Walpole: How did you come to work in sustainability?
Jocelyn Wilkinson: I completed a master’s degree in Development Economics and Globalisation and met lots of clever people along the way. We had lots of conversations about how both governments and companies were not doing enough on sustainability across both a social and environmental lens. I had experience working for a luxury hosiery brand before my masters, so I decided I could leverage that experience to make my way into a bigger fashion brand to create meaningful change. I set my sights on FTSE 100 fashion houses and managed to secured a role at Burberry working in the global Responsibility team.
In an ever-changing area of corporate policy, what's one resource that's really helped you in your role?
Materiality assessments; a process in which we identify key environmental and social issues and determine how we can best address issues of importance to our business and stakeholders. They have always been key to understanding and explaining how we should focus our corporate policies to make sure we are targeting key impact areas.
What is the biggest challenge your company faces when it comes to delivering your sustainability goals?
Engagement with the supply chain is absolutely key to impactful delivery. It can be relatively straightforward to engage tier 1 and 2 suppliers, but the challenge lies beyond that due to the changing nature of relationships.
What's your best advice for communicating your sustainability work with customers?
Be clear, no jargon, keep it simple and don’t try to tell them too much information simultaneously.
Is there an area of sustainability that you think doesn't get talked about enough in the luxury industry?
I think as an industry we could talk about the social impacts we have in a bit more detail. I am really proud of some of the work Burberry has done on wellbeing and living wages in the supply chain as an example.
Which action you've taken has had the most impact during your time in the role?
Setting a single target that hits 100 per cent of products, therefore galvanising support across the entire product development, sourcing and external supply chain in driving social and environmental change was incredibly impactful. This was amazing for engagement and we were so proud to meet the target and actually have 84 per cent of product beat the target!
What action do you wish you or your company had taken sooner to aid your company's sustainability?
We have done some deep dive work on biodiversity over the last 18 months which has been so interesting, and although we could have done this work sooner, we are looking forward to achieving our goals across our biodiversity strategy.
What are your main priorities when it comes to sustainability?
Carbon, biodiversity and social impacts.
Collectively, what action is going to drive the most change for the luxury industry?
Clear direction for suppliers that is aligned across brands (e.g. Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals).
Can you tell me another luxury company whose work in sustainability you admire?
