BOUCHERVILLE, QC, June 3, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ - Lowe's
Canada, one of Canada's leading home improvement retailers
operating or servicing more than 470 corporate and affiliated
stores under different banners, is pleased to report that the
introduction of a charge on plastic bags at its corporate stores in
Quebec in June 2018, and in the rest of Canada in August of the same year, has had a
significant impact on the number of plastic bags used in its
network. Indeed, in 2019, the customers of its Lowe's, RONA, and
Reno-Depot corporate stores used 58% fewer plastic bags than in
2017, which represents about 10 million bags. In 2018, the
introduction of the charge midyear resulted in over 5 million fewer
plastic bags being used in Lowe's Canada's corporate stores versus the previous
year.
"At Lowe's Canada, we are
committed to reducing our environmental footprint, which includes
decreasing the amount of waste from our operations going to
landfills," said Jean-Sébastien Lamoureux, Senior Vice-President,
Public Affairs, Asset Protection and Sustainable Development at
Lowe's Canada. "Two years after
implementing these measures, we are proud to report that charging
for plastic bags and spreading awareness across our stores has
helped change our customers' shopping habits."
More than $125,000 given to
Nature Conservancy of Canada
All profits from plastic-bag charges are donated to the Nature
Conservancy of Canada to support
its conservation work across the country. Between June 2018 and December
2019, these profits amounted to more than $125,000.
"From salmon streams in New
Brunswick, to the forests and rivers of Quebec, vital prairie grasslands, and
mountains of the West, Nature Conservancy of Canada is working to protect the natural areas
that support our plants, wildlife and communities. Nature
Conservancy of Canada empowers
people to safeguard the lands and waters that sustain life, such as
Covey Hill (QC), Fort Ellice (MB) and Musquash Estuary Nature
Reserve (NB)," said Aaron Bilyea,
Chief Marketing Officer at Nature Conservancy of Canada. "We
are grateful for the support of Lowe's Canada. While deterring the use of plastic
bags, Lowe's Canada is also
contributing directly to the work of the Nature Conservancy of
Canada, helping us to continue to
protect the species and natural spaces that Canadians love."
In addition, to keep providing customers with more eco-friendly
ways to carry their purchases, Lowe's Canada will introduce a new reusable bag at
its stores in the fall. Profits from the sales of this new bag will
also be given to the Nature Conservancy of Canada to help it protect dozens of natural
spaces in Canada, as well as their
native species.
To share this news on social media, please use @Lowe's
Canada (LinkedIn) and
@LowesCanadaCorp (Twitter).
About Lowe's Canada
Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE: LOW) is a
FORTUNE® 50 home improvement company serving
approximately 18 million customers a week in the United States and Canada. With fiscal year 2019 sales of
$72.1 billion, Lowe's and its related
businesses operate or service more than 2,200 home improvement and
hardware stores and employ approximately 300,000 associates. Based
in Boucherville, Quebec, Lowe's
Canadian business, together with its wholly owned subsidiary, RONA
inc., operates or services more than 470 corporate and independent
affiliate dealer stores in a number of complementary formats under
different banners. These include Lowe's, RONA, Réno-Dépôt and
Dick's Lumber. In Canada, the
companies have more than 26,000 associates, in addition to
approximately 5,000 employees in the stores of independent
affiliate dealers operating under the RONA banner. For more
information, visit https://lowescanada.ca/.
SOURCE Lowe's Canada