L’Oréal brand The Body Shop has announced a new global CSR strategy ahead of its 40th anniversary.
The commitment, which aims to support The Body Shop in its bid to be the world’s most ethical and sustainable global business, is an extensive programme of global activity and measurable targets that touches all areas of the business, to be delivered by 2020. The new commitment, called Enrich Not Exploit, embraces the ethical principles from which The Body Shop was built.
According to the brand, Enrich not Exploit will enable The Body Shop to protect and nurture the environment and society across every part of its business, from ingredients, products and packaging, to stores, employees, suppliers and campaigns.
Under each of the commitment’s three pillars The Body Shop said it has specific, measurable targets by 2020 that make the business accountable for delivery.
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| Under each of the commitment’s three pillars The Body Shop has specific, measurable targets to hit by 2020 | |
The Body Shop Chairman and CEO Jeremy Schwartz said: “The Body Shop courageously pioneered new ways of thinking, acting and speaking out as a company. Our ground-breaking campaigns were ahead of their time and changed laws on animal testing, domestic violence and human trafficking. We were the first in beauty to use community trade and we still have the strongest programme in the industry. We are small, but we lead. Today for all of us, the greatest challenges lie ahead and The Body Shop’s 40th anniversary is the perfect time to reassert our aim for leadership in ethical business.
“For us, being truly sustainable means shaping our business to work in line with the planet’s natural systems so they can replenish and restore themselves. With our commitment we’re challenging ourselves to go further than we’ve ever gone before to make a real, sustainable and positive difference. We have set ourselves a significant goal to be the world’s most ethical and truly sustainable global business.”
In total there are 14 targets under three pillars within the new commitment, and these are:
Enrich our People
– Double The Body Shop’s Community Trade programme from 19 to 40 ingredients and help enrich communities that produce them
– Help 40,000 economically vulnerable people access work around the world
– Engage 8 million people in The Body Shop’s Enrich Not Exploit commitment mission, creating its biggest campaign ever
– Invest 250,000 hours of The Body Shop employees’ skills and know-how to enrich the biodiversity of local communities
Enrich our Products
– Ensure 100% of the company’s natural ingredients are traceable and sustainably sourced, protecting 10,000 hectares of forest and other habitat
– A year-on-year reduction in the environmental footprint of all product categories
– Publish the use of ingredients of natural origin, ingredients from green chemistry, and the biodegradability and water footprint of the brand’s products
– Develop an innovation pipeline that delivers pioneering cosmetic ingredients from biodiversity hotspots and which helps to enrich these areas
Enrich our Planet
– Build Bio-Bridges, protecting and regenerating 75 million sq m of habitat helping communities to live more sustainably
– Reduce the environmental footprint of The Body Shop stores every time they are refurbished or redesigned
– Develop and deliver three new sustainable packaging innovations
– Ensure that 70% of the brand’s total product packaging does not contain fossil fuels
– Power 100% of stores with renewable or carbon balanced energy
– A -10% reduction in energy use of all stores
Schwartz added: “The Body Shop can be both a force for good and a successful, profitable business. Forty years ago Anita Roddick set out a challenge for The Body Shop to tackle the big issues of her time. We’re now tackling the big issues of today. We want our Enrich Not Exploit commitment to inspire a new generation of customers, supporters and especially millennials who truly care about how a company operates. Re-establishing The Body Shop as a leader will come from delivering our ambitious aim to be the world’s most ethical and truly sustainable global business.”
The Body Shop International CSR and Campaigns Director Chris Davis commented: “We have set ourselves ambitious, inspiring and measurable targets for our commitment. We are developing new practices to enrich the planet in which we operate whilst helping our company grow and prosper. Our new commitment combines all the experience and knowledge of our expert people with new advances in science and technology.
“It means understanding how our business is contributing to our existence on the planet, understanding what we need to change to contribute to a sustainable future by working backwards from a visionary end point to the here and now and asking ourselves what comes next. We’ll continue to work in partnership with suppliers, NGOs, academics, governments and other businesses to deliver the innovation and changes needed to make our ambitions a reality.”
The commitment contributes to and enhances L’Oréal’s rigorous sustainability framework, Sharing Beauty with All. The Body Shop’s specific addition to the framework is called Retailing Sustainably. As L’Oréal’s largest retail brand, The Body Shop said it believes it has a unique role to play in the design, management and sustainability of its retail outlets and the relationship with its customers.
