Estée Lauder Promotes Sustainability with Responsible Store Design Program

In its efforts to encourage retail sustainability and reach its environmental goals, cosmetics giant Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) has launched its Responsible Store Design Program.

The program aims to provide a framework to be used in assessing new and existing retail shops worldwide in different sustainability-related aspects, including water and energy conservation, responsible material sourcing, and waste reduction.

For brands to be included in the program, they must meet the set prerequisites, which vary depending on the type of store and retail space. New stores are evaluated using points, based on their sustainability efforts across their operations.

Meanwhile, existing stores will be evaluated using a checklist to verify if they meet the program’s core sustainability requirements.

According to ELC’s press release, the brand sought the assistance of a consulting firm that specialises in green building design and further reviewed by third-party to check the framework’s accuracy.

The beauty brand also aims to launch the program outside of its pilot stores. “We're excited to launch our branded retail sustainability program and look forward to scaling this work beyond our pilot stores to impact retail operations globally in the future,” said Al Iannuzzi, vice president of sustainability at ELC.

There are already six stores that are aligned with the program’s framework as of this writing, including the brand’s Origins store in Nanjing Deji Plaza in China. The store met all the prerequisites and scored 26 points.