In an age when our actions now will shape the future of the planet, we cannot afford for industries to treat sustainability as a mere tick box exercise or hide behind ‘green sheen’. But what does it mean to be a genuinely sustainable brand, and how do you do it? We spoke with Niki Schilling, Chief Impact Officer at global wellbeing beauty brand Rituals Cosmetics, to find out.

Tell us about your career journey – how did you find yourself directing innovation and sustainability at Rituals? How do you direct innovation and sustainability at Rituals?

“Sustainability is extremely important to Rituals as a company but also to me personally, so I felt an immediate connection to the brand. Product development, sustainability, and spirituality, paired with doing everything with a clear purpose, are my passions. As the Chief Impact Officer at Rituals, I integrate my hard and soft skills, along with my true passion for leading people and a strong sense of business, to make a meaningful impact.”

Tell us about the path Rituals has walked to become B Corp certified. What were the challenges and what has been the impact on the business and your customer base?

“Becoming B Corp certified was not easy for a company our size. We decided to do the journey thoroughly and took three years for the certification process; we scored really well, and it helped to give us a strategy for many parts of our business.

“We started our journey by doing a pre-assessment, which helped us to better understand and identify the B Corp certification requirements, our baseline performance, and potential improvements. Next, we got all the involved departments together to define the next steps and appoint topic owners. Overall, the B Corp journey helped us tremendously to get going; we measured everything, made material choices, changed governance, adapted policies, and set incredibly ambitious sustainability targets in every part of our business. The process of certification was rigorous and made us fine-tune and dig deeper, over and over again.

“The B Corp Certification process has enabled us internally to rally around a common sustainability cause and vision and set far-reaching ambitions, through all layers of the organisation. A few highlights on which we progressed in the past years since we started the B Corp Certification process:

All our products are measured on their environmental impact with our Clean & Conscious tool. We focus on formulas with at least 90% ingredients that come from natural origin and packaging that’s refillable, recyclable or made of recycled material. Since 2020, all our stores run on renewable energy or carbon balanced energy. We have set even more ambitious goals to reduce water, energy and waste in our operations."

Niki Schilling, Chief Impact Officer, Rituals

How has Rituals implemented sustainable practices throughout the business? What does it mean to Rituals and to you personally, to embed sustainability into business practices?

“Since the company was founded over twenty years ago, we have been on a mission to support the wellbeing of our consumers. We felt that the B Corp certification is the only assessment that covers all sides of the business, from the way we treat our customers and employees to our decision-making processes and environmental considerations in product development.

“We measure all our sustainability efforts through our Clean & Conscious tool: a scientifically backed compass which measures all the impact we have through waste, water, CO2 and packaging – and gives us guidance on how to improve each of our products.

We have mapped out our goals around three pillars: clean, conscious & caring.All our products are Clean to use – this means that their ingredients are mostly of natural origin. Every choice we make is a balance between achieving maximum product performance and minimum environmental impact, with a goal to achieve <90% ingredients of natural origin and making sure each innovation follows the most sustainable path in its production process. 

“Under our Conscious pillar, we focus on making sustainable choices for our packaging and in our business. We aim to have zero waste by 2025, with the goal of all products being refillable, recyclable or made from recycled material. Our long-term commitment is to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions per product by 50% by 2030 compared to 2021, with the goal of achieving Net-Zero by 2050.  

“Our last pillar Caring is about supporting and developing programmes that contribute to soulful societies. We are a proud supporter of Tiny Miracles which provides life changing work to some of the most excluded communities in Mumbai, India, empowers people to break their own poverty cycle and live truly independent and confident lives. 

In your view, does sustainability come at the cost of business profit?

“No, for me it is actually the opposite. Businesses can successfully balance sustainability and profitability by adopting sustainable practices that are both good for the environment and good for the bottom line. That’s why Rituals is determined to not just make you feel good, but also to do good.

“We can make a big difference in the cosmetics industry by opting for refillable products. This offers our customers with the same high-quality products and luxurious experience, while taking care of the planet too, as a refill has less impact on the environment and is easier to recycle than a new product. By using the refill packaging instead of normal packaging for one year, you can save up to 74% CO2, 69% energy and 75% water. By incorporating the usage of refill packaging within your beauty routine, you’ll not only take care of yourself but also the planet.”

How can sustainability and innovation be achieved in harmony?

“For me, sustainability and innovation go hand in hand. People and businesses are working hard on going green, but you have to do it holistically, circularly.

“Natural ingredients are one aspect in becoming more sustainable, but there is more to it – transport, weight, and packaging. We are constantly doing life cycle analyses to measure where the greatest pollution is. At Rituals we continue to develop, innovate and improve towards a more sustainable sector. 

What would you say to other business leaders pursuing B-corp certification?

“In today's world, it's more important than ever for companies to take responsibility for their impact on the environment and take action to combat climate change. I believe we have a shared responsibility to make sure future generations won’t suffer the consequences of our lack of care for the natural world – and that if we all commit to consciously making better choices on a daily basis, we can make a difference.

Rituals has committed to a goal of net-zero by 2050 – how are you going to achieve this and what’s the driving purpose behind such a commitment?

“Indeed, we are committed to achieving Net-Zero by 2050 and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions per product by 50% by 2030 compared to 2021. Our commitment to this goal is based on science-based targets, which will help us make a meaningful contribution to saving the planet. We understand that the next decade is critical in our fight against climate change, and that's why we are also committed to a mid-term goal of cutting our emissions per product by 50% by 2030.

“We are taking practical steps towards achieving this goal by investing in renewable energy, reducing waste, and improving our supply chain sustainability. By doing so, we believe that we can not only help the planet, but also create a more sustainable business that benefits our customers, employees, and stakeholders.”

What are three common misconceptions about sustainability in business that you’d like to debunk?

“Luxury and sustainability cannot go hand in hand, it is always expensive and requires significant financial investment and that sustainability is just a phase.”

Learn more about Rituals’ B Corp journey and their commitment to sustainability.