Sustainability Science

One in five (21%) retailers in Wales have cancelled contracts with suppliers across the last 12 months who don’t meet stringent ethical and sustainable standards, new research reveals.

The report out today from Barclays Corporate Banking – Reshaping retail: how ethics and sustainability are changing retail’s ecosystem – shows the pandemic and an increasing focus on Environment, Sustainability and Governance (ESG) are shifting business priorities. In a study of more than 300 retail decision makers,51% in Wales say sustainability is more important now than it was two years ago and 49% say the same about ethical standards.

Additionally, 63% of retailers in Wales think that a long-term strategy to improve their ethical and sustainable credentials is more important than overcoming short-term supply chain disruption. On average, retail businesses with more than 10 staff are investing £504,000 per year to improve their own footprints.