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QUEEN’S AWARD MAGAZINE
We have produced the following editorial to
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in the Index of Contributors
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the best of our understanding of your require-
ments, and using the text & materials you have
kindly supplied to us. Would you please care
20 1 8
Company Description in the ‘List of Winners’ preceeding the section, for checking:
Commercial Group
Business services provider incorporating environmental, ethical and social values
Commercial Group
Some of the Commercial team.
COMMERCIAL is a business services provider, with a portfolio comprising office supplies,
IT services and managed print services as
well as outsourced print, office interiors and technologies. Founded in 1991 by brother and sister Arthur and Simone Hindmarch, along with Arthur’s uni friend Alastair Adams, Commercial is now a £70m turnover company employing 300 people.
“The Queen’s Award win came hot on the
heels of our best-ever year in terms of financial performance. It has galvanised us to set our sights even higher as we plan for the next five to 10 years,” said Arthur Hindmarch, co-founder and chairman.
Queen’s Awards judges described
Commercial as a ‘sector leader’ in sustainability, highlighting numerous environmental and social achievements.
Commercial By Nature
Commercial’s sustainability journey began when Simone was invited by valued, longstanding customer Sky to attend one of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth lectures. His words spurred her to drive the business towards better environmental responsibility. Team viewings of the documentary ensued and a company-wide environmental strategy was launched.
Today, every business decision at Commercial is made with sustainability in mind. Sustainability
is highly visible and encapsulated in the core business proposition, ‘Commercial By Nature’.
“For us, being successful isn’t just about turnover and profit margins. It’s about the impact of our business on communities and the environment.
At Commercial, strong values and strong business sense are two sides of the same coin,” said
Simone Hindmarch, co-founder and MD.
Change Champions
Inspiring and enabling employees to take personal responsibility for sustainability is a core element of Commercial’s strategy. Every four months, cross- departmental teams develop a transformative proposal based on one of Commercial’s 10 commitments for responsible business and pitch
it to the board. The successful team has funding cleared, and goals are communicated at an entertaining, company-wide Change Champions event.
Commercial has also facilitated employee
engagement programmes free of charge for clients who want to instil a positive sustainability mindset more deeply in their own organisation.
CSR Days
Commercial’s flagship CSR Days embed sustainability values with clients and suppliers. Their scope has broadened from focusing on green issues to covering the full spectrum of environmental, ethical and social value, with themes including ‘People, Planet, Profit’, ‘Who Cares Wins’ and most recently ‘Challenge. Champion. Change.’
Events are orchestrated to inspire and energise delegates while imparting practical ideas. High- profile keynote speakers challenge the audience and stimulate new ways of thinking. Over 300 delegates attend, and recent speakers include environmental entrepreneur Ed Gillespie, sustainable designer Wayne Hemmingway and climate scientist Chris Rapley.
Green delivery fleet
When Commercial first measured its carbon emissions in 2006, delivery vehicles were a major contributor. Tackling this has required game- changing innovation.
In 2013, the company deployed its first hydrogen-enabled van. Today it has the UK’s largest privately-owned hydrogen fleet and also uses electric delivery vans where operating parameters allow.
Commercial is currently taking part in two landmark projects for zero-emission delivery vehicle technology innovation via the Low Emission Freight and Logistics Trial.
Social enterprise
Commercial invests 20 per cent of its profits into Commercial Foundation, the social enterprise it established in 2015. It has also launched a Products with Purpose range, generating further income for Commercial Foundation and enabling customers to make purposeful procurement decisions that
I was so impressed by what I saw at Commercial, so inspired by it, that I have used it as an example of what can happen when an inspirational leader takes a team and does something extraordinary
Chris Rapley, CBE, climate scientist
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