Tips for Reducing Waste in the Retail Industry

For retail businesses, producing less rubbish does much more than just help the environment. It can also help to reduce overheads, save time and attract more eco-conscious customers. However, it can be difficult to know where to start, so we've put together this handy guide to help you.

Common Sources of Waste in Retail

To know how to reduce waste in retail, it's important to first identify what is causing it. Retail waste generally comes from three main sources:

• Over/Understocking
• Damaged goods
• Packaging material

Each has its own unique challenges for retailers that are worth exploring in more detail.

Over/Understocking

Poor inventory management is a leading cause of retail waste with the greatest impact felt by those retailers who sell perishable items. Selling surplus stock at a discount can help to clear short-dated items quickly and reduce the amount going in the bin but it will impact on margin. However, understocking can also cause waste from poor overall stock availability and limited range causing shoppers to go elsewhere.

Damaged Goods

Wastage due to stock damage is common in retail. Stock is at most when in storage, in transit, and on the shelves. Some damaged items will not be able to be sold anymore, but even when an item is still usable, scratches, dents and other minor defects may still require a hefty discount for a customer to consider buying it.

Packaging Materials

A large proportion of retail waste is from product packaging. Switching to suppliers who use a larger proportion of recyclable material in their packaging is an easy way to reduce the amount of waste going into your general waste bins. But, in many cases some packaging waste is inevitable and therefore how you handle it at your store becomes more important.

How to Reduce Waste in the Retail Industry

Once retailers have addressed the most obvious steps to reduce waste, they can start to look at ways to handle the waste they produce more responsibly and efficiently. Below are three practical steps you can take.

Perform a Waste Audit

Conducting a retail waste audit is the first step towards creating a more efficient and eco-friendly business. The process involves taking a closer look at the different types of waste you produce and how you currently dispose of it. Waste audits can help you identify:

• Ways to save money, time and space
• Ways to boost sustainability
• Equipment that can help you handle your waste more efficiently

You can conduct further audits in future to measure the impact of the changes you have implemented.

Invest in Recycling Equipment

Polythene balers, cardboard balers, bin compactors and polystyrene compactors are all good financial investments for retail businesses with 3 or more commercial waste bins emptied weekly. By compacting your recyclable retail waste, you’ll reduce the volume of it, helping to save money over time on disposal costs. In addition to this, compaction lowers your carbon footprint because fewer vehicles are needed to transport it away from your premises. Equipment can also help you to unlock the value of the commodity you are throwing away because in quantity, bales of cardboard are valuable.

Repurpose your Cardboard

For retail businesses with an online shop, shredding your unwanted cardboard into packaging material for your online orders is an easy and sustainable way to repurpose your cardboard waste. Unlike balers, businesses of all sizes can save money by shredding cardboard into packaging filler if they currently use bubble wrap or pay to have your cardboard waste collected. When buying or hiring equipment check that the machine has been designed for use in a business setting as domestic equipment could overheat.

Retail Waste Management Solutions from QCR Recycling Equipment

QCR Recycling Equipment have collaborated with many well-known retailers to supply them with baling, compacting and shredding equipment to help them handle their waste more sustainably and reduce their overheads. Our experienced and SafeContractor accredited team provide a free retail waste audit service to retailers of all sizes in the UK to help them save money on retail waste disposal.