KITCHEN RETAILER PROFILE | Sheffi eld Sustainable Kitchens
This kitchen features a worktop made from recycled paper and open oak shelves
something they may need down the line.” Three months after installation, the designer will go around to do a health check on the kitchen. This will make sure appliances are functioning and check if anything needs altering, as the wood would have settled in the space and may require tweaking. Above all, the team is there to answer any questions. Cole explains: “We want our customers to be happy with the kitchen for over 30 years – not just when it goes in, but for the lifetime of the kitchen.”
Online and offl ine
SSK operates out of its workshop in Sheffi eld, where the kitchens are created, and has no showroom. The two tools it has at its disposal for marketing and showcasing its kitchens are its website and its band of loyal customers.
“The website is our digital showroom,” Cole says. The website should always be a refl ection on the brand – showroom or no showroom – and SSK uses
the website and social media to full advantage, with detailed descriptions and photos of previous projects. It explains the process and the people involved and provides a full brief on materials used. Designers from SSK do go out to customers and visit them on-site with samples of doors or worktops to give a full breakdown of the design. The few customers who want to will also visit the workshop and physically see their kitchen being made. Previous customers are happy for new clients to go to see their kitchens and talk about them.
A sustainable company
SSK has a small team of 15 and a lot of the designers and members of staff are young and were attracted to join them because it is a sustainable company. “Another thing with the sustainability side is that we notice that when we interview graduates, sustainability is really important for them,” explains Cole. “A sustainable business is something they are looking
for, and that might be the aspect of a company that is vital for them. There is a real strength and camaraderie in the team.”
SSK believes in its core values and for new recruits to understand those values is more important than lots of experience – that can be learnt. The majority of the people Cole interviews really value sustainability.
What can I do?
The worktops are all made from iroko
hardwood, reclaimed from school lab benches
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So what can the average kitchen retailer do to be more sustainable? The fi rst thing that Cole suggests is to have a dialogue with your suppliers. “The key thing is to talk to your suppliers and have a conversation about what materials are being used and if there are any improvements that need to be made. Can they reduce their plastic packaging and have something that is more eco instead? There are a lot of areas to change. Can they use a more eco-friendly board?” Having those conversations may not change anything instantly, but the more that retailer shows that sustainability is important for their company, the more that will inspire change down the line. Little changes can make a big difference, and Cole advises looking at all aspects of your business, including travel. How do your employees get to work? SSK encourages its employees to not use a car as this can reduce the business’s carbon footprint. The company has also invested in electric vans, so any travel is as green as possible. Other ideas are to encourage customers to recycle – either selling or just donating their old kitchens online. Promote refurbishments rather than full rip-outs of kitchens and use what the customer already has. If you manufacture your own kitchens, bulk-buy materials if you can to decrease the amount of packaging and the number of deliveries. Making small changes can help a company reduce its carbon footprint and become more sustainable. SSK is an example of a company that is doing its utmost to be sustainable and putting that commitment at the heart of their business – from the staff, to the materials used and the longevity of its designs.
· May 2020
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