Estée Lauder Issues ‘Future Beautiful’ Report

The Estée Lauder Companies has published its “Future Beautiful: Our Progress on Sustainability and Citizenship in 2016: report, which highlights the beauty giant’s progress across five key areas of sustainability and citizenship.
 
Significant achievements lauded by ELC over the past year include the creation of The Estée Lauder Companies Charitable Foundation — and its initiative aimed at improving educational opportunities for girls worldwide; Good Works, a new program through which the company matches employee contributions of both volunteer time and monetary donations; and a new environmental goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 to help the world mitigate the effects of climate change.
 
“Sustainability and citizenship is about how we do business. How we create long-term value and continually deliver a sustainable business model,” said William P. Lauder, executive chairman.
 
“Our long-term success rests on our ability to embed sustainable practices along our value chain. We believe that citizenship and sustainability are essential to our success as a business and our responsibilities as a global company,” added Fabrizio Freda, president and CEO.
 
In fiscal 2016, ELC launched a carbon-footprint analysis for all packaging types across our brands—some 68 packaging types in all to understand our packaging’s current carbon footprint and projected footprint based on the growth we expect in our business. 
 
ELC-owned brands Aveda and M•A•C continued to explore new innovations in sustainable packaging. For example, Aveda launched a makeup-pencil sharpener that employs 100% post-consumer recycled plastic resin derived from makeup components returned through the “Back to M•A•C program, which encourages guests to bring back used makeup components that can’t be recycled through curbside or residential recycling programs. In addition, Aveda’s package designers continued to explore the use of plant-based feedstock for the plastic used in its packages, with the aim of scaling its use across the Aveda brand and others.
 
In addition to ELC said it is encouraging sustainability among our packaging suppliers. ELC said it surveys all component and third-party manufacturers and compiles their responses in scorecards that guide purchasing decisions, noting that sustainability “is one of the criteria we use in making purchasing decisions, along with quality, price and innovation, among others.”
 
In fiscal 2015 and fiscal 2016, 271 of its packaging component and third-party manufacturers—72% of the 377 surveyed—completed the Supplier Sustainability Survey, according to Lauder’s estimates.
 
The full report can be accessed here.