Edinburgh Napier University

  In a world where sustainability is the new buzzword, is “sustainable sales” just greenwashing or can it genuinely support the creation of a company’s unique selling proposition?

Academic concepts sometimes languish through lack of action as they cannot be translated into professional practice; however, this article defines sustainable sales and explains how it differs from sustainable selling, and hopefully encourages conversation and ideas to see the concept implemented, or at least discussed, within business.

Many organisations will have corporate and social responsibility (CSR) policies, and these are gradually widening to include sustainability (Ashrafi et al, 2018). Businesses have now expanded CSR to include environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies. However, having policies, is one thing; having a clear understanding and actions that underpin them is another.