Sir Terry Leahy says green is the only way to grow
Rosie Baker is Marketing Week’s specialist on sustainability and retail – and the two topics often go hand-in-hand. Her blog focuses on all things to do with sustainability, Corporate Social Responsibility and ethical business.
Going green is the only way retailers can hope to grow their business in the future. It must be true, because Sir Terry Leahy said so.
I was at the Retail London Conference today (6 April), mostly to hear the former Tesco CEO speak, although there was a host of other interesting stuff going on.
His presentation basically gave a run through of Tesco’s history and how it got from being a struggling retailer with a bit of an image problem in the 90s, to being one of the biggest retailers in the world today.
He also pinpointed sustainability as one of the ways retail businesses can drive future growth.
Here’s what he said: “There has got to be a revolution in consumption. People often ask if businesses can be green and grow at the same time. The truth is you won’t grow unless you’re green. Customers and legislation will demand that the company you offer them is compatible with sustainability.”
