How we’re helping convenience stores become more sustainable

Last year, Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I (SBF GB&I) worked with Premier Sandiacre owner, Amit Patel, in Derbyshire to help improve the sustainability of his store.

Over the course of a year, SBF GB&I made changes that helped Amit save more than £600 – savings that, if carried forward across the channel, could save convenience stores more than £16m a year. Key to the changes SBF GB&I made was that being more sustainable isn’t always about investing many thousands of pounds – small changes can make a big difference, and progression, not perfection, should be the aim of every business for their sustainability journey.

Amit told his story to a group of convenience retailers at an event in London, carried out in partnership with Better Retailing’s publisher, Newtrade Media, and revealed how he had already saved more than £600 a year thanks to the changes he made.

Find out more about the sustainability event: Running a more sustainable business [VIDEO] – Better Retailing

With energy costs rising rapidly, the need to save money wherever possible has never been greater. Cutting energy bills is necessary for cashflow as well as the environment.

SBF GB&I asked those retailers who heard Amit speak to make their own pledges. Most recently, the supplier caught up with Amrit Singh Pahal, of H & Jodie’s Nisa in Walsall, west Midlands to hear how his sustainability journey has progressed since last year’s event:

“We’ve implemented a few things over the past year. We’ve added some doors to our chillers and have bought an electric delivery vehicle. We’ve also got an energy monitoring solution in place that allows us to track our total consumption. By adding doors, we’ve reduced our consumption by a minimum of 25-30%, and we’re taking that even further now by optimising the temperatures at certain times of the day and understanding whether things need to go down to that temperature or not. By doing that, we can make even more savings.”

You can see Amrit’s pledge here.

However small, SBF GB&I want to hear about the steps you’re making on your sustainability journey. Share your ideas with them via @SuntoryBF_GBI on Twitter