Environmental Sustainability
April 18, 2019 at 3:12 pm
The North Face said this week that it will close its global headquarters and its 113 stores in the U.S. and Canada on Earth Day, April 22. The action is part of a campaign to make Earth Day an officially recognized holiday. The VF Corp.-owned brand said closing its doors on Earth Day will provide its employees ample opportunity…
February 20, 2019 at 2:38 pm
Amazon.com announced Monday its goal to make 50 percent of all its shipments net zero carbon by 2030. This goal aids the company's efforts towards achieving project "Shipment Zero," which focuses on a long-term goal to make all of its shipments carbon neutral. Amazon has been taking more steps to reduce its overall carbon footprint, and has…
September 5, 2018 at 1:59 pm
We now live in a commerce environment where we quite literally can have any product whim fulfilled, and in many cases, in our hands the same or next day, at the enticing price of free. And why shouldn’t we? Amazon’s Prime Now, UberRush and Instacart make bold promises of delivery within hours of order placement. Well, possibly, we might be well advised to consider the longer term implications.
July 9, 2018 at 8:03 am
For many retail organizations, sustainability remains a financial hurdle to overcome rather than a solution to cut costs. Retailers face an uphill battle to increase already razor-thin profit margins amidst a rapidly changing industry, and, as a result, sustainability has taken a back seat for some. The following three tips will encourage retailers to rethink their business strategy and put sustainability to work for the bottom line:
June 28, 2018 at 10:20 am
The prevalence of e-commerce giants has completely changed consumer buying expectations. Apparel, fashion and retail companies are all feeling the effects of the shift toward unified commerce and the pressure to deliver on consumer demands. Going beyond shipping, fulfillment and customer experience, consumers are looking closely at how a product is made, and making purchase decisions…
April 11, 2018 at 11:30 am
REI announced this week stricter rules for its product suppliers. The Seattle Times reports suppliers that can’t or won’t meet REI requirements in areas such as manufacturing labor safety and fairness, chemical usage, environmental impact, and animal welfare won’t be considered for its store shelves. REI's prefers all 1,000-plus brands it currently works with to…
June 26, 2017 at 9:49 am
In episode 98 of Total Retail Talks, Laura Phillips, senior vice president of sustainability, Wal-Mart, discusses the big-box retail chain's new supplier sustainability platform, Project Gigaton. Phillips addresses why sustainability is a critical component of Wal-Mart's corporate values, the business benefits the company has realized from its many sustainability initiatives, and offers advice for other…
May 24, 2017 at 12:23 pm
Today, there are over 92 million millennials in the U.S. alone, spending about $600 billion each year. In a world where trust has become a form of currency, and with this generation’s socio-civic beliefs leaning more heavily towards environmental initiatives than ever before, businesses are feeling the pressure to adapt both in their social and…
February 28, 2017 at 12:26 pm
In episode 80 of Total Retail Talks, Total Retail's Editor-in-Chief Melissa Campanelli interviews Marci Zaroff, founder of Under the Canopy, an eco-friendly brand of stylish and innovative home products; as well as MetaWear, a manufacturer of certified-organic, custom screen-printed apparelat a recent Total Retail Talks Live event. Listen in as Marci discusses why sustainable products…
February 1, 2017 at 12:37 pm
Patagonia has announced that beginning this April, customers will be able to bring their used Patagonia merchandise to local stores and exchange it for credit to buy new items. The Huffington Post reports Patagonia will then clean, repair and sell the older donated items at discounted prices on its Worn Wear website. The website currently highlights…
