Mister Spex SE aims to continuously make the eyewear market more sustainable and presents initial successes in corporate responsibility from the past year as well as goals for 2022 and beyond
- 02. May. 2022
Just one year after setting up its own Corporate Responsibility team, Mister Spex, Europe’s leading digitally driven omnichannel optician, presents its second sustainability report and continues to expand its initiatives in the areas of environment, employees and community. Various key initiatives have been launched to bring corporate responsibility in the eyewear industry into focus. As a retailer that consistently focuses on its customers and all their needs, Mister Spex is committed to meeting the growing demand for sustainable materials and production processes as well as responsible social action. In this way, consumers can act according to their values.
“I am very proud that we have already been able to make enormous progress in our efforts in the area of sustainability in 2021,” says Maren Kroll, CHRO and board member of Mister Spex SE. “We are a carbon neutral company including packaging, shipping and voluntary climate protection contribution, have collected and donated several hundred pairs of glasses in our stores. In addition, we already have five sustainable brands in our range and all this with the commitment of a strong international diverse team. We are on the right track in all areas, but that is not enough for us. We want to achieve further sustainable successes in the coming months and years, and we take our corporate responsibility very seriously.”
In the field of action “Our Environment”, Mister Spex wants to focus more strongly on reducing emissions in the future, in addition to offsetting CO2 emissions. In 2021, measures have already been taken to allow general work from the home office as part of the introduction of a New Work approach, to reduce travel to a minimum and to consistently rely on the use of public transport. In addition, a company-wide switch to electricity from renewable sources has been made.
As a digitally driven company, one focus of the omnichannel optician is the climate-friendly design of packaging and shipping. The shipping material already consists of a high proportion of recycled material and the bubble wrap used is made of Blue Ocean film, a 100 per cent recycled material. However, the declared goal is to use only recyclable and sustainable materials and to avoid single-use plastic by 2025.
Mister Spex currently offers five sustainable brands in its range: EOE, Stella McCartney, Wood Fellas, Timberland and its own brand CO CO. For the frames of the CO CO collections, only recyclable metal and bioacetate are used. Bioacetate is a pure natural product and 100 per cent organic. For every model sold, one euro is donated to the non-profit organisation CleanRiver, which campaigns for clean rivers and oceans and counteracts plastic waste pollution.
The field of action “Our employees” deals with measures for the well-being, health and safety of the more than 1,100 Spexies from 58 nations. Maren Kroll: “Our employees are our most valuable asset. With their commitment, enthusiasm and spirit, they have made Mister Spex what it is today. Every day, they make an enormous contribution to our further development.” In order to meet the individual needs of all employees in the best possible way, the approach to New Work was redefined last year, among other things, which gives all Spexies the opportunity to work in a home office and spend 20-40 per cent of their working time in the office. Colleagues who work outside Berlin or even outside Germany are recommended to come to the office two to four times a year – regardless of the development of the Covid-19 pandemic.
A large number of initiatives are driven by the employees at Mister Spex who organise themselves in their own project groups around the topic of sustainability. The Spexies themselves decide in which areas the company is involved. “Our Community” includes social commitment, regulations on cooperation with partners and suppliers, as well as rules of conduct and compliance. Mister Spex has supported some organisations for many years, but new ones are being added all the time. For example, the first social eyewear collection from the social brand share has been available since December 2021. The idea: with every pair of glasses sold, a pair of glasses or basic optical care is made possible for a person in need.
Of course, Mister Spex aims to further strengthen and expand its sustainable initiatives. In addition to the fundamental expansion of the range of sustainable collections, the company’s own labels will in future help to make the range easily accessible to customers and enable them to make sustainable purchasing decisions. After a comprehensive measurement of the CO2 footprint, the focus will be on sustainable reduction of emissions.
Contact details for journalists:
Mister Spex Corporate Communication
press@misterspex.de
About Mister Spex:
Founded in 2007, Mister Spex SE (together with its subsidiaries, “Mister Spex”) is a multi-award-winning company that has become the leading digitally native omnichannel optician in Europe. Mister Spex has been at the forefront of the industry’s transformational shift, growing from a pure online player into a successful omnichannel optician with more than 5 million customers, 10 online shops across Europe and physical retail stores. A digital native, technology and innovation have always been an integral part of the company’s evolution, from 2D to 3D digital frame fitting tools to intelligent browsing functionalities. The focus of Mister Spex is to make eyewear purchase for customers an easy, transparent and fun shopping experience by combining a comprehensive and varied range of high-quality products with optician expertise and services through its customer service, own stores and an extensive network of partner opticians.
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