Sustainable Business Management: Strategies for Environmental, Social, and Economic Sustainability

This report discusses sustainable business management strategies for environmental, social, and economic sustainability. It focuses on Patagonia and their approach to sustainability through Cradle to Cradle, Carroll's CSR Pyramid, and Circular Economy Framework.

SUSTAINABILITY
BUSINESS
MANAGEMENT

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................3
TASK.........................................................................................................................................3
Environmental sustainability..................................................................................................3
Social sustainability...............................................................................................................4
Economic sustainability.........................................................................................................6
REFERENCES.........................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Sustainability is a business approach for developing long term value by taking into
consideration how a business operates in ecological, social and economic environment. A
sustainable business focuses on creating minimal negative impacts and strives to meet the
triple bottom line. Sustainability is based on the assumption that it can foster business
longevity. Sustainable development refers to actions which can meet the needs of present
generation without compromising the demands of future generation (Addison and et.al,
2020). The three pillars of sustainability are- economy, social and environment. Patagonia is
a private clothing company based out of California. The clothing brand showcase there who
does these values and beliefs through their products. This report is based on the selected
organization which is Patagonia. This report will outline sustainability strategies at
environmental, economic and social factors.
TASK
Environmental sustainability
Environmental sustainability refers to practice is where responsible decisions are
created through which negative impact off business on the environment can be reduced.
Environmental sustainability is all about implementing rational efforts to reduce the
company's negative impact on the environment. A firm that is environmentally sustainable
considers more than just profits; it also considers its social and environmental impact (Barile
and Saviano, 2018). Such a company is long-term viable because it contributes to the health
of the structure in which it operates, so contributing in the formation of a favourable
environment for its growth. In order to face challenges and mitigate risk, some of the
strategies which can be helpful for Patagonia for environmental sustainability are addressed
below:
Cradle to Cradle
Cradle to cradle is a sustainable business strategy which is the regenerative cycle of
nature in which waste is reused. This framework focuses on creating a cyclical process
instead of a linear process. This approach is helpful in eliminating waste. The concept of
cradle to cradle was given by Walter R. Stahel in early 1980s. It is a set of principles for
community and product development by the approach of health ecological system where all

resources are utilised effectively. This framework helps in ensuring sustainable business by
maintaining a positive impact on people and planet by contributing towards future
sustainability.
In context of Patagonia, the company offers sustainable clothing where the company
manufacturers their products with the help of most durable and sustainable products all raw
materials. The lifestyle and fashion company has driven sustainability in their fashion line
through which they can increase the product life cycle. The material used by Patagonia is
entirely based on biological materials which can be easily disposed of and returned to the
natural environment through which the company can contribute in reducing the disposal of
waste and engage in recycling and reusing (Laasch, 2018). Due to incline and awareness
when interest off generation towards environment the company focuses on green practices
recycling reusing through which they can minimize the consumer waste.
The move is a logical step for H&M as it works toward its goal of becoming "climate
positive" by 2040. The retail conglomerate announced in April that it plans to use only
recycled and sustainably sourced materials by 2030 and has partnered with the Ellen
MacArthur Foundation and Stockholm University's Stockholm Resilience Centre to
investigate what a circular system for producing and using textiles would involve. H&M
focuses on systemic transformation in the way fashion is made and consumed is the necessity
to scale circular materials. Fashion Positive PLUS is a great approach to engage others who
share the similar goals of sustainability."
Social sustainability
Identifying and regulating both positive and negative company impacts on people is
critical to social sustainability. It is essential that a company's stakeholder links and
involvement are of high quality. A proactive strategy to managing and recognising the
consequences of a company's activities on employees, value chain workers, consumers and
local communities is known as social sustainability (Raut and et.al, 2019). In order to face
challenges and mitigate risk and gain various benefits from different opportunities, some of
the strategies which can be helpful for Patagonia for social sustainability are addressed
below:
Carroll’s CSR Pyramid
The Archie carols pyramid of corporate social responsibility close defined in 1991.
This framework defines let’s CSR is focused on four areas can’t an organization must fulfil

these four level of responsibilities in order to be sustainable, these areas are- Economic, legal,
ethical and philanthropic. These four levels of CSR in context of business are further
discussed below:
Economic- this is the lowest level of CSR pyramid which defines responsibility and
is profitable. Therefore, this level of framework focuses on being profitable by meeting
responsibilities of producing goods which can meet customer demands at reasonable prices.
Patagonia is donating its whole tax savings of $10 million to help fight climate change in
2019. Zara's initiatives in social programmes directly benefited about 3.3 million people
throughout the preceding year.
Legal- this is the second level of parameter purchase business legal obligation to
follow the law and defines how business conduct their operations in marketplace (Rezaee,
2018). Employment laws tax regulation health and safety of employee’s competition with
other companies are some of the legal responsibilities of company. For its fair efforts for
employees and effective processes to check suppliers in its supply chain, Patagonia has been
accredited 'It's A Start' for labour conditions.
Ethical- This ethical layer of pyramid has stated the value of being fair in all
situations. This level states that companies should follow ethical procedures as this will be
helpful in getting customer attention, becoming more environment friendly, creating suppliers
and employees properly. Patagonia is a member of both the Sustainable Apparel Coalition
and 1% For The Planet. It opposes fast fashion by creating high-quality, long-lasting products
that can be mended and reused. It even warns individuals against purchasing too many of its
products. Whereas, Zara has established a target for all materials to be sustainably sourced by
2025. According to them, 100% of their cotton will be recycled, BCI (Better Cotton
Initiative), or organic. All of their viscose and wood-based fibres will come from sustainably
managed forests.
Philanthropic- This is the top level of pyramid which focuses on meeting the
responsibility towards community and society. This highest level of CSR which comprises of
business values which can be given to the society send defines how business can be a fair and
good corporate citizen. In context of Patagonia, the brand promotes that "buy just what you
need, restore it when it fails, and recycle it when you're done" in exchange (Schaltegger and
Wagner, 2017). They began this experiment when they realised that by wearing their
garments for an additional nine months, they could reduce their carbon, waste, and water

footprint by 20-30%. Whereas Zara is a supporter of sustainable agriculture and some of their
clothing are made from organic cotton (100 % cotton which are completely free of pesticide,
chemical agents and bleaches). If these things have a distinguishing label, they can be easily
identified in retailers.
Economic sustainability
Economic sustainability refers to policies that assist a company or country in
achieving long-term financial success while also safeguarding environmental, social and
cultural concerns. Economic sustainability is a component of sustainability that deals with
how we use, safeguard and sustain natural and human resources in order to create long-term
value through optimal use, recovery and recycling (Shams and et.al, 2019). For getting
various opportunities and for facing different threats, some of the strategies which can be
helpful for Patagonia for economic sustainability are addressed below:
Circular Economy Framework
A circular economy is defined by marketplaces that encourage people to reuse
products rather than discarding them and extracting new resources. All types of garbage, such
as textiles, scrap metal and obsolete technology are returned to the economy or better utilised
in such a system.
Patagonia was one of the first firms to have a long-term business strategy. The
objective's clarity is one of the reasons for its youth appeal. The firm is not only putting its
money where its mouth is, but it is also putting its heart and soul into it. It shows in their one-
of-a-kind goods, such as Long Root Wit, a sustainable beer, and advocacy initiatives, such as
supporting teenagers with climate education (Tur-Porcar, Roig-Tierno and Llorca Mestre,
2018). Patagonia encourages customers to send in their damaged clothes for repair, but the
firm also offers a trade-in option. The old clothing is then cleaned and recycled to make new
items. Patagonia even organised a Worn Wear College Tour in Japan, when they toured
university campuses and free-of-charge mended students' clothing.
On the other hand, By 2020, all of the Group's brands will have phased out the use of
plastic bags, with Zara, Zara Home, Massimo Dutti, and Uterqüe having already done so to
conform with the circular economy concept. By 2025, Inditex hopes to have obtained 80
percent of the energy utilised in Zara's headquarters, production, and stores from renewable

sources. Inditex makes garments from of recycled polyester, wool, and cotton, which need
less water, energy, and natural resources to produce than new fibres. To extend the useable
life of garments, we have a clothing reuse or recycling project in collaboration with the third
sector, recycling companies, and textile producers.
CONCLUSION
From the above report when can we conclude that sustainable business power those
businesses which focus in engaging in environmentally friendly call green initiatives
throughout their processing procedures followed by them. In simpler terms business
sustainability can be stated as the practice of operating a business without creating a negative
impact on the economy. It can be understood that sustainability is based on three factors
which are environment, social and economic. Due to fast fashion, the fashion industry is one
of the most polluting industries which have a significant impact on the environment. The
fashion industry creates greater number of consumer waste owing to the shorten life cycle of
apparel products and the impacts are minimised with the help of different approaches and
theories through which social responsibility towards the community can be met.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Addison, P. F and et.al., 2020. Bringing sustainability to life: A framework to guide
biodiversity indicator development for business performance management. Business
Strategy and the Environment. 29(8). pp.3303-3313.
Barile, S. and Saviano, M., 2018. Complexity and sustainability in management: insights
from a systems perspective. In Social dynamics in a systems perspective (pp. 39-63).
Springer, Cham.
Laasch, O., 2018. Beyond the purely commercial business model: Organizational value logics
and the heterogeneity of sustainability business models. Long Range Planning. 51(1).
pp.158-183.
Raut, R. D and et.al., 2019. Linking big data analytics and operational sustainability practices
for sustainable business management. Journal of cleaner production. 224. pp.10-24.
Rezaee, Z., 2018. Supply chain management and business sustainability synergy: A
theoretical and integrated perspective. Sustainability. 10(1). p.275.
Schaltegger, S. and Wagner, M., 2017. Managing and measuring the business case for
sustainability: Capturing the relationship between sustainability performance, business
competitiveness and economic performance. In Managing the business case for
sustainability (pp. 1-27). Routledge.
Shams, S. R and et.al., 2019. Stakeholder engagement and sustainability. Routledge.
Tur-Porcar, A., Roig-Tierno, N. and Llorca Mestre, A., 2018. Factors affecting
entrepreneurship and business sustainability. Sustainability. 10(2). p.452.