The National Retail Federation (NRF) of the United States has launched a Center for Retail Sustainability (CRS), which will serve as the industry’s hub to support retailers’ efforts to generate economic value while creating net positive environmental, social and community benefits.
- The initial areas of focus of the CRS include leveraging consumer insights around sustainability products and practices, facilitating the emergence of the circular economy, sponsored by Deloitte, and improving supply chain traceability within the retail industry.
- The CRS will be headed by NRF Vice-President of Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability Scot Case, who will serve as executive director.
- It will be governed by an external advisory board comprising senior-level sustainability executives, industry partners, academics and other subject matter experts. Additionally, it will leverage existing activities from NRF’s Sustainability Council.
- NRF will host an exclusive Sustainable Retail Workshop on 16 January 2024 as part of NRF 2024: Retail’s Big Show in New York City. The half-day programme will include a deep dive into important aspects of the circular economy.
The areas of focus: The NRF has identified the following areas:
- Consumer insights: Leveraging consumer insights to support a broader understanding about what consumers mean when they express a desire to buy more sustainable products, how different consumers understand sustainability differently, how sustainability priorities shift from product category to product category, and how retailers can better understand the sustainability priorities of their consumers.
- Circular economy: Facilitating the emergence of the circular economy by supporting retailer efforts to reduce waste; improve recycling efforts; sell products made from recycled, regenerative and other innovative materials; collect, refurbish and resell products; and improve retail’s reverse logistics processes.
- Supply chain traceability: Improving supply chain traceability solutions by clarifying retailer and consumer needs, identifying existing tools, mapping overlapping and unique areas of focus, and supporting standards for data collection and data sharing protocols.
The federation: The NRF advocates for the people, brands, policies and ideas that help retail succeed. From its headquarters in Washington, DC, NRF empowers the industry that powers the economy.
- As the leading authority and voice for the retail industry, NRF engages with retailers and other sustainability stakeholders to deliver insights on innovations and sustainability practices within the retail industry and facilitates collaboration across the sector.
What they said:
The NRF Center for Retail Sustainability will augment industry sustainability efforts and resources across the retail sector, centralizing engagement across the full retail value chain. Its work will highlight the many ways retailers are making their own operations more sustainable and making it easier for consumers to find high-quality, affordable and more sustainable products.
— Matthew Shay
President and CEO
National Retail Federation
We are excited to work with NRF to scale successful sustainability solutions across the retail sector. With deep experience in the retail sector, retail supply chains and sustainability, Deloitte can help drive positive outcomes in supporting our industry move forward, including the Center’s development of an initial circularity roadmap for the retail industry.
— James Cascone
Sustainability, climate and equity leader, and advisory partner
Deloitte & Touche
