Smarter News Now
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact Us
  • Email Whitelisting
No Result
View All Result
  • Top News
  • Economy News
  • Forex News
  • Investing News
  • Stock News
  • Politics News
  • Editor’s Pick
  • Top News
  • Economy News
  • Forex News
  • Investing News
  • Stock News
  • Politics News
  • Editor’s Pick
No Result
View All Result
Smarter News Now
No Result
View All Result
Home Investing News

SM makes going green easier

by
June 19, 2022
in Investing News
0
SM makes going green easier
0
SHARES
10
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

1 of 2

IN the past, if one wanted more sustainable finds to place in the home or wardrobe, one needed to go to some obscure little shop run by some free spirit. This means that living sustainability, now a bit of an urgency, would have been inaccessible to many. SM Retail, Inc., the retail arm of SM Investments Corp., is now making sustainable living easier to achieve with SM Green Finds.

Like charity, sustainability begins at home, so on June 10, media guests were taken on a tour of SM Retail’s new headquarters in the Mall of Asia complex. The new building boasts of lighting automation, centralized air, recycled water, energy-saving glass, and waste management programs.

The tour ended with a display of their green products. One can expect to see wooden bowls and woven grass baskets and such in a store like Kultura, SM’s Filipiniana store, but apparently, SM’s green initiatives extend to other parts of the home. Watsons, and other beauty brands, for example, boasted bottles of lotion and conditioner in recycled (and recyclable) plastic, made with natural and biodegradable ingredients. Catherine Ileto, Vice-President for Corporate Communications for SM Retail, pointed to baby toys made with silica (no plastic), and bedsheets made with bamboo fibers (bamboo uses less water and resources to grow), packaged in cardboard bundlers instead of plastic. Selections from their own stocks have also done away with a lot of plastic, using paper bags and paper packaging in stores.

They’ve also been partnering with a lot of micro, small to medium enterprises (MSMEs) for sourcing products made with sustainable materials, consulting with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

Speaking about mainstreaming sustainability, Ms. Ileto said, “That’s really the intent: to make all of these green finds accessible.”

Still, it’s a business, and businesses need to make profit. In the long run, does SM see green in going green?

In response to a question about sustainability translating into profitability, SM Retail, Inc. President and CEO Ponciano C. Manalo, Jr., said in an interview, “It will have to be. We’ll have to be able to find the right scale among our local producers to be able to make it really profitable and make it sustainable for them. But for us, it’s also (for) our suppliers.

“When we give them work to do, and we feature their products, what happens is people buy it, and there’s a ripple effect,” said Mr. Manalo in a mixture of English and Filipino. “We have a lot of MSMEs that we partner with, and we help them. Over time, that should build itself up.

“The question is not: ‘is it expensive?’ The question is, ‘is it a good investment?’ As an investment, what it does is it pays out in the end.”

He says that the Filipino mindset has always been geared towards sustainability, or at least recycling. He points out how our elders used to keep and pack away packaging for future use, among other practices. “It’s now aligned with what is now being a global phenomenon.”

According to the SM Investments Corp. website, as of the fiscal year ending 2020, SM Retail operates 66 SM Stores, 59 SM Supermarkets, 52 SM Hypermarkets, 209 Savemore stores, 71 WalterMart stores, 1,012 Alfamarts, and 1,550 specialty stores scattered over several brands. Its sister, SM Prime Holdings, is the largest mall operator in the Philippines.

On a related note, both sources said that SM Malls have sustainability measures in place, such as using LED lighting, water efficiency measures, among other green building initiatives.

Asked why sustainability measures have become so important to SM, Ms. Ileto said, “We’re the largest retail brand in the Philippines. We can really launch this at scale. We can advocate being the brand that advocates for green lifestyles. There’s really an awakening for the consumer now —  even in the little choices they make.”

“Sustainability is a growing phenomenon in the world. It’s not just SM. Everybody in the world is looking at sustainability,” said Mr. Ponciano. “I think my generation, probably, we’re part of the modern generation where we waste everything. But younger people… they’re becoming more conscious.

“It’s because of you. It’s your future. We can just make money and forget about everything else. I’m being very candid, or almost joking, in a way,” he said.

“But we understand what it’s all about. It’s a big word. It’s education, it’s social, it’s economic; it’s everything that you can think of. You can put all the labels that you want. At the end of the day, we know it’s important. It’s for the generation that’s coming. We know that. The earlier that we’re able to get people to be aware and conscious: that’s our part to play.” — Joseph L. Garcia

ShareTweetPin

Related Posts

Stocks decline on profit taking, recession fears
Investing News

Stocks decline on profit taking, recession fears

August 23, 2022
Peso climbs vs dollar as RTB offer starts
Investing News

Peso climbs vs dollar as RTB offer starts

August 23, 2022
PNR cancels bids for 3 projects after finding them ‘non-feasible’
Investing News

PNR cancels bids for 3 projects after finding them ‘non-feasible’

August 23, 2022
Senate grills Rodriguez on approval procedures for sugar import order
Investing News

Senate grills Rodriguez on approval procedures for sugar import order

August 23, 2022
Trade dep’t expecting sugar price monitoring report by Friday
Investing News

Trade dep’t expecting sugar price monitoring report by Friday

August 23, 2022
Fisherfolk seek halt to reclamation on municipal fisheries
Investing News

Fisherfolk seek halt to reclamation on municipal fisheries

August 23, 2022
Next Post
Supermarkets say commodity prices to further rise 

Supermarkets say commodity prices to further rise 

Get the daily email that makes reading the news actually enjoyable. Stay informed and entertained, for free.
Email Address *
Your information is secure and your privacy is protected. By opting in you agree to receive emails from us. Remember that you can opt-out any time, we hate spam too!
 

Recommended

Sainsbury’s rejects living wage move

Sainsbury’s rejects living wage move

July 8, 2022
What the Lexus Driving Signature means

What the Lexus Driving Signature means

August 7, 2022
Nestlé seeks passage of law on responsible plastic use

Nestlé seeks passage of law on responsible plastic use

June 13, 2022
DoF wants trust fund to be sole source of financing for coco farmer insurance, warns against ‘double-dipping’

DoF wants trust fund to be sole source of financing for coco farmer insurance, warns against ‘double-dipping’

June 26, 2022
Calling all plantitos and plantitas

Calling all plantitos and plantitas

July 12, 2022
Thailand rushes to rein in cannabis use a week after decriminalization

Thailand rushes to rein in cannabis use a week after decriminalization

June 19, 2022
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact Us
  • Email Whitelisting

Copyright © 2022 SmarterNewsNow.
All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: SmarterNewsNow.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice.
The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

No Result
View All Result
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Email Whitelisting
  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Thank You

Copyright © 2020 SmarterNewsNow. All Rights Reserved.