10 Introduction

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New Wave Group ’ s corporate sustainability efforts and sustainability goals revolve around the areas where we can make the biggest difference . Below we present the goals a little closer . The goals serve as a guide and reminder of what the

Group and its subsidiaries should prioritize .

PRODUCTS WITH SUSTAINABILITY ATTRIBUTES New Wave Group aims to introduce more sustainable and eco-friendly materials in our range of products . We want to increase the amount of products coming from sources and processes with extra care for people and planet ( read more on page 19 ). Working with eco-labels and certifications is an important part of our work with sustainability . It is a tool to help our customers to identify the best performing products in terms of social and environmental responsibility .

Measuring the amount of certified products would have been a clear way of reporting the amount of sustainable products . However , we think it is important to also highlight products which for example are made of more environmental friendly materials where certifications are not always available . This applies in particular for the hardline products where the selection of eco-labels and certifications is very limited . Therefore , when measuring the amount of sustainable products we use our own indicator “ products with sustainability attributes ”.

We base our classification of the products on established industry practices . The development is moving forward and the list of materials and processes we see today as more sustainable will be updated and adjusted over the years . In 2020 , there was a clear shift towards recycled fibers , where recycled polyester is most represented .

Textile products with sustainability attributes include products with one or more of the following labels , materials or processes : The Nordic Ecolabel , GOTS , Oeko Tex , Fairtrade , recycled polyester , spin dyed polyester , EXP 4.0 treated wool recycled polyamid . Oeko Tex is by far the most represented attribute and accounts for more than 90 % of the products with sustainability attributes .

Hardline products with sustainability attributes include products with one or more of the following labels and materials : FSC , recycled polyester , recycled rubber , bio based plastics , biodegradable and compostable plastics , soy vax and recycled glass . Also included are crystal products from Orrefors Kosta Boda made of so-called “ eco-crystal ” that are free from lead and arsenic , which is unfortunately still common in the industry .

In 2020 , we were glad to see a significant increase in the amount of products with sustainability attributes , which indicates that much are happening in the companies and that demand is increasing .

The Global Goals

2017 2018 2019 2020 Goal Comments

* New Wave Group has around 8,000 active products ( color / size excluded ). Around 50 % are textile products and 50 % are hardline products .