Leading schoolwear supplier Banner is setting new standards for transparency with the launch of its annual sustainability report. Taking a holistic approach, the report sets out ambitious commitments to tackling climate change, supporting ethical trading and promoting community involvement. Copies are being emailed to all Banner’s customers and it is also available for consumers to download from Banner’s website.
“Being transparent is the best way to drive change,” says Glenn Leech (pictured), CEO of Banner. “In recent years we’ve been making progress in a measured way. But to create a step change, we realised we needed to hold ourselves to greater account. The report is very much part of that journey, which has to begin with an open and honest appraisal of the goals we’ve set and what we’ve achieved so far.”
Launched on Global Earth Day, Banner is committing to a range of environmental and social measures.
This includes goals for the environment, product manufacture and design, customer engagement and community involvement, as Leech explains. “It’s a holistic approach because our business impacts in multiple ways. For example, we want to reduce our carbon footprint, but we also care about the way we do business, the people who make our garments and the communities we serve.”
The report covers the audited performance for 2020, but it also looks forward, setting challenging goals for the future.
“We have six pillars to our plan,” says Sarah Robins, Sustainability Manager at Banner. “These encompass Supply Chain, Products, Customers, Environment, Community and People. To make a lasting difference requires more than one headline measure.
“Preparing the report has been especially challenging in the Covid-19 pandemic. It would have been easy to delay for a year, but one of our key values is ‘make the right calls’. We knew it was important to challenge ourselves with new and hopeful standards as the pandemic recedes.”
In the meantime, Banner is pressing ahead with more customer communication. This includes a special Sustainability Issue of its popular Insight newsletter for retailers.
“We want to encourage others to join us on our sustainability journey,” concludes Leech. “No one company has all the answers, nor can we make progress alone. By working with our supply chain partners we can make an even bigger difference.”
The Sustainability Report 2020, Building a Greener and Fairer Future is available to download here.
