We have a responsibility to reduce the environmental impact of our operations.
Looking at more sustainable alternatives to the materials in our collections is one way we can address this. We are beginning to address other impacts too, with efforts being made to reduce our carbon and waste footprints.
Roughly 30% of our carbon emissions come not from the manufacturing of our collections, but the operating and running of our stores, headquarters, warehouses and transport.
We realise this is a significant percentage, so we’re working towards bringing the impact of it right down. We have set some ambitious climate targets for to become net zero in 100% all of our scope 1 & 2 operations, and an absolute reduction of 46% of all scope 3 by 2030 (2019 baseline data). In order to do this, we have undertaken a review of our entire business operations to understand where our biggest impact is. Our Scope 3 makes up 98% of all our emissions, which include our supply chains, and the materials we use to make our products. We have created a roadmap, which will be implemented across our whole business, which includes working with our transport & logistics operators, in addition to moving to 100% more sustainable materials in our products. However, we have started to make some changes; since 2019 we switched to 100% renewable energy on all our UK Sites.
To ensure we are working to best industry standards, we have committed to setting science-based targets, putting in place greenhouse gas emission reduction targets that align with climate science and the Paris Climate Agreement by 2022.
To give some context, The Paris Climate Agreement was signed by 195 of the world’s governments to try and limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius. SBTs give companies a clearly defined path to future-proof growth, mainly by specifying how much and how quickly they need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Since 2010, we’ve been reporting to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). The CDP is a not-for-profit organisation that runs a carbon disclosure system for companies (and even cities), to help manage their environmental impacts. By reporting to the CDP, we are able to focus on areas of carbon risk within our business. To read our most recent CDP report click here and search for Ted Baker.
In 2020 we joined the British Retail Consortium (BRC) Climate Action Roadmap. As we integrate our carbon strategy across all business areas at Ted Baker, We look forward to collaborating with other brands in making a collective push towards achieving net zero carbon emissions
Part of Ted’s commitment to reducing our environmental impact is to take a look at our packaging. We recognise our huge reliance on wood-based products, from our paper-based packaging and shipping cartons to our viscose and lyocell fabrics – these are all made from wood. Because of this, we’re partnering with NGO Canopy and committing to two important policies - Pack4Good and CanopyStyle - to make sure we eliminate sourcing from ancient and endangered forests while promoting innovative packaging and alternative materials.
We may not be perfect, but we’ve already eliminated all laminated cardboard and made sure our carrier bags and e-commerce boxes are fully recyclable. The ribbon handles on our bags have been replaced by a material that looks and feels like rope, but is in fact made out of paper. Our e-commerce boxes and retail bags are now FSC certified. Increasingly, we are looking to manufacture in the UK and EU, meaning our carbon footprint will also be reduced.
We aim for 100% of our packaging to be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025
According to the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), the UK is responsible for 350,000 tonnes of textile waste going to landfill every year. As well as this, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation states that less than 1% of clothing is recycled at the end of its lifespan. It’s fair to say fashion can be wasteful.
To avoid contributing to the huge quantity of textiles sent to landfill each year in the UK, we donate our terminal stock to reputable charities. Three of our key charity partners are Oxfam, NewLife and Age UK, who sell our stock in their UK stores, raising money for their important work. We also work with multiple charities around the world to ensure that our terminal stock goes to good homes.
Since 2018, our donations to Oxfam, Age UK and Newlife raised more than £ 1.4 million and diverted over 82 tonnes of waste from landfill.
Donating our product waste will not solve the problem. We are working hard with our teams to understand how we can reduce the waste to begin with at the start and during the production process. We are developing a circularity roadmap, which looks at the design of a product, to the end of its life, which we aim to roll out across the business by 2023.
In 2011, we learnt about the plight of the honey bee. Being fans of the furry pollinators, we teamed up with Bee Urban to look after the two hives on the roof of our London headquarters. Our beekeeper Barnaby regularly checks on our hives to ensure the bees are very well looked after. We have been reaping the rewards ever since with successful (and delicious) honey crops every year.