Returning for a third year is Retail Week’s acclaimed Sustainability Summit, which will unite retailers and brands for a morning of impactful content to help make ambitious sustainability targets a reality.
Over the course of four hours, expect content that will make you think differently about your sustainability strategy. You will get a fresh look at how retailers and brands are tackling everything from green claims and store emissions to waste materials and traceability data – all central themes for tackling the climate crisis.
Beyond content, there will be 60 minutes of networking and conversation for you to speak candidly with your peers about the opportunities and challenges you are facing.
And that’s not all. We are also bringing back our Sustainability Showcase for 2024 – a celebration of burgeoning brands that started with sustainability at their heart – with businesses bringing samples and information for you to learn from and be inspired by.
Demand will be high – our last two Sustainability Summits were wait-listed – so secure your place today to be in the room.
“It was a fantastic event. Really interesting and informative. Thank you for making it happen!”
“So insightful. When you have a date for next year could you let me know so that we can make sure we attend?”
“I thought it was brilliant – really helpful, insightful and inspiring, with a great mixture of topics and panels covered. Thanks for the lovely breakfast and lunch too!”
Apply for a place
2023’s Sustainability Summit had overwhelming demand so, to avoid missing out, apply for your free place today and we’ll be in touch to confirm your attendance.
Places are exclusive to retailers and retail brands only.
Agenda
8.30am-9am
Breakfast, networking and Sustainability Showcase samplings
9am-9.05am
Welcome from Megan Dunsby, Retail Week’s Senior Commercial Content Editor
9.05am-9.15am
Building a responsible business in today’s climate
Opening keynote
Global DIY giant Kingfisher, owner of Screwfix and B&Q, has made it known that it is committed to making a positive impact on society. It has been investing heavily in its sustainability strategy – spanning four pillars including customers, colleagues, communities and the planet – to drive real progress.
To kick off the Sustainability Summit, we are delighted to be joined by Dorothée D’Herde, Director of Responsible Business at Kingfisher, to understand what steps the business has been taking to generate results, what has worked and what was learned along the way.
Speaker:
- Dorothée D’Herde, Director of Responsible Business, Kingfisher
9.15am-9.55am
Sustainable stores: The untapped potential of your critical assets
Panel discussion
Be it small updates or major investments, retailers are rethinking their store estates to make them work harder.
Yet many retailers are missing a vital trick – and one that is costing them: the management of rising Scope 2 emissions from their stores.
Be it wasted electricity, heating and cooling or gas, retailers can generate major energy efficiencies and cost savings by reducing consumption across their store networks. So, what does it take to successfully minimise store energy consumption? And is it easier than you might think?
In this opening panel, Retail Week is joined by retail leaders and software specialist LoweConex to talk practical, real solutions to make your stores more sustainable and ensure no energy goes to waste.
Speakers include:
- Orla McGreevy, Divisional Sales Director, LoweConex
9.55am-10.30am
Making good on green claims: Influencing customer behaviour through your credentials
Panel discussion
A number of retailers and brands have been cleaning up their green claims as authorities clamp down on inaccurate and misleading information.
But changes are not just coming about through force. Many retailers are taking it upon themselves to revise and reinforce their green claims to encourage customers to shop more responsibly.
By sharing the merits of their products and services, retailers can arm customers with the insights needed for them to become change agents.
In this session, we are joined by two retailers that have substantiated their environmental claims and are using them as a tool to drive share of wallet, while we also have an industry expert on hand to provide advice.
10.30am-11am
Refreshments, networking and Sustainability Showcase samplings
11am-11.20am
Reducing retail’s material footprint: The future of circular shopping
Fireside chat
It is widely acknowledged that the retail industry has a waste problem, but what can individual businesses do to lessen that?
The solution lies in recycling and resale, be that for packaging, textiles, electronics, furniture or beyond.
Resale platform Vinted generated profit for the first time this year, which is indicative of the gear change in customer attitudes. Meanwhile, in the past six months, retailers ranging from Lidl and John Lewis to Currys and Ikea have been adopting their own recycle and resale systems or partnering with organisations that provide the infrastructure for them to do so.
In this interview, you will hear from a retailer that has made significant headway in recycling, resale – or both – and gain access to insights from an industry expert on how more circular shopping can be achieved.
11.20am-11.55am
Eco innovations: Harnessing the latest tech to experiment and evolve
Panel discussion
From eco materials to tech-enabled product design and game-changing supply chain solutions, a flurry of innovations are hitting the market to enable retailers to become more sustainable.
Knowing where to invest and what technologies to get behind can be complicated, particularly when budgets are tight and the need to demonstrate ROI is high.
Should retailers go after the next big thing? Which solutions are more likely to create long-term gains? And, equally, which quick wins can retailers benefit from in the short term?
In this panel discussion, we will hear from retailers and industry experts on the latest innovations making sustainable strategies more achievable and the third-party partnerships accelerating progress.
11.55am-12.30pm
Traceability: Moving beyond the eco buzzword to better decision-making
Panel discussion
Traceability used to be a nice-to-have that gave retailers a competitive advantage on the journey to becoming more sustainable.
In 2024, and looking ahead to 2025, it is fast becoming a necessity as consumers, shareholders and boardroom executives demand to know the lifecycle of a product and what that means for retail supply chains.
Greater traceability and transparency are key, and both hinge on being able to leverage reliable data.
How can businesses best tap into traceability data to track products from raw materials to finished goods? Which retailers are already making headway and better supporting consumer purchasing decisions? And is full traceability even possible?
These are the important questions we will be posing to retail leaders and industry experts in this closing session of the Sustainability Summit 2024.
Dorothée D’Herde
Dorothée D’Herde
Orla McGreevy
Orla McGreevy
David Abrahamovitch
David Abrahamovitch
Megan Dunsby
Megan Dunsby
Speakers
These are just a few of the speakers confirmed to speak at the 2024 Summit. Watch this space for further announcements.
Dorothée D’Herde, Director of Responsible Business, Kingfisher
Dorothée joined Kingfisher in March 2023 to lead the responsible business agenda across the four pillars of planet, customers, colleagues and community, as well as overseeing ESG reporting. She is also a Trustee at Earthwatch Europe, an environmental charity with science at its heart. Before Kingfisher, she led the sustainable business team at Vodafone Group to drive the delivery of Vodafone’s Purpose, its contribution to the SDGs and its ESG leadership roadmap. Dorothée moved to London to join McKinsey & Company in 2009, where she spent 10 years, first as Head of External Relations for the Sustainability and Resource Productivity Practice and then as Director of Sustainability and Social Impact, overseeing the firm’s responsible business practices and its contribution to society. Before that, Dorothée worked in politics, public affairs and communications for the Belgian deputy prime minister, in the European Commission’s spokesperson service and at a public affairs agency.
Orla McGreevy, Divisional Sales Director, LoweConex
Orla is a frequent panellist and speaker at technology and retail transformation events across the UK and Ireland. With a career timeline that spans recruitment to retail assets and now software solutions, Orla has more than 10 years’ experience working with retailers across the industry spectrum to find streamlined solutions for businesses’ biggest challenges.
Passionate about the role of innovative technology within responsible business practices and armed with first-hand knowledge of just how complex retail environments can be, Orla offers a unique perspective on the practicality of implementing sustainability strategies at scale and the part prioritisation can play in accelerating positive progress.
David Abrahamovitch, Chief Executive and Founder, Grind
David Abrahamovitch is the Chief Executive and Founder of cult London coffee brand Grind. In 2011, he turned his father’s mobile phone store in Shoreditch into a coffee shop, and being a “café by day, cocktail bar by night” turned Grind into a local hotspot. Now the company boasts 14 locations across London and sells millions of coffees each year via a thriving DTC and grocery business, helping thousands drink better coffee at home, in addition to being the exclusive supplier to Soho House. David’s vision is to grow Grind to become the leading at-home coffee brand, encouraging people to enjoy speciality coffee in a sustainable way. Grind’s sustainability efforts go beyond its B Corp certification. With compostable coffee pods, ocean clean-up projects, recyclable packaging, ethical trading and sustainable farming practices, Grind is constantly working to do more good for the planet.
Helen White, Product and Brand Director, Bamboo Clothing
Megan Dunsby, Senior Commercial Content Editor, Retail Week
Megan Dunsby is Retail Week’s Senior Commercial Content Editor and has overseen the Sustainability Summit since its launch in 2022. A former journalist and Features Editor, she joined Retail Week in January 2019 to help brands leverage content to reach the people that matter in retail. Megan also leads Retail Week’s flagship reports, the Retail 100 and the Tech List, which recognise the most influential people in the sector and the businesses they represent. Megan has been named by Acquisition International as an Influential Businesswoman for two years running (2024 and 2023).
Sustainability Showcase
Every year we host a small selection of burgeoning retailers and brands created with sustainability at their core to be part of our Sustainability Showcase. The following innovative businesses will be at the 2024 event with samples, information and representatives on hand to provide insight and inspiration.
Truly Nuts!
Truly Nuts!, a White Lion Foods company, is a new brand of high-quality, healthy snacks leading the charge in sustainable and delicious snacking. Truly Nuts! has pioneered the art of flavouring Brazil nuts sustainably, creating a whole new category of nut-based treats. The line-up boasts an array of options from flavoured Brazil nuts to an assortment of almonds and mixed nuts. With choices like smoked, hot chilli and irresistible chocolate-covered varieties, there is something to satisfy every craving. Plus, Truly Nuts! products come in convenient snack packs or larger pouches to suit every need. And the best part? With every bite, you are helping to preserve the Amazon jungle and the local communities that depend on it because Truly Nuts! donates 25% of its profits to projects that support our planet.
Milliways
Milliways is an award-winning, plant-based, plastic-free and planet-friendly chewing gum. Made from just seven super natural ingredients, it’s biodegradable, aspartame-free and sugar-free. Conventional gum contains up to a straw’s worth of plastic in each piece. Milliways is on a mission to provide a sustainable alternative and, in three short years, the brand has established itself as the UK’s bestselling plastic-free gum and the fastest-growing gum brand – now stocked in more than 6,500 stores.
Who Gives A Crap
Who Gives A Crap is a B Corp-certified business, most well known for its sustainable toilet paper. Its entire range of products is plastic-free, made using recycled and sustainable materials that are FSC-certified and delivered to nearly 40 countries with complimentary carbon-neutral shipping. From the beginning, the company has donated 50% of its profits to clean water and sanitation non-profits. To date, the business has donated £6m to water, sanitation and hygiene partners globally worldwide to tackle the fact that 2 billion people do not have access to a toilet.
The Cheeky Panda
The Cheeky Panda is on a mission to prove you don’t have to compromise on quality when buying sustainable products. Founded in 2016 by entrepreneurs Julie Chen and Chris Forbes, the business has created an award-winning range of household, beauty and baby products from sustainable bamboo. Its aim is to make sustainable choices accessible and enjoyable for everyone, and to inspire individuals to embrace bamboo as a cornerstone of sustainable living. Whether that’s by creating the softest, strongest rolls around or making products with FSC-certified sustainable bamboo that needs no nasty chemicals or pesticides to grow, or even the donations made to WWF every time a purchase is made, it all matters.
World of Zing
Experience #LessWasteMoreTaste with World of Zing’s pre-batch cocktails in paper bottles. Offering a carbon footprint six times lower than equivalent glass bottles, the range has been designed by Channel 4 Sunday Brunch cocktail expert Pritesh Mody. It comprises around 12 seasonally changing flavours, including Blood Orange Negroni, Kaffir Lime Picante Margarita and the classic Espresso Martini.
Fanfare Label
Fanfare Label is an award-winning, circular fashion label transforming the way people buy, wear and discard clothing. The business creates cool, contemporary collections for women without compromising on ethics. Its entire collection is focused on repurposing, reusing and recycling. All of its products – from jeans to suits – have a recycling element.
Truly Nuts!
Truly Nuts!
Milliways
Milliways
Who Gives A Crap
Who Gives A Crap
The Cheeky Panda
The Cheeky Panda
World of Zing
World of Zing
Fanfare Label
Fanfare Label
Get involved
Can you help retailers and brands achieve their sustainability goals? Do you have insights to enable retailers to measure and improve their ESG ratings, wherever they are on their journey?
Sponsorship of the Sustainability Summit provides exclusive speaking opportunities, targeted lead generation and brand awareness among a captive audience. Share your insights with retailers and position yourself as a thought leader in the green economy.
Contact Retail Week’s Commercial Content Director Nicola Harrison to find out more: nicola.harrison@retail-week.com
Alternatively, if you are a retailer with a great story to tell and you would like to speak at the Sustainability Summit, please contact Megan Dunsby to discuss: megan.dunsby@retail-week.com
Built with Shorthand