The next step

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M&S Plan A

Plan A

M&S launched its original eco and ethical plan, known as “Plan A”, in January 2007 (see The next step). It included 100 commitments designed to make the company carbon neutral, send no waste to landfill, extend sustainable sourcing, and set new standards in ethical trading. Three years on, M&S has hit 46 of the commitments.

Was it worth the effort?

It appears so. According to M&S, by year two the plan was cost neutral. By year three the effort was rewarded with savings of £50 million - which, in theory, should increase year-on-year. In addition to the financial savings, it has provided a golden opportunity for the marketing department, with the ability to claim that it’s the “greenest retailer on the planet”.

But they’re all at it

Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda, John Lewis etc. also have their own green plans. And all of them are quick to state that their latest stores will use less energy, packaging on food has been cut, and more products are being sourced from ethical suppliers.

Tip. Admittedly, these companies are at the top end of UK, even global, retail, but the example set by them does show the importance of keeping up with your competitors. If you don’t, you could face claims of “we’re greener than you”. And, more importantly, you could miss out on cost savings. The £50 million a year M&S is achieving can either be used to invest in new stores, or it can be passed on to the consumer in product price cuts etc.

What can you do?

Although most businesses aren’t in a position to make million-pound savings, if done right, going green does pay off. So what can you do?

Tip 1. Diverting waste from landfill to alternative waste streams will save £48 per tonne in landfill tax alone (based on rates from April 6 2010). Most waste contractors, certainly the big players, are able to offer waste disposal options which don’t involve the use of landfill sites.

Tip 2. Use the services of the Carbon Trust (CT). It’s able to assist businesses in cutting the amount of energy they use - regardless of their size. M&S has made heavy use of the CT in its energy-saving plans (see The next step).

Tip 3. Don’t be too ambitious or overstate your plans. Set reasonable targets and timescales to achieve your goals. Although M&S published 100 commitments, you can be sure that those behind the plan knew every one could be achieved before they were made public.

Tip 4. Follow your competitors’ lead. There’s nothing stopping you from doing exactly the same as other businesses in your sector. In fact, you can even work with them; M&S has. The prime example here is with carrier bags. Rather than letting one firm get an advantage over encouraging customers to use fewer bags, they all did it. This move led to large-scale green points scoring with customers, huge cost savings and a big reduction in the amount of waste handled in each store.

For further information on M&S’s Plan A (EN 04.10.05A) and for a weblink to the Carbon Trust website (EN 04.10.05B), visithttp://environment.indicator.co.uk.