Spanish clothing giant Inditex, the world’s largest clothing retailer, is setting up a sustainability committee within its board of directors to oversee the group’s sustainability strategy and policies.
The move was announced in the group’s first-quarter earnings statement yesterday (12 June), which saw a 10% jump in net profits lifted by a record EUR5.93bn sales.
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Along with overseeing Inditex’s “total commitment to sustainability,” the new sustainability committee will supervise the group’s supply chain monitoring effort and the relationship with the various stakeholders with a vested interest in sustainability and with the CSR board; it will verify compliance with the group’s health and safety and human rights standards all along the value chain and with the sustainability information reporting process; and any other issue or initiative that impacts or could impact the company’s sustainability.
Among sustainability initiatives introduced by Inditex during the quarter was a EUR3.5m sustainability-driven research agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technologies (MIT) to investigate new recycling techniques.
Meanwhile, more of its brands are featuring the Join Life label, which promotes excellence in terms of the most environmentally-friendly production processes, particularly related to the use of water and the choice of recyclable, sustainable and/or organic raw materials.
Its stores are moving towards full eco-efficiency by 2020; while other initiatives include new reusable Zara bags made from recycled paper. The retail group is also continuing to extend its Closing the Loop programme to collect used clothing for recovery, reuse or recycling.
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By GlobalData
