clearly listed.
What you might see: Some wooden toys and wooden products are described as made from FSC® certified wood.
What it means: FSC® helps show that the wood comes from responsibly managed forests. In simple terms, it supports better forest care and traceable supply chains.
How to shop for it: Check the product description for “FSC®” and look for the FSC logo on the product page if shown.
At the time of our review, we did not see a clear public mention of broader business-level sustainability certifications (such as B Corp or ISO environmental standards). This does not mean they do not exist — only that they are not clearly displayed on the brand product pages.
If certifications are important to you, look for official logos, certification numbers, or links to verification pages on the brand’s sustainability section.
Helpful tip: Certifications can change as ranges and suppliers change. Always double-check the specific product page before you buy. Clear labels and transparent details are strong signs that a brand takes responsibility seriously.
* Disclaimer: We use publicly available information, licensed data, information generated by artificial intelligence tools and information obtained directly from brands in order to determine our Sustainability Ratings. We recognise that you will be consulting various sources in order to do your due diligence and/or to inform your buying decisions, which may include considering our Sustainability Ratings. Please note that our Sustainability Ratings are for general information only and you must not use any part of the content on our site (including the Sustainability Ratings) for commercial or business purposes without first obtaining a licence to do so from us or our licensors. The Sustainability Ratings are not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely. Although we make reasonable efforts to update the information on our site, we make no representations, warranties or guarantees that the content on our site or the Sustainability Ratings are accurate, complete or up to date. We therefore disclaim all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such content by any visitor to our site, or by anyone who may be informed of any of its contents. Please refer to our Terms of Service or contact us at if you have any questions.
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