Gucci goes green

The luxury brand is getting more eco-friendly, but that could open its brands up to some unwanted scrutiny.

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By Peter Gumbel, Europe editor

May 6, 2009: 1:07 PM ET

Sergio Rossi's stiletto shoe - the Eco Pump - has a sole and heel made of liquid wood.

LONDON (Fortune) -- Frida Giannini, the creative director of Gucci, has designed a $185 limited-edition T-shirt made of organic cotton and natural dyes. Sergio Rossi is launching a stiletto shoe called the Eco Pump, whose sole and heel are made of liquid wood.

At Bottega Veneta, there's a specially-designed environmental tote bag free for customers spending more than $1,500, and Alexander McQueen has come up with a signature scarf featuring a picture of the earth morphed into a skull.

0:00 /1:57Luxury shopping perks

The Gucci Group is going green big time next month, to coincide with the launch of a new movie about the plight of the planet Earth that is being sponsored by Gucci's parent, France's PPR Group.

The movie, called "Home," is by French aerial-photography specialist Yann Arthus-Bertrand, and will be released worldwide on June 5 in movie theaters and on TV in more than 80 countries - and especially online.

Google has agreed to stream the high-definition movie on specially-dedicated YouTube pages for 10 days. In the U.S. it's being distributed by Fox and will be shown on the National Geographic channel.

At a time when sales of luxury goods are reeling from the economic slump, giving brands a green tinge amounts to a different - but potentially risky - way of keeping them in the public eye.

François-Henri Pinault, the CEO of PPR, whose $13 million sponsorship covered most of the movie's costs, insists that he's not supporting the project for its potential effects on business, but as part of a bigger commitment to reduce the company's environmental impact.

"We're not doing this for our revenues," Pinault told Fortune. He acknowledges that there's a risk for a consumer-goods company putting so much emphasis on ecology since it opens the various brands up to criticism of any production methods or products that don't meet a high environmental standard.

"No brand is perfect," Pinault says. "It'll be the responsibility of the brands not to disappoint." He gives one example: "I hope Frida (Giannini) will now say no to using fur."

Whatever the motive, it's an opportunity that the Gucci brands aren't letting pass by - and are eager to tell the world about their philanthropy. Profits from most of the products will be donated to a charity that Arthus-Bertrand founded.

Stella McCartney may end up making the biggest splash. A vegetarian who has long refused to use leather or fur in her designs, McCartney is planning to host a special screening of the movie at her store in West Hollywood on June 5 with a range of VIPs in attendance, including Laura Dern, Ben Harper, Anjelica Huston and Salma Hayek - who is married to Pinault.

Buyers Prove More Cost-Conscious than Eco-Conscious

by Bob Makofsky bmakofsky@conformerinc.com

April 28, 2009 · No Comments

I love trees - don’t get me wrong - but I am just now shaking off my Earth Day media hangover. My favorite misguided environmental piece argued the environmental impact of bicycle frame materials: specifically, whether carbon fiber was recyclable or not, and if it was more environmentally responsible to buy a steel bike.

We have been marketing environmentally conscious mailing products for some time. I can say from experience that many companies are missing the environmental mark. Consumers and corporations talk about making purchasing decisions based on environmental factors, but when it comes time to hand over the credit card, everything circles back to price.

I point to the hybrid car market as a perfect example. Sixteen months ago, there was a three month waiting list for a Toyota Prius. Fuel prices were near $4. But now that fuel has dropped to $2, Toyota is offering Prius rebates. Hybrids cost more, and with a sudden drop in fuel costs, hybrid sales went “From 60 to 0 at breakneck speed.” What happened to carbon footprints and dependence on foreign energy?

There is no mystery here. Environmental consciousness is terrific, but at the end of the day, consumers and corporations will only buy an eco-friendly alternative if it performs the same task and costs the same or less than traditional products.

by Bob Makofsky bmakofsky@conformerinc.com

Greening Print Marketing: What’s Your Mail’s Carbon Footprint?

Written by Heidi Tolliver-Nigro
Published on March 9th, 2009
Posted in Sustainable Business

Mail is a small overall contribution to a consumer’s environmental footprint. After all, according to a Pitney Bowes study on the environmental impact of mail, paper is increasingly manufactured from renewable resources, paper companies are increasingly running on renewable energy and running a single refrigerator for a year creates the same carbon footprint of delivering 5,000 letters.

At the same time — I would counter — direct mailers, catalogers, and others who produce massive volumes of mail can make a huge environmental difference (especially corporately) by making small, incremental changes individually. Simply because of those volumes. Once we start making changes at the source, the impact of the effort is magnified.

Here are some interesting nutshells from the report:

* » See also: Greening Print Marketing: Printers Using 100% Wind Power — Updated List
* » Get The Inspired Economist by RSS or sign up by email.

* Direct mail accounts for about 2% of the total tonnage of the US municipal waste stream, and of that, almost 39% of direct mail in the US was recycled in 2006.
* The distribution of letter mail generates, on average, about 20 grams of CO2 per letter delivered.
* A survey of more than a dozen studies shows that the indicative range of CO2 emissions associated with the upstream mail piece creation process is about 0.9 – 1.3 grams of CO2 per gram of paper.

Because paper and electronic communications are intertwined in the life cycle of mail, Pitney Bowes emphasizes that an attempt to substitute electronic communications simply represents a redistribution of the total carbon footprint, rather than eliminating it. In my view, this is a warning shot across the bow for people who think they can “go green” simply by replacing mail with email and other electronic communications.

The good news is, the mailing industry is investing in programs and initiatives to further reduce the environmental impact associated with all six life cycle stages of letter mail. The white paper makes a variety of suggestions for starting points for additional research and monitoring in order to continuously reduce the carbon footprint of the mailing industry.

The paper examined available data sources to determine the indicative range of CO2 emissions generated by various stages throughout the life cycle of physical letter mail.

Six life cycle stages of letter mail were identified:
(1) mail design
(2) manufacturing the writing paper and envelope
(3) production of the letter
(4) distribution of the letter
(5) use
(6) disposal.

The company also examined some of the mail’s environmental impact beyond CO2 emissions, such as the actual rates of net forest deforestation and the accumulation of waste mail pieces in landfills.

A copy of the white paper can be accessed here.

Like this post? See all my “Greening Print Marketing” posts.

Photo courtesy of Pitney Bowes, “The Environmental Impact of Direct Mail”

U.S. Businesses Purchase Record Amount of Renewable Energy in 2008:

Green-e Marketplace participants purchase 2.8 million MWh of certified renewable energy, led by Intel, PepsiCo

By CostBenefit on Mar 8, 2009 | In General, Air, Energy, Climate Change GHG Carbon CO2, U.S., Companies,CSR,Business,Finance, Press Release (May be biased) | Send feedback »

Link: http://www.resource-solutions.org/pressreleases/2009/012709.htm

2008 saw record voluntary purchases of Green-e® Energy Certified renewable energy by businesses in the Green-e Marketplace program, announced Center for Resource Solutions (CRS). These purchases were led by Intel Corp, PepsiCo, and Mohawk Paper. Intel made the largest purchase of renewable energy in history, with a 1.3 million megawatt-hour (MWh) purchase in January. PepsiCo was the second-biggest purchaser.

The growth in the overall voluntary market for renewable energy has been driven by large commercial purchases of renewable energy certificates (RECs), which represent electricity produced from clean, naturally renewable resources like wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass. Green power sales increased over 50% in 2007 over the previous year overall, with REC sales up 55%, according to the Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

"Buying renewable energy for nearly 50% of our U.S. operations was an important element of our continuing, multifaceted efforts to support clean energy and the environment, which includes conservation, pilot solar installations and renewable electric supplies" said Marty Sedler, Director of Global Utilities and Infrastructure at Intel. "It is critical that all purchases are certified and validated by a respected, independent certification program like Green-e to ensure the highest quality and integrity of our actions."

The third-party nonprofit certification program Green-e Energy certified 69% of the overall voluntary renewable energy market in 2007, and companies that buy a qualifying amount of certified renewable energy are eligible to join Green-e Marketplace and display the logo. These organizations voluntarily support energy generated from renewable sources, which displace other non-renewable sources from the electric grid. Total purchases by Green-e Marketplace participants exceeded 2.8 million MWh in 2008. Organizations that joined the program in 2008 include Avatar New York, Beaulieu Commercial, Becton Dickinson Infusion Therapy Systems, Inc., Cascades Tissue Group, Hall Street Storage, Intel Corporation, K-1 Packaging Group, Marian Heath Greeting Cards, Millipore Corporation, The Philadelphia Phillies, Solberg Manufacturing, and Unboundary.

"Our purchase of Green-e Certified RECs further advances our commitment to sustainability and helps make a positive impact in the communities we serve across the country," said Maria DeLorenzo, PepsiCo Sustainability Communications. "Our three-year purchase of more than one million MWh annually is the same amount of electricity needed to power nearly 90,000 average American homes annually, as estimated by the U.S. EPA based on national averages. This financial instrument stimulates and supports the development of renewable electricity, and our investment matches the purchased electricity used by all of PepsiCo's U.S.-based manufacturing facilities, headquarters, distribution centers, and regional offices."

The renewable energy market depends on the growing demand from large commercial purchases. NREL reported in the latest edition of its annual Green Power Marketing in the United States, a Status Report that purchases like these account for over half of green power market sales. "Green power purchases by commercial customers are one of the main drivers of growth in this market," said Barry Friedman, co-author of the report.

About Green-e Marketplace
Green-e Marketplace provides forward-thinking organizations with a simple, nationally recognized tool they can use to communicate their commitment to renewable energy to their customers and shareholders. The Green-e logo is the nation's leading symbol of renewable energy excellence and distinguishes Green-e Marketplace participants as environmental leaders. Companies such as PepsiCo, Santa Cruz Organics, and Lundberg Family Farms display the logo on products that are manufactured with renewable energy—educating millions of consumers about the value of renewable energy. To learn more about Green-e Marketplace, visit www.green-e.org/marketplace.

About Center for Resource Solutions
Green-e is a program of Center for Resource Solutions (CRS), a San Francisco–based nonprofit with a global impact. CRS brings forth expert responses to pertinent climate change issues with the speed and effectiveness necessary to provide real-time solutions to ongoing environmental problems. CRS's leadership through collaboration and environmental innovation builds policies and consumer protection mechanisms that foster healthy and sustained growth in national and international markets for environmental solutions to climate change including renewable energy and energy efficiency. To learn more, visit www.resource-solutions.org.

Center for Resource Solutions www.resource-solutions.org
http://www.resource-solutions.org/pressreleases/2009/012709.htm
Press Release dated January 27, 2009

Google: Clean Energy Goes ‘Straight to the Bottom Line’

Google chief executive Eric Schmidt has a simple message: The clean-energy revolution is a money-spinner.

At the WSJ’s ECO:nomics conference in California, Mr. Schmidt was asked how he would respond to Google shareholders who worry the Internet titan is taking its eye off the ball by paying so much attention lately to alternative energy.

“Money we save on energy goes straight to the bottom line. Lower costs mean higher earnings. Green energy done right is more profitable than old energy,” Mr. Schmidt said. “Is that a crisp enough answer for you?”

He cited Google’s own multi-trillion dollar blueprint for overhauling the U.S. energy mix. Sure, the pricetag looks hefty—but it would more than pay for itself.

“That’s $3.5 trillion, but over 22 years, not a matter of months,” Mr. Schmidt said. “And the benefit would be $4.4 trillion.”

Read more

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Top Outdoor Companies Adopt Green Poster Tech

The companies will print the next-generation posters on polyethylene flexx, the most commonly-recycled plastic in the world

As Seen On Mediaweek.com - To see full story click here

March 1, 2009

-By Katy Bachman

Say goodbye to a classic term in the out-of-home media business: “30-sheets.”

Also known as posters, the most common, smaller billboard product is getting an eco-makeover. Not only are the new eco-posters completely recyclable, they look better because they’re printed on one continuous sheet rather than 30.

As of March 1, the three largest outdoor companies, Clear Channel, CBS Outdoor, and Lamar Advertising--which represent 65 percent of the nation’s 220,000 poster inventory--no longer accept the old 30-sheet posters, which require “paper and paste” to install and contribute about 150 million pounds annually to the nation’s landfills.

The companies will print the next-generation posters on polyethylene flexx, the most commonly-recycled plastic in the world. Once the posters come down, they are recycled into
railroad ties, for which there is plenty of demand.

Eco-posters represent the biggest change to the outdoor product since the 1980s, when vinyl was introduced to replace pure paint and paper on bulletins, the largest billboard product. “This reinvigorates the poster [product],” said Rocky Sisson, executive vp of sales and marketing at Clear Channel Outdoor. “Not only is it recyclable, it maintains its visible
integrity longer.” The old posters only lasted 30 days; eco-posters last 90 days.

Jill Nickerson, vp and director of out-of-home at Horizon Media, started using the eco-posters for a few clients in January and liked the results. “The reproductive qualities were fantastic and they were able to post much quicker than using paste,” she said.

But like any major product change, this one literally has its wrinkles that need to be ironed out. If the eco-poster isn’t properly installed (think of stretching a canvas across a frame), the poster can wrinkle in places.

Kinetic, the largest buyer of outdoor posters, found that out via its recent field audit in Chicago. “The reality is that there is a learning curve for the vendors, and the advertisers pay for it in the short term,” said John Connolly, Kinetic COO. “More testing on both the material and application technique should have been conducted on a larger scale before refusing paper and paste in major markets.”

Outdoor companies believe wrinkling is easily solved. “It’s usually a result of inexperienced installation. Once the installer has been trained correctly it is easily remedied,” said Tony Alwin, Clear Channel Outdoor’s senior vp of marketing.

Eco-posters also cost more. The outdoor companies argue that since they last longer, the cost increase is minimal. But that’s only if the poster is up for 90 days. Most advertisers change copy more frequently. Connolly estimated that for a 30-day poster the cost is about one and a half to two times more.

“It’s a little more expensive, but the cost will drop and come down within a few years,” said Bobby Switzer, vp of operations at Lamar Advertising. “If you take the [cost of the] space and production as a whole, it’s a fractional difference.”

Installation problems and cost issues aside, no one in the business wants to go back to the old product. “Everyone wants to make this happen. Who wouldn’t be for a greener business?” Connolly said. “If it performs as designed, it will be a far superior product.”

Complying with the Environmental Marketing Guides

To read the entire guide on the FTC Website Click Here

This publication provides the FTC Staff's view of the law's requirements.
It is not binding on the Commission.

Introduction

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) seeks to prevent deception and unfairness in the marketplace. The FTC Act gives the Commission the power to bring law enforcement actions against false or misleading marketing claims, including environmental or "green" marketing claims. The FTC issued its Environmental Guides, often referred to as the "Green Guides," in 1992, and revised them most recently in 1998. The Guides indicate how the Commission will apply Section 5 of the FTC Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices, to environmental marketing claims.

Like other industry guides issued by the FTC, the Environmental Guides "are administrative interpretations of laws administered by the Commission for the guidance of the public in conducting its affairs in conformity with legal requirements." Conduct that is inconsistent with the positions in the Environmental Guides may result in corrective action by the Commission, if after investigation, the Commission has reason to believe that the conduct violates prohibitions against unfair or deceptive acts or practices.

The Environmental Guides apply to all forms of marketing for products and services: advertisements, labels, package inserts, promotional materials, words, symbols, logos, product brand names, and marketing through digital or electronic media, such as the Internet or email. They apply to any claim, express or implied, about the environmental attributes of a product, package or service in connection with the sale, offering for sale or marketing of the product, package or service for personal, family or household use, or for commercial, institutional or industrial use. See the complete text of the Environmental Guides.

This booklet provides the FTC staff's view of the law's requirements. It is not binding on the Commission.

Environmental Marketing Claims

The FTC looks at all advertising from the consumer's perspective: what message does the advertising actually convey to consumers? The Environmental Guides explain how consumers are likely to interpret environmental marketing claims so that marketers can avoid making false or misleading claims. The Guides give environmental claims the meaning that consumers give them, not necessarily the technical or scientific definition of terms. Also, they do not establish standards for environmental performance or prescribe testing protocols.

For environmental claims that the Guides do not address specifically, FTC law requires substantiation for all reasonable interpretations of an ad. Sometimes, it may be necessary to do research to determine how consumers interpret an ad.