Business Forum - How Green Is Your Value?
Telling eco-friendly from green-washed can be a headache for retailers. But tradeshows and others are stepping up to help.
Meredith Schwartz -- Gifts and Dec, 8/21/2010 3:59:32 AM
Telling eco-friendly from green-washed can be a headache for retailers. But tradeshows and others are stepping up to help.
These days, every major tradeshow points out its green product offerings, through displays, listings, signage or all of the above. This year two, in particular, have taken their green efforts to the next level, not only highlighting green claims, but evaluating them.
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Pear sculptures from the Origins Collection are made from scrap or unusable lumber. including root systems and stumps left from clearing for government projects. Phillips Collection. 336.882.7400. www.phillipscollection.com Reader service #815 |
Retailers shopping for environmentally responsible goods can go to these green-lighted, pun intended, vendors knowing their homework has already been done for them.
The World Market Center Las Vegas' program is called One Good- World. "We take the additional step of having the manufacturer's claims verified by an independent third party," says Margaret Casey, director of programming. "At this point in time there is no universal tagging like a Good Housekeeping Seal of approval; how much research is it reasonable to ask a consumer to do?"
Casey is in a good position to know how much time that research takes: In addition to her position at the WMC, Casey is a founding member and vice president of the Sustainable Furnishings Council (SFC), which does the verification.
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On The Rocks ‘ice cubes' are the repurposed cores generated from drilling holes to create napkin rings. Sea Stones replants 10 times the number of trees used each year and for every smooth stone they collect, a rough quarry stone is "planted" in the ocean. Sea Stones LLC, 206.202.1092. www.sea-stones.com Reader service #811 |
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The SFC's employees "interview the manufacturers and they find out about where they source and what their processes and procedures are. And then they actually go and check on the suppliers and those aspects of the supply chain that are of concern. They really do the grunt work," says Casey. Vendors "have to pay a pretty hefty fee because it takes a bit of time and work to verify" that they meet the SFC's standards.
As to what those are, it's a balancing act. "You have to be realistic; at the same time, you have to have real standards," says Casey. "Materials are important, and then there's also the country of origin, is there exploitation, are people paid a living wage? And then you've got to look at the carbon footprint."
Some 51 companies are listed as being One Good World verified, SFC members or both for the August market, including such well-known gift brands as Lazy Susan USA, Lion Ribbon Company and Roost.
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New Italian green manufacturer makes its goods from a variety of reused materials, including regenerated leather with ISO 14001 certification, FSC-certified chlorine- free paper and more. Jewelry shown is made of old eyeglasses. Regenesi. 011.39.051.239808. www.regenesi.com Reader service #814 |
The New York International Gift Fair program is called Sustainability: Design for a Better World. Originally a pure display, the program has grown and expanded into vetting, as well as supporting seminars and other educational materials. Dorothy Belshaw, director of the NYIGF, explains, "We were basically presenting it as a trend display and it had become much more than that. We needed to do a better job of education, both on the exhibitor side so they understand the criteria, and also, and maybe more importantly, on the retailer side, so that they know what questions to ask."
Rather than using a third party, the NYIGF appointed a SustainAbility Task Force to conduct its vetting process. Members include a mix of retailers, manufacturers, other industry voices and environmental experts, including representatives from Artecnica, TerraChoice, ABC Carpet & Home, Aid to Artisans, Working Class Studio, and Ilene Shaw of Shaw + Co! Productions, who also designs and curates the Sustainability display.
| V’reens — The Green Twist on Verrines are made in the U.S.A. from reclaimed soda bottles and reclaimed wooden wine barrel slats. A percentage of profits are donated to The World Wildlife Fund. Green Glass Company. 715.355.1897. www.greenglass.com Reader service #810 | 
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Flame Blackened Folding Salad Tongs are made in the U.S.A. of FSC-certified cherry wood. Wood scraps heat the shop and employee homes; sawdust is composted to fertilize local farms. Jonathan’s Spoons. 800.776.6853. www.woodspoon.com Reader service #812 |
The task force ranks three different "Degrees of SustainAbility": SustainAbility 1 requires the use of sustainable materials and Fair Trade policies, as well as adherence to all Zero Tolerance specifications; SustainAbility 2 requires all that, plus use of alternative energy sources in production; Sustain- Ability 3 requires all of the above, plus socially responsible business practices, such as charitable donations or other philanthropic efforts. "Some companies are just really good companies and we're trying to identify them for the buyers," says Shaw. The Sustainability 3 exhibitors for the August show are DBA LLC, Green Glass Company, Sea Stones LLC, Jonathan's Spoons and Reeves International Inc.
The store has investigated several products after customers raised concerns - including ones about certified products. Sustainable NYC used to carry Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified flip-flops, until a customer raised concerns about some of the FSC's practices. Though the vendor had personally visited the factory and plantation and assured the store that the rubber trees were sustainably grown and harvested, "we learned to be cautious of certifications."
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Makedo connector system enables materials including cardboard and fabric to easily join together to form new objects or structures. Made of recyclable Nylon 6.6. Because local-area recycling programs for nylon are not widespread, Makedo provides a take-back service. Reeves International Inc. 800.444.4775. www.reevesintl.com Reader service #813 |
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98 percent biodegradable pen is produced at a wind-powered U.S. factory on highefficiency electric presses cooled by recycled water. DBA LLC. 800.903.0929. www.dbaco. com Reader service #809 |
Shaw suggests the first questions retailers should ask about any product the maker calls green are: "‘What is this made out of?' and ‘What is the purpose of this product?' If it doesn't pass those questions, you don't go further. Then ask, ‘Where is it made?' There are some countries with very strong standards for Fair Trade and also quality control. Some countries are more reliable than others. Those are the quickest, easiest, most obvious things to look at. Manufacturers, exporters and distributors have to know the answer. It's their responsibility to know these things and give them to the retailer."
"There's really nothing very simple about this, because it takes thought," Shaw admits. "But it is not very strenuous and it's not very time consuming. It does take a little extra effort, but it's worth it. After a while it really does become second nature."
Asking the right questions, says Belshaw, is important to retailers for several reasons. It can "help sell as well because it gives them the terms they need to develop a back story to sell it and merchandise it effectively in the store." Plus, even a perfectly accurate green claim may not reflect the aspects most important to the individual store owner, or their customers. "There are a lot of conflicting elements to the green movement," says Belshaw, "[...] it really depends on what's most important to you."
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