Re-envisioning Retail report highlights
sustainable retailers' success
TORONTO,
March 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -
Canadian retailers who adopt sustainable business practices are
differentiating themselves in an increasingly competitive
marketplace and also significantly reducing their costs, according
to a new report released today by RBC and Retail Council of
Canada (RCC).
"Retailers profiled in this report demonstrate that
sustainable leadership doesn't need to be a huge endeavour and
that, by taking the first step, they can create real change," said
Andrea Bolger, head, Business
Financial Services, RBC. "Making a commitment to sustainable
business strategies has very tangible bottom line rewards and can
help mitigate environmental risks."
The report, entitled Re-envisioning Retail,
highlights the risks and opportunities associated with
environmental sustainability. Retailers who have implemented
sustainable business practices and have benefited from greater
efficiency and productivity, improved employee retention and
enhanced brand reputation are profiled in the report.
"Successful retailers re-envision themselves
constantly; they must change as quickly as the world does," said
Diane J. Brisebois, president and
CEO of RCC. "Sustainability is now a necessity. This report
illustrates the different ways retailers are evolving to do what is
required and provides leadership to those who are looking for ways
to improve their efforts."
"We want retailers to move beyond a 'compliance'
mind-set to viewing environmental sustainability as an integral
part of their business strategy," added Bolger. "By greening their
operations they have the opportunity to realize incredible business
value."
Retail industry leaders' sustainability initiatives
profiled in Re-envisioning Retail include:
- Canadian Tire: Implemented hundreds of sustainability
initiatives over the last two years, from lighting retrofits to
efficiency improvements in product transport, saving the retailer
approximately $6 million
- Home Depot Canada: Created a program that gives
Canadian manufacturers the opportunity to pitch innovative,
environmentally sustainable products. By supporting great ideas,
the retailer hopes to help transform the market by ensuring that
sustainable products are always on their store shelves.
- Sears Canada:
Replaced more than 116,000 incandescent lights in all of its Sears
Home and full-line stores across Canada, making it the first Canadian retailer
to install an LED retrofit. This resulted in a 75 per cent annual
reduction in energy consumption and two-year payback on
investment.
- Unilever: Conducted lifecycle analysis (LCA) on
more than 1,600 of its household products and found that 68 per
cent of its green house gas (GHG) emissions occur from consumers'
use of their products. The retailer hopes to empower 200 million
consumers to improve their own environment footprints and help
reduce GHG emissions by 2015.
- Walmart Canada: Commissioned an assessment of its
heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) and energy
systems at over 200 stores, resulting in adjustment changes that
created a 20 per cent increase in energy efficiency and will
provide a payback on investment of less than three years.
- Whole Foods: Targeted April
2012 as the date when all ingredients will be listed on the
packages of all household cleaning products that they sell, to
enable their consumers to make greener, healthier choices.
Household cleaners that do not meet minimum standards will be
removed from store shelves.
Copies of the Re-envisioning Retail report
are available on the RBC Commercial Advice Centre at
rbc.com/business-advice and on the Retail Council of Canada's website at retailcouncil.org.
RBC and the environment
RBC has long been committed to environmental
sustainability, and will maintain that commitment through the
activities detailed in its Environmental Blueprint. The RBC
Environmental Blueprint formalizes RBC's longstanding commitment to
environmental sustainability, outlining our policy, priorities and
objectives, which include reducing the intensity of our
environmental footprint, promoting responsible lending, and
offering environmentally responsible products and services. In
2011, RBC was named one of the Global 100 Most Sustainable
Corporations in the World, one of Canada's Greenest Employers, one of
Canada's Top 50 Socially
Responsible Corporations, and one of Canada's Best 50 Corporate Citizens. RBC is
also listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North
American Indices, the Jantzi Social Index, the FTSE4Good Index and
the Canadian Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index.
About the Retail Council of Canada (RCC)
Retail Council of Canada, founded in 1963, is a
not-for-profit, industry-funded association representing more than
45,000 store fronts of all retail formats across Canada, including department, specialty,
discount, and independent stores, and online merchants. RCC's
mission is to be the Voice of Retail in Canada. We speak for an industry that touches
the daily lives of Canadians in every corner of the country — by
providing jobs, career opportunities, and by investing in the
communities we serve. RCC members are actively involved in
improving environmental sustainability in every region of the
country. Continuing to provide products and services that consumers
want in a sustainable way is a top priority for RCC and our
members.
SOURCE RBC
Image with caption: "Re-envisioning Retail - published by RBC
and the Retail Council of Canada.
(CNW Group/RBC)". Image available at:
http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120315_C4628_PHOTO_EN_11149.jpg