This week our year round up blog will focus on sustainability.
With Scotland’s ambitious target to hit net zero by 2045, businesses are encouraged to start their sustainability journey sooner rather than later.
Although, working on a net zero strategy can be time consuming and challenging for organisations, there are many advantages. Being more sustainable can lead to cost reduction, innovation and attraction of customers and talent.
Some businesses, though, have started their journey long time ago as reducing carbon footprint and protecting the planet has always been part of their purpose, their actual reason for existing.
Below we have learnings and tips from three different case studies on how being more sustainable lead them to some advantage.
Saving Energy Costs with Edrington
Colin Baird, Energy Manager at Edrington, the Group holding whisky brand such as the Macallan, told us how they managed to save £80,000 of energy costs a year.
No matters if you are a large or small business, an energy saving strategy can help you to reduce energy consumptions and therefore costs. Below his top tips:
– Record energy use
– Focus on the big users (like heating)
– Understand corporate goals
– Engage with and give responsibility to the right people
There is no sustainability journey without your staff on your side – with Glen Mhor Hotel
Embedding sustainability in organisations’ values can help businesses to attract talent and increase retention rate. A Reuters survey from 2020 showed that the 65% of respondents were more likely to work for a company with strong environmental policies.
In order to be successful in reaching net zero goals it is important to have staff on your side.
Victoria Erasmus, Director, Glen Mhor Hotel highlighted the importance for their staff to understand their vision. To do so, they decide to invest in their workforce by:
- Giving incentive to staff for green travel as signing up for the Bike to Work scheme and building unit secure, illuminated and covered bike shelter
- Setting up a Green Team and offering staff upskilling training
Innovation with the Beauty Kitchen
Jo-Anne Chidley interest in sustainability was the very driver to build a sustainable beauty business. They are certified vegan, cruelty free, microplastic free, and they are the UK’s highest scoring Beauty B Corporation. Their sustainability journey led them to become pioneers in the circular economy and to launch a whole-system approach to Reuse and Refill (Re) that led them to supply Unilever with their Touch-free Refill Machines. Their innovative approach to sustainability turned competitors into circular collaborators other than developing new technologies and products.
