In June 2013, the news that the French corporate group PPR had changed its name to Kering was widely reported in the fashion media.

The Kering Group consists of 18 luxury brands, including Gucci, Bottega Veneta, Saint Laurent, and Stella McCartney, and five sports and lifestyle brands, including Puma and Volcom. The group's business style evokes a new era. At the heart of its business activities is its commitment to environmental issues, which have been frequently covered in the media in recent years, and its efforts to eradicate violence against women. I had the opportunity to speak with Marie-Claire Davot, head of Kering's sustainability department, about Kering's sustainable business initiatives.

The 1992 UN-led Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, sparked growing calls for environmental conservation, and in the 21st century, it has become an issue that companies must address in earnest. In response to this trend, Kering established its sustainability department, currently overseen by Davo, in 2003. The company launched "Sustainable Development" as a way to stimulate innovation and imagination, while also creating business opportunities, including the potential for cost reduction. Specific activities include reducing greenhouse gas emissions, wastewater and waste, and addressing issues arising from the use of raw materials essential to Kering's business, such as precious skins like crocodile and lizard, leather, gold, and paper, including packaging. In 2012, Kering announced specific numerical targets and an action plan for addressing these environmental conservation issues to the media and stakeholders (consumers, employees, shareholders, business partners, local communities, and other interested parties). The results are scheduled to be made public in 2016. To share the action plan across the group, Kering established a Sustainable Development Committee within the Group's Board of Directors, and established dedicated departments within the Executive Committee, to which Davo belongs, and within each brand.

"I am convinced that the only way to tackle the depletion of natural resources, climate change, loss of biodiversity, and the problems associated with population growth is to incorporate sustainable development into our daily lives," says Davo with a firm stance.

A paradigm shift is occurring in the way we think about "creating more value with fewer resources," which is different from the consumer society of the past.

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