Meeting and Exceeding Company-Wide Goals for Worker Well-Being, Fair Trade, Organic Cotton and GreenGuard
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) today released their 2017 Corporate
Responsibility Scorecard, demonstrating strong progress towards
company-wide goals for responsible sourcing, sustainable design,
landfill diversion, energy and carbon intensity, supply chain
development, corporate giving, and volunteering. For the first time,
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (WSI) has aligned the Corporate Responsibility
Scorecard to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a
global framework for achieving a better, more sustainable future for
all, and is actively contributing to nine of the SDGs.
“As we meet and exceed the company-wide goals set out in our annual
Corporate Responsibility Scorecard, we are proud to know that our
breadth and scale expand our impact beyond our own company into the
global home industry,” said Laura Alber, President and CEO,
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. “Ultimately, at the center of everything we do
is our customer; they are the ones who drive change whenever they
purchase responsible, sustainable products. Their values are our values,
and we’re grateful to be on this journey with them.”
Highlights from the 2017 Corporate Responsibility Scorecard include:
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Worker Well-Being: A new goal of educating and empowering
100,000 workers by 2020. Through partnership with HERproject and
VisionSpring, WSI has already reached a third of this goal, reporting
improved financial and health-related knowledge of 30,000 workers in
their supply chain.
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Fair Trade: Fair Trade has launched across all WSI brands, with
over 5,000 Fair Trade Certified SKUs from bedding at Pottery Barn, to
rugs at West Elm, to food at Williams Sonoma. To-date, WSI has also
paid over one million dollars in Fair Trade premiums, achieving a
third of WSI’s overall goal of paying three million dollars in Fair
Trade premiums by 2020.
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Organic Cotton: Through partnerships with the Global Organic
Textiles Standard (GOTS) and the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), WSI
has achieved 50% responsibly sourced cotton across the company and is
halfway to its goal of 100% responsibly sourced cotton by 2021. These
achievements have earned WSI recognition from the Textile Exchange as
a top 10 company using organic cotton and preferred fibers, the
Sustainable Furnishings Council as the 2nd highest-ranking company
sourcing responsible wood, and Barron’s as the 14th most sustainable
company worldwide.
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GreenGuard: WSI is on track to reach 100% GreenGuard
certification for Pottery Barn Kids brand nursery and bedroom
furniture by 2018, ensuring that brand furniture products for WSI’s
youngest customers meet the highest standards for indoor air quality.
This year, WSI launched the Pottery Barn Modern Baby Collection, which
features 100% organic cotton and 100% GreenGuard certified bedroom and
nursery furniture.
Williams-Sonoma. Inc.’s corporate sustainability efforts extend to every
part of the business - from operations, to product and materials, to
people and communities. The company is constantly seeking ways to
support innovative programs that deliver social and business impact to
reinforce their commitment to creating quality products and providing
sustainable options for every room of the house. To learn more about
WSI’s commitments around these three focus areas: operations, products
and materials, and people and communities, please visit the WSI CSR website.
About Williams-Sonoma, Inc.
Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is a specialty retailer of high-quality products
for the home. These products, representing distinct merchandise
strategies — Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, West Elm,
PBteen, Williams Sonoma Home, Rejuvenation, and Mark and Graham — are
marketed through e-commerce websites, direct-mail catalogs and retail
stores. These brands are also part of The Key Rewards, our free-to-join
loyalty program that offers members exclusive benefits across the
Williams-Sonoma family of brands. We operate in the U.S., Puerto Rico,
Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, offer international shipping
to customers worldwide, and have unaffiliated franchisees that operate
stores in the Middle East, the Philippines, Mexico and South Korea, as
well as e-commerce websites in certain locations. In 2017, we acquired
Outward, Inc., a 3-D imaging and augmented reality platform for the home
furnishings and décor industry.
