There's a revolution going on in the American marketplace—and booksellers can be at the forefront. In fact, some already are. Business owners from California through Nebraska to New York are changing the way they operate by incorporating green practices, products and objectives into their business models. They're realizing that they have a responsibility to help protect the environment. But what about your store? Where do you fit in, and can changes you enact really make a difference?
Even if you think your bookstore's individual impact is minuscule, possibly immeasurably small, no matter what size or type of operation you run, greening your business makes a difference. In aggregate, the total climate-related impact of all businesses adds up. Although booksellers aren't in a business that directly produces greenhouse gases, their operations have an indirect impact on climate. The electricity, heating, cooling, inventory-related shipping and employee transportation that are necessary to run the business all translate into CO2 output, which affects global warming. Greening your bookstore involves not only adopting green business practices but also adopting a greener mindset—maybe even a greener vision. It means taking responsibility for finding more efficient, less wasteful and more environmentally friendly ways to run your business—and viewing the greening of your business as a route to greater progress as well as better business practices.
Take Allison Hill, president and COO of Vroman's Bookstore in Pasadena, Calif. She made greening a priority when she started with the company five years ago. Now, PW's 2008 Bookseller of the Year promotes environmentally focused books and ecofriendly merchandise ranging from purses made out of recycled Los Angeles Times newspapers to paper made from elephant dung (and no, it doesn't stink). She added controls that put computers to sleep automatically when they're idle, and timers to thermostats. She banned Styrofoam products from the employee break room, and the urinals in the men's room are waterless.
There's also Sue Lynn, who opened the Confluence Bookstore, Bistro, and Business Center in Bellevue, Neb., in 2007. An avid mountain climber and daughter of a farmer, Lynn has always been interested in the environment. She purchased reclaimed wood from a 1910 barn for the floor in Confluence's entryway, and is using tables from an 1895 schoolhouse in the business center. She uses low-energy lights throughout the store and on the Confluence sign on the storefront. She recycles ARCs by donating them to a retirement home, buys only recycled-content coffee cups and sleeves, and encourages customers to purchase reusable Confluence tote bags.
College bookstores are greening, too: the University of California—San Diego Bookstore boasts a sustainability program that touches every aspect of its operations. The store uses a hybrid vehicle for official bookstore business and remanufactured toner cartridges in all its printers. Its coffee shop uses fair trade and organic ingredients and gives discounts to customers who bring their own cups. From encouraging staff to use public transportation to making environmental sustainability practices a key criterion in evaluating suppliers, the UCSD bookstore looks at all its operations through an environmental lens.
Last year, the Aberdeen Group, a business-focused research organization, found that green practices among retailers were “essential cost control and customer service practices.” On average, best-in-class retailers achieved a 20% decrease in energy costs, an 8% decrease in overall logistics and transport costs and a 5% decrease in merchandise costs through their green initiatives. It's no surprise that most leading retailers across a variety of categories—from Wal-Mart and Whole Foods to Starbucks and Staples—have major green initiatives in place.
What can the world's largest corporations teach booksellers? That wasted resources increase the cost of doing business, and that greening your business will yield increased customer loyalty and a new sustainable competitive advantage. And those are benefits booksellers can make use of in today's challenging business environment.
