David Jones and Country Road Group are on a 'Good Business Journey', an ESG framework across seven key areas such as ethical trade, waste stewardship and sourcing of raw materials.
Overseeing this process is Eloise Bishop, head of sustainability at David Jones and Country Road Group.
Sitting in the role for four years, Bishop has actioned key sustainability goals such as the launch of Country Road’s first Five Star Green fashion retail store at Chadstone in 2019.
“When we launched the Five Star Green Star store at Chadstone, it created the template for all new Country Road stores across Australia and New Zealand,” Bishop says.
“Not only does this provide an opportunity to use innovative sustainable materials in the build – such as carpets made from fishing nets and bench tops made from yoghurt tops – we are able to connect with our customers in store on the importance of sustainability.
“We are fortunate to have face-to-face environments where we can educate and engage with our customers on a genuine level, to build local community, and to hear important feedback to improve our products, our business and our sustainability efforts,” she says.
However, the stores provide much more than just a feedback and education space for the retailers; they play a key role in the sustainability strategy too. Working towards a goal of net zero carbon impact by 2040, Bishop oversaw the introduction of LED lighting into David Jones stores. The first change to LED lights in 2019 at the Doncaster store saw approximately 30% energy saving on overall consumption immediately.
Meanwhile, the growth of eCommerce purchases during the pandemic drove a greater focus on packaging, with the business’ Australia Post online delivery satchels made from 80% recycled content and recyclable through the REDcycle program. Further, David Jones has also replaced its plastic void-fill and bubble wrap with FSC certified paper alternatives.
It's not just the business’ own packaging and materials that it’s focusing on. It’s also finding ways for its customers to properly dispose of their waste too.
“Through David Jones’ BeautyCycle program, in partnership with TerraCycle, customers can recycle their beauty packaging in-store,” Bishop explains.
“Additionally, customers can recycle unwanted clothing through our numerous partnerships across the Group; Country Road’s Fashion Trade in partnership with the Australian Red Cross, Witchery’s partnership with Fitted for Work, and David Jones donates excess stock to Thread Together,” Bishop says.
The retailers are also offering customers the opportunity to purchase products made from recycled materials.
“This includes products with fabric made with recycled cotton or recycled polyester, and more experimental initiatives like Mimco’s previous collaboration with artist Alice Potts on a limited-edition capsule jewellery collection, crafted using upcycled materials and sustainably produced sequins created from biomaterials,” Bishop explains.
And while the businesses are offering customers more sustainable ways of purchasing and disposing of products, it also wants to encourage a longer ‘use’ phase of its products.
“We’ve introduced a number of partnerships across the groups that enable customers to rent clothing; David Jones, Country Road and Witchery’s partnerships with Glam Corner, as well as the ability to buy luxury items second hand via David Jones’ new partnership with Blue Spinach,” Bishop says.
“David Jones and Country Road Group continue to adapt and evolve our sustainability strategy, which includes moving towards more circular systems of production and extending the ‘use’ phase of our products for as long as possible, as well as finding more sustainable end of life solutions,” she says.
Part of the adaptation of the strategy also includes reacting to customers’ changing purchasing behaviours, Bishop explains.
“Our Country Road customers care about quality – especially following the Black Summer bushfires in 2019-20 and more recently, the pandemic.
“More and more Australians are showing a passion to support Australian-made and purchase clothes made here,” she says.
This shift was backed up by Country Road’s insights which showed that 64% of Australians support onshore manufacturing even if it’s more expensive. Additionally, 80% of members consider Country Road using Australian wool and cotton as very important, and 76% want to know the origins of materials used.
“The last 18 months has been a time of great reflection and a driver of change for Country Road – we’ve made a conscious effort to look to our own backyard and ask how we can further support local; local farmers, local manufacturers, local communities,” Bishop explains.
“We came to realise that as an iconic Australian brand founded in Melbourne, manufacturing in Australia was the right thing to do,” she says. Hence, the production of the 90s Heritage Sweat, which resonated strongly with customers, selling more than 15,000 units, Country Road CEO Elle Roseby revealed to Ragtrader in September.
However, the business isn’t stopping there, Bishop explains.
“Our next step in locally made apparel included the September release of the Australian Made t-shirt in menswear, and we’re excited to continue this journey hand-in-hand with our local manufacturers.
“This isn’t something we’re doing once and forgetting about, our commitment to supporting Australian manufacturing is here to stay.
“We’re proud to develop products which are worn here, by the people who made them.
“We have some exciting initiatives due to launch next year that strengthen this commitment further,” she says.
Another customer behaviour shift driven by COVID includes the move to more mindful consumption and purchasing, Bishop explains.
“We are increasingly seeing support for shoppable sustainable edits. It may be that during periods of lockdown we have questioned the amount of clothing and other products we need, as well as becoming more aware of the fragility of our planet, both of which can lead customers to making more considered purchases that are aligned to their values,” she says.
The retailers’ sustainability strategies have also had to adapt to the disruption of supply chains during COVID-19.
“The pandemic has had a devastating impact on many parts of our global network, reinforcing the importance of tracing our supply chain; knowing where our materials have come from and who has been involved in their production, so we can help mitigate and support those people and communities,” Bishop says.
“Given the huge number of suppliers we work with in India, we made donations to those impacted by COVID there via the Red Cross, as well as supporting our South African based parent company, Woolworths Holding’s Christmas Appeal supporting those affected by the pandemic locally,” she says.
In the year ahead, David Jones and Country Road Group will continue their mission under the Good Business Journey, focusing on key goals across supply chains, commodities and energy.
These targets include achieving net zero carbon impact by 2024; sourcing 100% of energy from renewable sources by 2030; having a fully transparent and ethical supply chain by 2025; developing a roadmap to achieve a living wage for all workers in its supply chain by 2022; having a fully transparent and traceable supply chain by 2025 and and the exclusive use of reusable or recyclable packaging by 2022.
“We are also developing a new diversity and inclusivity strategy, Inclusive Justice, to ensure we care for our people and are committed to being a diverse and inclusive business, enhancing the wellbeing of our people, customers and communities,” Bishop adds.