Green Giants

Green Giants

by E. Freya Williams

Companies that have changed their way of doing things are captured in E Freya Williams’ book, Green Giants: How smart companies turn sustainability into billion-dollar businesses.  Williams notes that the big nine companies who have crossed over into socially conscious organizations include: Chipotle, Unilever, Whole Foods Market, Natura, and Tesla with brand lines from IKEA, GE, and Toyota.   The book studies why the Green Giants are so important for social responsibility, and how other companies can learn from their example.  She suggests that there are six factors that comprise the making of a Green Giant company, which include: being an iconoclastic leader, disruptive innovator, having a higher purpose than simply making money; integrating sustainable practices into the core structures of the business, creating mainstream appeal, and creating transparency in all that they do.  Yes, Williams shows that if the company follows this formula, they too could be a billion-dollar business.  She even offers some 2015 new companies that may be on the list in the near future, such as Aflalo, Everlane, Zady, and Dig Inn.  Also watch out for Panera Bread, another company looking to follow these processes.  It certainly makes a consumer think about WHY we should be purchasing from companies that apply these principles as we only have one world.  Everyone should read a book that teaches us the impact of companies who invest in our environment.