Taking care of Mother Earth has always sat at the core of Solios’ DNA. Since our inception 4 years ago, our mission has always remained the same: to do our part in making tomorrow’s world greener and better for communities of today and of the future.
Needless to say, Earth Month truly means the world to us, as it presents for our team an occasion to not only raise awareness on current climate challenges, but also to implement new initiatives which encourage local - and global! - communities to contribute to a more sustainable future. This year, we are proud to say we have turned several ideas into concrete initiatives which are aligned with this mission of ours - and of Earth Month. From our successful re-charged program to our pledge of becoming fully net-zero by 2025, find out below the different initiatives Solios has put forward to help our planet.
What Earth Month Means to Us
As stated above, Earth Month is a way for Solios to raise awareness on issues that are dear to our heart - environmental challenges. It’s not a coincidence that our first-ever watches launched in April four years ago! Since the very beginning of our story, Mother Earth has always been at the forefront of our initiatives.
Since then, we have always strived to be the most sustainable watch brand in the world. In order to meet this ambitious objective, we have looked into the numerous components of building an ethical brand - and array of products. We started by designing all of our watches with purpose, with a main focus on always minimizing manufacturing environmental footprint, maximizing long-term usage and creating a circular economy where waste can always be seen as someone else’s new treasure.
And from that moment, we have put continuous improvement at the heart of our practices. Still to this day, we know we are not perfect, but we will always aim to improve our processes and procedures, our materials and our ways of operating as a business. Whilst perfection doesn’t exist, we do aim for it!
Earth Month therefore also serves as a reminder for our team to never forget this goal of bettering ourselves and our practices on a daily basis, and to never compromise on purpose whenever we design, create and operate as a business unit.
Solios’ Initiatives to Help the Planet
Creating sustainable solar watches is great, but at Solios, being sustainable goes way beyond an array of products. We do not believe in greenwashing: we are committed to breathe sustainability through and through, in all facets of our business. This is why we have implemented a number of initiatives which all share the same goal of making the world greener.
Re-Charged Program: Refurbished Solios Watches at Your Fingertips
We are proud to say that our Re-Charged Program was a great success: this April, in honour of our 4th anniversary, we decided to put back on the market a limited edition range of repaired Solios watches which met our same quality standards.
These watches truly embodied our ethos, as they were in essence the most sustainable watches one could find on our website. These timepieces had been previously collected and repaired by our team, correcting along the way the small defects they originally had.
The 47 watches that were put back on the market sold out in only 10 days. Given the success of this program and the great feedback from our community, we have decided to have other Re-Charged Launches throughout the year, at random times.
The 4th Anniversary Birthday Bundle
For our 4th anniversary, we decided to give back - in a green way. Our 4th Anniversary Birthday Bundle was filled with style, and most importantly, purpose. The concept is pretty straightforward: for every purchase of a Solios watch or bundle, one would be gifted with a green eco-leather strap in honour of the colour of nature. And the best part? Solios would automatically give 4% of the birthday bundle sales towards the Rainforest Trust, the nonprofit organization which we have been partnering with for many years now.
It may have been our birthday, but this gift was for our community, and for the planet!
Becoming Net Zero by 2025
Another surprise was in order for our 4th anniversary: our pledge to becoming net-zero by 2025!
As stated before, at Solios we are constantly trying to find ways to better ourselves and our practices. We have therefore set an ambitious goal for our business, which is to become net zero within the next two years. In order to achieve this, we created a 5-step plan which addresses the different types of emissions measured to assess if a company is net zero or not: the direct emissions, the indirect emissions and the ones stemming from business operations which are not directly caused by Solios.
Keen to learn more about this 5-step plan? Have a peek below!
Step 1: Develop sustainable initiatives to reduce our carbon footprint.
Good news! This step has already been completed by our team. Think of our recycled steel, our solar technology, our vegan leather, our recycling program… and much more!
Step 2: Measure the emissions stemming from our operations which are not directly caused by us
This one is in progress! An external firm is currently helping us in measuring our ecological footprint against the three different types of emissions named above.
Step 3: Implement a concrete action plan within 12 months of receiving our external evaluation
By the end of 2023, we will aim to create a tangible action plan which will lay out the different initiatives we’ll have to implement in order to meet our end goal by 2025. This plan will be based on the findings from the external firm contracted.
Step 4: Innovate, then innovate some more
We will carefully analyse throughout 2024 our different activities - internal like external - and assess which ones need revisiting and innovating. The core focus will rely on innovative solutions which will further challenge the status quo.
Step 5: Reach the end goal
And there you have it: by 2025, Solios would become a net-zero watch company! This would make us the first-ever net-zero watch company; an amazing accomplishment which, we hope, will encourage other businesses in our industry to follow suit.
What is the difference between carbon neutral and net zero?
Remember the three types of emissions mentioned earlier? These are what will determine if a company is carbon neutral or net-zero. Whilst carbon neutrality focuses only on the first two scopes of emissions - direct and indirect emissions - achieving net-zero means assessing and addressing the three types of emissions. The key distinction therefore lies in measuring the emissions from business operations which are not directly caused by the said company.
Being the First Ever B Corp Certified Watch Company
Certified B Corporations are businesses who are reshaping the world by carefully balancing purpose and profit. All companies with the B Certification are legally required to analyse the impact on their commercial decisions against a host of factors: communities, workers, employees, suppliers and the environment.
After only 1.5 years in business, Solios was able to obtain a 89.5 B Impact Score - the average company score being 50.9 and the minimum threshold to obtain a B Corp certification being 80. We are proud to say that we are actively playing a part in redefining success in business, seeing beyond the bottom line.
And that’s a wrap for this year’s Earth Month! We are incredibly proud of the Solios team for continuously pushing the boundaries, challenging the status quo and for always finding new ways to make an impact on tomorrow’s world. And thanks to these initiatives they have put in place, you can also contribute to a greener future - if you are thinking of adopting a more sustainable lifestyle and making more meaningful choices on a daily basis, see how our solar timepieces can be a first step in that direction.
