Logistics is the connection point between the supply chain and the consumer, the lead character of the Benetton Group business model. In this approach, that focuses on the person, the logistics strategy is based on customizing services based on the needs of the stores, reducing the environmental impact and achieving a higher level of garment traceability.
Emissions
Transportation
To reduce CO2 emissions related to logistics and distribution activities, intermodal transportation was also chosen in 2023 and in general the transportation modes with a least environmental impact such as rail transport (with a low polluting impact) compared to air transportation.
Inoltre, le attività di spedizione prevedono il carico dei veicoli con pacchi sciolti e senza l'utilizzo di pallet. Questo metodo ottimizza lo spazio di carico e la saturazione dei camion. Il risultato è che un camion su cinque viene eliminato dalla circolazione.
Returns and deliveries
At the moment of the online purchase consumers can choose between home delivery or store pickup. In 2023, the Paperless project, which involves the elimination of return labels and related documentation for e-commerce orders, was completed.
Suppliers evaluation
As of the end of 2020, CSR issues and specific questions about the type of fleet have also been integrated as drivers for supplier selection, taking into account their environmental and social impact.
Packaging
Thanks to the reusable metal baskets, Benetton Group saves over 1,300 tons of cardboard every year, corresponding to approximately 20,000 trees. In addition, for the purpose of fully exploiting batch size and avoiding air transportation, the Company uses different types of cardboard boxes in different heights. Both the packaging material (produced with partly recycled material) and the envelopes used for e-commerce shipments are FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified. E-commerce shipments are delivered in paper envelopes instead of cardboard packages leading to a saving in terms of raw material used, decreasing the volume transported and also resulting in a consequent reduction in CO2 emissions.
FSC certified paper
All Benetton Group stores use eco-friendly paper shopping bags, processed with water-based inks and sourced from an FSC certified paper mill. Catalogues and brochures are also made of FSC certified paper, the global brand that identifies products from controlled forests managed according to social and environmental sustainability criteria.
FSC certification is a criteria applied in the selection of paper supplier. Additionally, the boxes used in our packaging are made of 75% recycled material as a minimum.
Benetton Group is committed to manage in a more sustainable way the packaging used to carry and protect the garments during transportation. To date, we are using about 350 tons per year of plastics for packaging (our polybags are made of 100% virgin plastics). In order to reduce the use of virgin plastics, Benetton Group has invested in a circularity project: we will take back from our stores the plastic material used during transportation, with the aim of reusing or recycling it. Thanks to this process, since 2022, our polybags are made of 30% recycled plastics and 70% virgin plastics; the additional plastic material collected will be used for the creation of new objects (such as tubes and sheets).
Additionally, since 2022 Benetton Group is taking back from its stores the plastic supporting material of its boxes (used in the transportation of hanging clothes) in order to reuse it during the packaging phase (with a saving of 43 tons of plastics per year).