Is 'Green' Really Your Thing?

The annual Greenbuild Intl. Conference and Expo took place this year Oct. 5-7 (the exhibition halls were open Oct. 5 and 6) in sunny Los Angeles. Between sustainable carpets, spray-foam insulations and LEDs, the show had much to offer in terms of education, trends and insights. 

The educational sessions were intriguing – one, in particular, called “The Path to Red List Free: Product Ingredient Transparency,” delved into the toxic materials found in many products, from carpeting to furniture, and examined how those materials affect people within an environment. I, for one, had no idea that many furniture pieces include added formaldehyde, or that hazardous elements in certain kinds of paint have the potential to make pregnant mothers sick. While you’re not sticking the aforementioned paint or materials in your mouth (hopefully!), you’re still touching them and breathing air from the same space, and so are your children and pets. (Can you tell it really freaked me out?)

In that same vein, many suppliers and manufacturers were showcasing their Declare labels this year – an initiative spearheaded by the Intl. Living Future Institute (Seattle) – basically a nutrition label for products, ranging from toilets to flooring. The label lists the specific product’s ingredients, so consumers can see what “red list” ingredients – toxic materials still frequently used by manufacturers – may be included, if any.

Besides the various educational sessions geared primarily toward designers, retailers, architects and the vendors on the show floor that dabble in our industry, the event didn’t scream “retail” to me. Many of the booths were meant for the commercial, residential, education and healthcare industries, and the lectures were more viable for those already well-acquainted with green terminology and ideas.

Sure, there were retail designers and some retailers in attendance, but it still made me wonder: How interested are retailers in green products and design? How much are they actually paying attention to this industry sector? At the magazine, we have seen biodegradable and recyclable props and decoratives, materials derived from reclaimed wood and one, in particular, that’s fabricated using recycled fishing nets, along with the occasional piece of furniture repurposed from an old propane tank. But who is buying this stuff and really embracing the notion of “green design?”

I recently interviewed Gabrielle Rosi, a VMSD Editorial Advisory Board member and senior design coordinator for Whole Foods Market (Austin, Texas), regarding her thoughts on sustainable products. She explained that whether or not retailers are interested, vendors are simply making more green products in general. In essence, they’re becoming more of the standard.   

While this may be true – and I certainly have observed this in the carpet and flooring sectors, especially – why aren’t more retailers “going green?” Some retailers may express their interest in “saving the environment,” but not all of them are putting it into practice. And a lot of this has to do with ROI.

When retailers are expected to renovate their environments every five, 10 or 15 years, can they expect to make the money back that they’ve put into sustainable design? Beyond the products, getting LEED-certified seems to be a headache and a half, and it’s also not the easiest on a pocketbook. And for those product categories where sustainable elements may not yet be the standard, or for those retailers who aren’t ready to break the bank to go green, what can they do? I believe they can take the time to get more involved and learn more about this industry niche. At best, the interest from retailers seems lackluster in comparison to some of these commercial builders.

For background, my specialty is originally in journalism, not design, nor retail. So I find that looking in on this sustainability industry from an outsider’s perspective, can be complicated and a bit overwhelming.

Presenter Sara Neff, svp sustainability for Kilroy Realty Corp. (Los Angeles), gave an attention-grabbing session on “Making Your Company Walk the Sustainability Talk,” which focused on Neff’s meteoric rise through her company’s ranks and how she got them to take the notion of sustainability more seriously. Without going into much detail, she mentioned the forms she has to file, how she deals with the budget she’s allotted, among other struggles, and everything sounded so jargon-filled and head-spin-inducing that I could only imagine having to deal with that day in and day out. Does it have to be so complicated?

Maybe it does, but the conversation with retailers doesn’t have to be.

Similar to lighting products, these options need to be discussed in terms retailers (and designers) will understand and relate to. I’m not saying they’re not smart or that they’re uninterested, just that explaining the impact on ROI, the result five years down the road, the possibility of retrofitting in the future, as well as many other considerations, are important topics to breach. A range of retailers and design firms are already spearheading many sustainable projects and are super well-versed in industry standards. But that doesn’t mean everyone is in the same boat.

And there are, of course, many other things to consider that I could write another 500 to 1000 words about, like the availability of green leases, whether it even makes sense for a retailer to take on the sustainability charge, among other factors. (And if it doesn’t make sense for a company to “go green,” that’s okay. Unfortunately, it’s not always an option.)

Look, we all know it’s important to take care of the Earth and to reduce pollution. We know using reclaimed products and sustainable materials is ideal, versus manufacturing something out of virgin plastic. We know the byproducts of manufacturing can be potentially harmful to the environment. What retailers need to be educated on is why this should be important to them, specifically.

It all comes back to supporting your consumer’s interests – if they’re asking for green, give ’em green. While being a “generous brand” and practicing sustainable initiatives is the next step (e.g., Timberland’s tree-planting initiative in China), learning what it means to actually be “green” and showcase that lifestyle through your in-store environment (if it’s viable for you) is a good first step. In short, get educated on what “green” really means to you.

Greenbuild was an amazingly informative experience, but I hope to see more environmentally minded change in the retail industry represented there in the future. (All the other industries are up-to-date on these important design trends and matters, so why aren’t we?) So for all you retailers and store designers: I hope I’ll see you there next year on the trade show floor in Boston, Nov. 8-10, 2017.

Carly Hagedon is the Managing Editor of VMSD magazine. She lives and works in Cincinnati and is a 2011 graduate of the University of Cincinnati, where she studied Journalism—Magazine Writing and American history. She also currently serves as a board member for the Greater Cincinnati Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ). Prior to her foray into the retail industry, Carly worked as a freelancer for several local publications and interned at Cincinnati Magazine.