Green: The new gold

Tired of hearing people talk about “carbon footprints?” If you supply Wal-Mart, or want to, don't expect this discussion to stop.

By Tom Andel, Editor in chief -- Modern Materials Handling, 1/1/2008

Tired of hearing people talk about “carbon footprints?” If you supply Wal-Mart, or want to, don't expect this discussion to stop.

Modern Materials Handling recently interviewed Andrew Winston, author of “Green to Gold,” the keynote speaker at NA 2008 in Cleveland on April 22. Here are highlights from that interview as they pertain to environmental sustainability and the changes at the world’s biggest retailer.

On meeting with the CEOs of Wal-Mart's suppliers:

“These companies were being asked to innovate and create more green products to fill Wal-Mart's shelves. Wal-Mart's CEO Lee Scott said this is not a fad, but a trend.

It's a trend because irresistible forces are driving it. We're all starting to feel the effects of climate change. Customers and other stakeholders are starting to demand environmental accountability. That makes this a challenging time for business, but there's a big opportunity as well.”

On the benefits of environmental sustainability:

“Companies are changing processes and products and finding new ways to innovate. These innovations are saving money, lowering risk, driving new revenues and building brand value. They're also lowering emissions. Wal-Mart has some of the leanest stores in the world. The company has set new targets to cut store energy use another 25-30% and their store ops managers are finding ways to do it. They're putting doors on the refrigerated cases and saving 70% of the energy in that aisle. They're recapturing the heat from their refrigeration to heat the store.”

On the need for commitment to the environment:

“Sustainability isn't just a fad; it’s a fundamentally new, and better, way of doing business. The Wall Street Journal said that Wal-Mart’s business model is dying—that big stores are going away.  So if Wal-Mart’s commitment to sustainability were just a fad, it would have let go of it already. But with sustainability as a core philosophy, Wal-Mart is finding its costs are lower, its employees are more engaged, its reputation is much better, it’s attracting customers in new ways, and the products are better. The company is sustaining both business and the environment.”