Hooker Furnishings Forms Environmental Social Governance Council

April 22, 2021  by Laurie Northington in Business Strategy, Industry   

Members of the ESG Council represent Hooker Furniture, Sam Moore, Shenandoah, Bradington-Young and the company’s HMI segment, including Accentrics Home, Pulaski Furniture, Samuel Lawrence Furniture, Prime Resource International, Samuel Lawrence Hospitality and HMIdea — all brands of Hooker Furnishings.

“Hooker Furnishings has long encouraged responsible environmental and social stewardship in all aspects of our business and forming this council demonstrates our commitment to becoming an even more proactive organization,” said Jeremy Hoff, chief executive officer of Hooker Furnishings. “We know that being a responsible corporate citizen is a prerequisite for doing good business and have assembled a passionate group of individuals to help further drive these important initiatives throughout our organization and to spread our vision across our company culture.”

While the ESG council is a relatively new initiative, the company’s efforts in these areas have long been part of its mission statement.

Highlights of some of the company’s environmental leadership efforts include becoming EFEC certified (Enhancing Furniture's Environmental Culture), corporate recycling programs including the recycling, reuse or repurposing of shipping pallets, reselling leather scraps for reuse in other industries and the diversion of more than 1 million pounds of paper and plastic waste from landfills. More recently, the company has also completely eliminated the use of Styrofoam products in all of its facilities for non-production uses.

The company’s long-term environmental goals include reducing its greenhouse gas emissions, participating in environmental clean-up and education programs as part of its membership in the Eco-Council of the Dan River Basin and utilizing expertise around the world to assist in the development of solutions to environmental problems. To support the realization of these goals key members of the council will help spearhead these corporate initiatives and drive implementation plans across all company locations.

“The establishment of the ESG Council is only the beginning of our commitment to a sustainable future and we know it’s not enough to just focus on our own efforts,” said Anne Smith, chief administrative officer and president, domestic upholstery. “In addition to the council, we are also launching initiatives that include seeking a similar commitment from all our vendors and manufacturing partners, both domestically and around the world.”

On the philanthropic front, the company has contributed over $2 million in cash and furniture to charitable organizations, and plans to continue donating a portion of our profits to these important initiatives. Hooker Furnishings has a long history of community involvement and participation and this commitment extends to all areas where the company’s employees live and work.

The company has strengthened its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion by implementing new training programs on these topics across the entire organization and is establishing an employee-led Diversity Council to help drive meaningful diversity initiatives within the organization.