warren evans is named green business of the year

warren evans has triumphed at the growing business awards 2009. the award winning bed retailer was named green business of the year 2009.

warren evans beat stiff competition from e-stack, good energy, pall-ex and wiles green world to win the green business of the year category.

the growing business awards, organised by caspian publishing, celebrates the best entrepreneurial and business talent in the uk. the awards are judged by leading business figures including dragon’s den star theo paphitis, john caudwell, founder of phones4u and sir andrew cahn, chief executive of ukti.

warren said: “it’s an honour to be named the greenest business in the uk. we are constantly looking at new and innovative ways to make the business as sustainable as possible. over the past three years, we have invested in innovative low energy appliances for our workshop and our stores, working in conjunction with envirowise, the carbon trust and business link. we’re thrilled to win this award.”

this is the third award this year for warren evans – earlier this year, we also picked up a sunday times best green companies award and an observer ethical award.

sustainability has been at the heart of warren’s philosophy since he established the company over 30 years ago. and over the past three years, warren has worked hard to ensure that measurable changes are made in store and to his team’s day-to-day working practices to minimise the impact that his business has on the environment. these include:

moving to a new and unique sustainable workshop, with help from an interest-free loan by the carbon trust, warren was able to make this super green by purchasing environmentally friendly equipment including a bio-mass boiler (that heats the entire building using waste wood and sawdust as fuel) and intelligent wood cutting machinery to minimise waste
consulting government green body ‘envirowise’ and government funded service business link for practical advice on efficiencies such as workflow, machinery and gaining staff support
avoiding packaging; warren only wraps his beds and furniture in reusable blankets rather than cardboards or plastics, minimising unnecessary waste
signing up to pioneering carbon management schemes, including green500 and the 10:10 initiative
he is still the only bed maker in the uk to be officially certified by the forest stewardship council, which means that all beds and furniture are made using wood from renewable sources
all staff uniforms are also fair-trade; warren ensures that all t-shirts are made from organic cotton, while the fleeces are made from recycled material
only using recycled stationery, including envelopes made from elephant poo!

this has resulted in:

office recycling increasing by 50%
water usage reduced by 38%
disposals reduced by 5%