A.S. Watson Greener Stores Accelerate Global Movement Towards a More Sustainable Future

Watsons’ parent company, A.S. Watson (ASW), just celebrated its 180th anniversary, and the Group is launching a Greener Stores Global Framework to accelerate the transformation of retail towards lower-environmental impact stores to achieve a reduction in carbon emissions, water usage and landfill waste as well as leverage its scale for good to speed up the global movement towards a more sustainable future. The ASW Greener Stores Global Framework aims to forge and inspire its businesses to build a stronger sustainability culture and practice in the way it designs, constructs, operates and maintains its stores. 

A.S. Watson Introduces Greener Stores

As the world’s largest international health and beauty retailer, A.S. Watson operates an extensive network of over 16,400 stores under 12 retail brands in 29 markets. It is one of the fastest growing retailers opening over 1,000 stores a year. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic in the last two years, A.S. Watson continued to open 1,600 new stores. That’s why making its stores greener is pivotal in accelerating its sustainability progress. 

According to Malina Ngai, Group Chief Operating Officer of A.S. Watson Group, and CEO of A.S. Watson (Asia and Europe), “A.S. Watson Greener Stores Global Framework shows our deep commitment to accelerate our sustainability progress and move towards a more sustainable future. It is our vision to make every one of our stores a greener store with lower environmental impact throughout its lifecycle. 

“Keys to our Greener Stores Global Framework are efforts to inspire a sustainable culture in the everyday operations of retail stores, engaging customers in choosing more sustainable products and lifestyle, accelerating energy efficiency and renewable energy, increasing the use of responsible materials and waste diversion.”

 

A.S. Watson Chooses Superdrug Peterborough in the UK as its First Greener Store

Ngai continues, “Under the Greener Stores Global Framework, A.S. Watson will be developing store designs that minimize its environmental impact from the full lifecycle of the store. This includes the increasing use of recyclable materials, explore ways to enhance energy efficiency, reduce waste, save water, all the way to end-of life disposal. The construction process will also be carefully planned and managed to ensure landfill and recycling targets are set together with local contractors.” 

A.S. Watson’s first greener store is a Superdrug store in Peterborough’s Serpentine Green Shopping Centre in the U.K. opened last October. Sustainability has been a core focus of the store development process from conception to reality. The store features fully recyclable signages that were made from recycled yarn and plastic bottles. Its ceiling tiles were also made from bio-soluble mineral wool, clay and starch and is also 100% recyclable.  

The store has also introduced several sustainability features including an AAA efficiency rate air conditioning system, a waste management target of 5% to landfills and using a reduced number of LED mood lights in the ceiling which led to a 37% saving on electricity. As a result, the store has managed to save 5,800 KWh of energy annually which is equivalent to a 1,200 kg CO2 annual reduction.

Daily Operations – Forging a Sustainable Culture 

Emphasizing the importance of a comprehensive approach, Ngai adds, “A.S. Watson Greener Stores Global Framework is not just about how we construct stores, it’s about creating a culture of sustainability inside and outside the organization. That’s why the Framework also comprises of initiatives to engage and inspire our colleagues, our customers, and our business partners to team up with us to build a better world. 

Building a sustainable culture is not a one-off action; it’s a continuous effort to raise awareness of sustainability and bring behavioral changes to our people, customers as well as health and beauty industry as a whole. Providing a safe and healthy environment to our people and customers is just as important in our Greener Stores Global Framework. So we truly believe that the Framework will ultimately bring an all-win situation to all parties.” 

A.S. Watson has been actively reducing the environmental footprint of its products with a better selection of ingredients and packaging materials. Since 2014, A.S. Watson has banned the use of microplastics in its rinse-off exclusive cosmetics or personal care products. This ban was extended to all consumer brand products sold in all stores in 2020. A.S. Watson has also been working on Our Watsons Own Brand and its global partners, including Procter & Gamble, L’Oréal, Shiseido, Beiersdorf, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, Kao, Reckitt and Unilever, to offer Sustainable Choices products, in stores and online in Asia, making it easier for customers to find products that have more sustainable packaging and better ingredients and contribute to a better world.

Customer Experience – Inspiring Sustainable Lifestyle

Every year, A.S. Watson serves 5.5 billion customers via its O+O (Offline plus Online) platform so it’s critical to engage and inspire our customers to do good to the planet with us. Besides providing Sustainable Choices products, we’ve been running a wide variety of programmes that encourage customers to lead a sustainable lifestyle. 

In Europe, Superdrug is the first U.K. retailer to provide customers with a solution to recycle empty medicine blister packs in over 200 pharmacies. Thanks to the “Little Packs, Big Impact” recycling initiative, over 4.8 million blister packs have been recycled weighing over 10,000 kg. Meanwhile, at The Perfume Shop, for every perfume bottle that customers recycle, it donates the cost of planting one tree and its target is to plant 1 million trees by 2030.

In Asia, Watsons has rolled out a region-wide plastic containers recycling programme to Go Green with its customers. In collaboration with supplier partners such as P&G and L'Oréal, over 1 million plastic containers have been collected and diverted from landfills and re-processed through local NGOs and recyclers.Meanwhile, at Watsons Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore, Refill Stations have been launched to encourage more customers to play a part to reuse the containers and reduce the use of plastic, contributing to a more sustainable world. In the Philippines specifically, Watsons has worked with Plastic Bank and SM Cares, in collaboration with P&G, Unilever and L’Oreal for recycling initiatives.

Ngai concludes, “A.S. Watson Greener Stores Global Framework is just a kick-off of our greener journey together with our customers as we continue to roll out initiatives to make our stores around the world more sustainable. We want to lead by example in setting a new benchmark for health and beauty retail, inspiring more businesses to follow suit and create more greener stores that help transform retail towards making a positive impact on the planet.” 

Loyal PLDT customer wins P5 million in Grand Giveaway promo

 

From L-R Patrick Tang, First Vice President and Head
of PLDT Home Customer Management,
Winner of PLDT Home Rewards 5M Grand Giveaway
and Jason Ignacio, AVP and Head of
PLDT Home Loyalty and Planning

A grand reward for selfless love

Years spent on taking care of his parents while keeping ties stronger through phone calls with family were rewarded when 57-year-old Rod from Manila won P5 million from the first-ever PLDT Home Rewards Grand Giveaway promo.

A loyal subscriber of PLDT for 38 years, Rod received an SMS sent to customers, encouraging them to register to PLDT Home Rewards, which automatically qualifies them to join the raffle. “I decided to join just because, and I didn’t think I’d actually win,” he said. “So, imagine my surprise when I got that phone call from a PLDT Home representative. I didn’t believe it at all at first!” 

The youngest in a brood of six, Rod resigned from his office job in Makati to take care of his ailing parents full time. “I never considered it a sacrifice on my part. I’m glad that I was there for them in their final years.” 

Teleperformance recognized in the Philippines Best Workplaces™ 2022 by Great Place to Work® Philippines

Teleperformance has just been awarded as one of the Philippines Best Workplaces™ in 2022. This was announced during the virtual reveal that premiered live on Great Place to Work® Philippines via YouTube.

In total, 25 workplaces are ranked as “Philippines Best Workplaces” according to research and consulting firm, Great Place to Work® Philippines. 

The Philippines Best Workplaces™ List is highly competitive. Regarded as the global authority on workplace culture, seasoned consultants from Great Place to Work® curate the List using rigorous analytics and confidential employee feedback. Companies are only considered if they are first, a Great Place to Work-Certified™ organization. In the qualifying year of 2021, nearly 100 companies in the Philippines were Great Place to Work-Certified™. (Only companies who attain at least 65% on Great Place to Work® Trust Index© Survey can attain the Certification.)

Great Place to Work® is the only company culture award in the world that selects winners based on how fairly employees are treated and what their workplace experience is like. Companies are assessed on how well they are creating a great employee experience that cuts across race, gender, age, disability status, or any aspect of who employees are or what their role is.

Channing Tatum Masters Physical Comedy in "The Lost City"

Channing Tatum takes on the role of Dash/Alan, the strikingly handsome model who graces the covers of Loretta Sage’s (Sandra Bullock) romance novels, in Paramount Pictures’ new romantic adventure The Lost City (in Philippine cinemas April 20).

Watch the featurette “Leeches Scene” at https://youtu.be/vs2BqKG_2no

Dash is machismo personified: handsome, debonaire, smart, and courageous. But his real-life alter ego, Alan, is, when we meet him, not Dash. But at his core Alan is honest, dependable, and loyal, and against all odds, becomes the hero he always envisioned Dash to be.

Smart Infinity rewards members with a luxurious escape at Shangri-La Boracay

Smart Communications, Inc.’s luxury postpaid brand, Smart Infinity, is about to send members to a piece of indulgent paradise as part of its commitment of providing limitless possibilities, rewarding experiences, and exclusive lifestyle privileges.

A complimentary 3 day and 2 night stay in a Deluxe Room for two (2) at Shangri-La Resort & Spa, Boracay—one of the island paradise’s must-visit destinations—is available to Infinity members when they sign up for a Smart Infinity Limitless Plan 5000 or 8000 from April 8 to June 8, 2022.

Part of the perks of the stay at the Shangri-La include daily breakfast for two, plus roundtrip land and speedboat transfers from Caticlan, so that members get to fully enjoy their leisure experience on the beautiful and pristine island.

#CrocsIsHere at Ayala Glorietta Mall

Join Crocs this Summer at the biggest Central Business District Mall

Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX), a global leader in innovative casual footwear for women, men, and children finally welcomes the summer season with the opening of their re-energized store at Glorietta 2, Ayala Center Makati. 

The newly opened Glorietta concept store is built on an 85.30 square-meter floor area. Crocs is all high this Summer as they keep on changing the ball game of the in-store retail experience with their Crocs Claw Machine situated right inside their newest store located at Glorietta 2.

Fantastic Beasts and The Secrets of Dumbledore - Surprising Twists

The wizarding world expands its lore with another film under the Fantastic Beast series with The Secrets of Dumbledore. This new adventure for the renowned magizoologist Newt Scamander goes on global scale with the events after the crimes of Grindelwald, calls the attention of leaders of the magical world to decide on his atrocities that concerns the magical and muggle world.

As the title suggests, it will also dives into the involvement of Dumbledore and his shared past with Grindelwald.  There is also a deeper meaning of Dumbledore beyond Albus which also talks about his family and the pain they have been through.