As part of its People & Planet Positive 2025 Plan, Officeworks is sharing its vision for the future, announcing how it’s tracking towards making a positive difference for people and the planet against its 2025 targets.

Progress has been made across the 18 commitments in the plan, with Officeworks already hitting scope 1 and 2 emissions target two years in advance, on track to use 100% renewable energy by 2025, and surpassing its commitment of supporting 30,000 Australian students who need it most, having helped 40,000 students to date.

Officeworks managing director, Sarah Hunter said, “Officeworks’ performance reflects our continued business focus on sustainability, and growing customer and team member sentiment to live and work responsibly and sustainably.

“Australian families are more conscious about sustainability, and so are we. We know sustainability in all areas of our business is important to our customers, and those who want to make more sustainable choices are shopping with retailers who reflect their values.

“We remain committed to progressing towards our 2025 goals and contributing positively to people and the planet along the way, recognising we have an important role to play in the lives of our team members, and in the local communities where we live and work. We are on track to be a Net Zero emissions business by 2030 in our owned and controlled operations, making Officeworks carbon neutral.”

By investing in energy efficiency initiatives, such as LED rollouts and Building Energy Management system (BEMS) implementations, Officeworks is working to generate clean energy on-site through the installation of onsite solar power systems and procuring the balance of electricity needs through renewable energy sources.

The business switched on its first solar and battery-operated store in Warana, Queensland in 2023. The 1,722 square metre store has been working towards operating off 100% renewable energy for two years and has previously implemented sustainability measures including LED light fixtures, a BEMS, thermal roof coating and double insulation in the roof.

Officeworks carbon and energy manager, Patrick Heagney said, “By 2025 all Queensland stores will operate using 100% renewable energy, which is an important step as a brand, as we work towards using 100% renewable energy by 2025 for the entire business and net-zero emissions by 2030.”

Officeworks has also extended its range of People and Planet Positive products that hold sustainable attributes without compromising on quality or value, with sustainable products at a comparable cost. Products within the range include recycled content, wooden materials, and certified cotton as well as items made from plants, are refillable, recyclable or that can be reused, and products made free from plastic and made using fast-growing renewables, where products are made from bamboo, rattan, or other renewable resources, or organic materials only.

Officeworks’ People and Planet 2025 Plan FY2023 highlights include:

People

  • The safest recorded year to date, with the Total Recordable Injury Frequency Rate (TRIFR) reducing to 5.4 in FY2023.
  • 74% of Officeworks team members reported feeling genuinely supported if they choose to make use of flexible work arrangements.
  • Over 3,600 team members were seconded to another role, promoted or transferred into another opportunity at Officeworks.
  • Through the generosity of the community, Officeworks raised over $5.98 million in community contributions, $1 million of which went towards local community organisations.
  • Supported 16,194 Australian students who needed it most through national partners.

Planet

  • A 40% reduction of direct carbon emissions since 2018, and a 12% reduction in FY2023, reaching the FY2025 Scope 1 and Scope 2 target two years in advance.
  • Planted 1.45 million trees across more than 1,900 hectares through our Restoring Australia initiative since its inception in 2017, and nearly 210,000 trees across more than 190 hectares of land in FY2023.
  • Progression towards the goal of using 100% renewable energy by 2025, including launching Officeworks’ lowest emissions store in Warana, Queensland which features a 100-kWh lithium battery and 100 kW of solar PV as well as the installation of on-site solar PV systems in 26 sites across Australia.
  • Collection of over 10,000 tonnes of retail waste through the Bring it Back program since its inception in 2015 alongside other programs including the Moorup tech trade-in program and Circonomy.
  • Reduced waste generation by 12% since FY2020, with an 8% reduction in FY2023.
  • 2,200 products are available in the People and Planet Positive range, helping customers shop more sustainably.
  • The annual equivalent of over 43 million pieces of plastic were removed from product packaging or through the removal of single use plastic products, and 260,000 pieces in FY2023.