As the world increases its efforts to combat climate change and people look for sustainable solutions, the retail industry must also adapt and do its part. A 2020 NRF and IBM survey discovered that sustainability is top of mind for consumers, with 80 percent reporting that sustainability is important to them.
NRF 2022: Retail’s Big Show offers plenty of opportunities to hear from the brands paving the way in sustainability, including the six company leaders below. The event will be held in New York City, January 16 – 18, 2022.
CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer at IKEA U.S.
Javier Quiñones
CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer
IKEA U.S.
Javier Quiñones has a decades-long history with his company. Beginning as a sales coworker in IKEA Barcelona in 1999, he has risen through the ranks and across the world. His leadership spans across three different retail markets, including store manager in IKEA Spain; country retail manager in IKEA UK and Ireland; and now country retail manager of IKEA U.S.
Since his ascension to the CEO and CSO role in 2019, IKEA U.S. has increased its sustainable efforts, including making a pledge to become a circular and climate-positive business by 2030, launching a Buy Back and Resell program, and placing Sustainable Living Shops within stores for the holiday season.
Hear from Quiñones in his keynote session at NRF 2022: Retail’s Big Show: When climate becomes a business imperative: A conversation with IKEA U.S. CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer Javier Quiñones.
Head of Sustainability at Rothy’s
Saskia van Gendt
Head of sustainability
Rothy’s
Saskia van Gendt develops strategies to minimize the impact Rothy’s supply chain has on the environment, advancing Rothy’s sustainability innovations in materials, production and fulfillment, and more. She is an environmental scientist with more than a decade of experience in both the public and private domain. Van Gendt previously worked as senior director of sustainability at cleaning product brand Method, where she implemented sustainability initiatives for the company.
Hear from van Gendt in Future proof your business: Sustainability as table stakes.
Executive Director,
Research Center for ER&I at Deloitte
Kate Hardin
Executive Director, Research Center for ER&I
Deloitte
Kate Hardin’s career has spanned more than 20 years as an energy and mobility leader. She currently serves as executive director for the Deloitte Research Center for Energy and Industrials, working closely with Deloitte’s energy, resources and industrials leadership team to drive energy research initiatives. She has previously held senior roles in energy research and consulting firms, and has worked with energy and automotive companies, investors and startups.
Hear from Hardin with Javier Quiñones in the keynote session at NRF 2022: Retail’s Big Show: When climate becomes a business imperative: A conversation with IKEA U.S. CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer Javier Quiñones.
VP, CSR and Sustainability at NRF
Scot Case
VP, CSR and Sustainability
National Retail Federation
Scot Case guides NRF’s corporate social responsibility and sustainability efforts, supporting retailer efforts to use their businesses to make the world a better place for everyone. He leads NRF’s Sustainability Council, a collaborative networking group that works to identify specific opportunities to reduce business risk and costs, enhance brand value, increase customer and employee engagement, and create additional business value.
Case has focused on the intersection of business, environmental and social concerns for three decades, with experience in retail, quick-serve restaurants, manufacturing and nonprofits. Throughout his career as a strategist, consultant and sustainability expert, he has worked with organizations including the White House, Johnson & Johnson, Disney, and federal, state and local governments around the world.
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