We are a small brand. Do we need a strategy?

You need a plan, and for a small brand that can be short: one page with your three priorities and the steps for this year. A half-day strategy session with a short report can be enough. The full project is for companies with more product groups, more markets, more people involved and more regulations that apply to them.

We already have targets. Can you work with those?

Yes. I start with what you have and check each target on three things: is it about your biggest impact, can you measure it, and does it match what the law and your customers ask of you. Some targets stay, some get sharper, some go.

Who needs to be involved on our side?

One person who owns the project, and the people who make the decisions the strategy touches: product, buying, marketing and the management team. They join the strategy session. The rest of the team is invited to the kick-off and the final presentation, so the strategy comes alive in the whole company.

How does the strategy fit with the rules we have to follow?

The rules are one of the two sources of the strategy. I map which ones apply to your products and markets now and which ones are coming, and the strategy turns them into steps in your own planning. That way compliance work counts towards your goals, in one planning.

SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGY FOR FASHION, LIFESTYLE AND CONSUMER BRANDS

From loose sustainability projects to one plan your whole company can work with.

Book a discovery call

A sustainability strategy is a plan that shows you exactly where your impact is, what regulations require of you, what you want to achieve as a brand, and what to do first. I develop it with fashion, lifestyle and consumer brands, from a small label to an international group, in a project of two to six months. You get a strategy and roadmap your management team can approve, and a team that knows what to do next and why.

You may recognise this

Leadership asks for a plan

Your management team wants to know where the company stands on sustainability and what it has to do. You have the projects and the good intentions, and no strategy that puts them in order.

A customer or a regulation requires it

A retailer sends a questionnaire, a new EU rule applies to your products, or a buyer asks for your commitments. You want to show something comprehensive: where your efforts go, what progress you make, and a story that holds value when you tell it.

You do a lot, and you are not sure it counts

You run many projects and meet many requirements, and it is hard to see whether all of it reduces your impact. You want the bigger picture: which efforts serve the goal, which ones don't, and what the goal is in the first place.

A good strategy has two sources: what regulations require of you and what you want to achieve. One plan aligns all your efforts to both.

What a project looks like

PHASE 1

Where you stand

I map the rules that apply to your products and markets, the expectations of your customers, and what you already do. I look at your products and your supply chain first, because that is where the impact is. The result is a clear picture of where you stand, often clearer than the company expected.

PHASE 2

What matters most

In a strategy session with your management team and the people who will do the work, we decide what matters most for your brand: the impacts, the rules and the ambitions that make the list, and the ones that don't. We set goals you can measure.

PHASE 3

The route

Together with your team I turn the decisions into the strategy and the roadmap: the steps, in order, with an owner and a timing we set together, and the first actions for the coming year. I do the writing; you decide who owns what. Then I present it to your management team, and you decide what happens next.

You get

Your sustainability strategy: people, planet and profit, tailored to your brand and your agenda
A roadmap with goals, steps, owners and timing
The story of your sustainability work, to share with customers and staff
A management and team presentation

Format

One kick-off, information gathering with your team, one or two strategy sessions, alignment meetings along the way, and a final presentation. Online or at your office, in Dutch or English.

Duration

Two to six months, depending on the size of your company and how much information is already in place. A strategy session on its own takes half a day, with a short report afterwards.

Pricing

A fixed fee for the agreed scope, tailored to your situation, in the offer you receive before we start. A single strategy session is priced as a half day. Not every brand needs the full project, and I will say so in the first call.

With AI: I use AI to speed up the desk research on the rules that apply to you and on what comparable brands do; I check what it finds and use what is useful. If you want, I can also set up a dashboard where your team tracks progress on the roadmap.

A strategy turns effort in every direction into progress in one.

Brands I helped with their strategy

BRONX

"Nynke supported BRONX in developing a clear sustainability strategy & roadmap [...] Nynke inspires and delivers. She is both an expert and a strategist."

KRIJN DIJKMANS, CEO, BRONX

"I had the pleasure to work with her and The Sustainability Club for 6 months to develop and implement a SMART Sustainability Agenda for Stieglitz."

KYRA EGLY, PROJECT LEAD SUSTAINABILITY, STIEGLITZ

STRATEGY AND ROADMAP FOR THE FOOTWEAR BRAND, THEN SUPPORT DURING THE DUE DILIGENCE THAT FOLLOWS FROM IT

I also developed sustainability strategies for Steve Madden, ten Cate and YOEK. At Kuyichi, the organic denim pioneer, strategy is part of my work in the team, next to green claims, due diligence, certifications, reporting and training. I've worked with over 25 brands.

FAQ

Is this what you need?

Book a 20-minute call and tell me what your leadership, your customers or your own team is asking for. I will tell you what a strategy would change for you, and whether a single session is enough. Or write to hello@thesustainabilityclub.com.

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