Episode
Inside B&Q's Net Zero Transformation: From Plant Pots to Supplier Collaboration, How to Make Sustainability Stick
- Published
- Dec 21, 2025
- Duration seconds
- 2681
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- https://straight-talking-sustai.captivate.fm
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Summary
In this practical and inspiring episode of Straight Talking Sustainability , host Emma Burlow sits down with Sanita Garley , Net Zero Transition Plan Lead at B&Q, to explore the often-discussed but rarely-demonstrated journey from setting net zero targets to actually implementing change across a major retail organisation. With over 20 years in buying and product development before transitioning into sustainability three years ago, Sanita brings a refreshingly commercial perspective to the sustainability challenge, proving that expertise in carbon science matters far less than understanding how to get things done within business realities. Sanita's transition into sustainability began when she identified a critical gap: the sustainability team worked incredibly hard to engage commercial colleagues, but those colleagues (herself included at the time) simply were not engaging. The pressures of margin targets, sales goals, and daily commercial realities created a barrier that well-intentioned sustainability professionals could not penetrate. Recognising an opportunity to become the conduit between these two worlds, Sanita approached her manager Sam Dyer (Head of Responsible Business) and requested a chance to try a maternity cover role. Three years later, she now leads B&Q's entire Net Zero Transition Plan, focusing particularly on the notoriously complex Scope 3 emissions from products and vendors. The conversation tackles imposter syndrome head-on, with Sanita admitting she felt massively out of her depth initially, knowing very little about carbon. However, her commercial mindset proved invaluable: "Give me a target, I'll go after it and I'll hit it." By reframing carbon reduction as another business objective rather than an insurmountable technical challenge, S…