A sustainability research project at NHH has been instrumental in developing new business models and ultimately, a new business area within Orkla, according to the Norwegian Research Council.
The research project #sustainX (2019-2022) was a collaboration between researchers and the two companies Orkla Home & Personal Care and WasteIQ (now Carrot). The project has been led by Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen and Sveinung Jørgensen, both from the Department of Accounting, Auditing and Law – in addition to researchers from Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences.
As part of the sustainability research project called #sustainX (see facts), researchers at NHH conducted a three-year research and innovation project in close collaboration with managers in Orkla Home & Personal Care.
The Norwegian Research Council says that the impact on Orkla’s new sustainable new business area På(fyll) is a direct result of the research project and an extension of the experiments conducted in #sustainX. På(fyll) is a service that delivers soap in reusable containers directly to your door, and when you need more, they refill it.
The starting point was Orkla’s need to innovate their way out of their comprehensive plastic problem – related to their reliance on single-use plastic packaging for their home and personal care products. Their portfolio consists of 36 brands, covering most categories within home and personal care.
The project aimed to address Orkla’s significant challenge with single-use plastic packaging for their home and personal care products.
NHH researchers Sveinung Jørgensen, Lars Jacob Tynes Pedersen and Siv Skard developed and tested various new business model scenarios for refill solutions that would reduce plastic packaging. They conducted a series of field studies, surveys, and experiments.
The team explored and tested refill stations in retail stores, home delivery services of refill solutions, strategic alliances with providers of cleaning services, and more.
At the end, the research team identified drivers that enabled the company to develop more sustainable value propositions. This research led to the creation of the new business area within Orkla, which has been successfully launched and rolled out in the marketplace.
«The #sustainX project has been a catalyst for our competence increase in experimenting with circular business models. The expertise developed in this project has not only been important – it has been crucial in setting us on this transformative journey,” explains COO in På(fyll) Bård Bringsrud Svensen.
The research on sustainability had an immediate and profound impact: This initiative not only underscores the vital role of academic research in driving sustainable innovation but also demonstrates its powerful influence on corporate strategies and environmental stewardship
Furthermore, the innovation carried out in and between the partner firms have spillover effects on their respective industries, and – through the dissemination activities of the project – into other industries.