Our leading retailers and branded manufacturers mean business when it comes to sustainability and their commitment is holding up, even in these tough economic times.

Marks & Spencer’s £200 million Plan A commitment; Tesco’s plan to ‘deliver a revolution in green consumption’; and B&Q’s pledge to become a ‘one-planet’ retailer are all evidence that showing leadership in sustainability is important to these household names.

We recognise the significance of commitments such as these, but we want retail leaders to push the boundaries even further. Retail Leadership focuses on what they can do to further embed sustainability in their organisations. This builds on our publication Leader Business 2.0, which describes what leadership and sustainability in business looks like.

Retail Leadership offers a view of sustainability from the field to the shop floor, with examples of best practice from companies such as Cadbury and Prêt a Manger.

The research also identifies six steps to becoming a leader business in the retail sector.

1. Create a positive vision
A strong vision should look at the long-term future, and the various scenarios in which it may have to operate, taking into account environmental limits and social needs. Kingfisher used our Five Capitals model to ensure that all aspects of sustainability were covered in its vision.

2. Take it to the top

It’s much easier to make things happen with active encouragement from the top. Chief executive Stuart Rose is the driver behind Marks & Spencer’s Plan A commitments.

3. Identify strategic opportunities
Creating a vision is extremely important, but for real impact, this must be translated into core strategy. Unilever’s commitment to buy all black tea from Rainforest Alliance sources came from the use of one of their strategic business tools.

4. Innovate for success
Retailers need innovative strategies and business models, and they need to create new products and services with social and environmental benefits, such as the city car clubs currently sweeping the country.

5. Build new networks and seek to influence
Retailers should build alliances and seek to shape the debate, for example by influencing legislation or joining forces with other companies with similar concerns. PepsiCo and Tesco are two of a growing number of companies working with organisations like the Carbon Trust to examine the carbon associated with product lifecycles.

6. Measure, learn and improve
How can you be sure your actions are making an impact unless you assess them? InterfaceFLOR’s training programme and Unilever’s reporting are strong examples of effective measurement and learning.

Contact

Dan Crossley
Shannon Carr-Shand