16 July 2021
It’s a reasonable question. As manufacturers, we have a responsibility to make sure our products are an improvement on the products they replace: that we are using the materials and ideas that are right for our time and place in the early 21st century.
MARK was founded in 2008 with sustainable principles at its core by designers Anna Hart and John Miller. The drive for both Anna and John was to be able to design products that were sustainable beyond materials; furniture they could ethically, confidently ‘stand by’.
This is a key principle in our making today – being able to stand by a product with a clear conscience: knowing it was made by skilled people working in good conditions on fair pay; that its manufacture brings the community investment and opportunities; and that it is a good product that will enhance the working life of whoever uses it.
Yet, we acknowledge that there is always more we can do. In 2020 we put ourselves under the scrutiny of sustainability consultants Element 4. This independent view of our business has enabled us to recognise what we do well and where we can improve. The result of this work will be the launch in October of our ‘Do Net Good’ sustainability strategy which underpins all we do.