Awards that celebrate the furniture businesses blazing a trail in education and sustainability were presented at the January Furniture Show last month.
The winners of the BFM Future of Furniture Awards – which recognise exemplary work by members of the trade body in moving towards a more sustainable future - were announced at an evening reception at the industry event.
Launched in 2023, the Future of Furniture Awards expanded in its second year from two to four categories, with the Excellence in Education and Excellence in Sustainability titles joined by new accolades for Environmental, Social and Governance Reporting and Sustainability Champion.
BFM MD Phil Spademan says: “Our Future of Furniture Awards celebrate the members that are investing not only in their businesses, but in our industry and our communities, and I’m delighted that we successfully expanded the awards programme this year.
“The January Furniture Show is a flagship event in the industry calendar and it’s an excellent opportunity to applaud the efforts of BFM members who are taking great strides towards a sustainable future.
“I’d like to congratulate all of the winners for the outstanding work that is recognised with these awards.”
A panel of judges considered a number of criteria for each award, including evidence of a commitment to continuous improvement in sustainability and a willingness to lead and empower others.
Excellence in Education winner, Ercol, was recognised for a successful reinstatement of its apprenticeship programme in 2017, alongside outreach work in schools and colleges as well as providing work experience and factory tours for students.
Ian Peers, operations director at Ercol, says: “We’ve done a lot of hard work in trying to develop our apprenticeship programme and engagement with all of the different parties that feed into that, and we're very proud that has been recognised by the BFM.”
The Vita Group was awarded the Excellence in ESG Reporting accolade after giving a detailed account of a three-year journey working with partners to establish a workplace culture that aligns with its goals and advances its sustainability mission.
Nick Wood, operations director at The Vita Group, comments: “Having awards like this allows both businesses and the industry to promote the fact that we are doing brilliant things in this country and in this industry in particular.”
It was a double celebration for Harrison Spinks, which was presented with the Excellence in Sustainability award, while the company’s group sustainability manager, Emma Linney-Taylor, was named Sustainability Champion.
Nick Booth, MD at Harrison Spinks, says: “With Emma’s tremendous support, sustainability is firmly embedded across everything we do. Her passion, commitment and knowledge have helped deliver - and in many areas exceed - our sustainability goals.
“We're very proud of the fact that we've won these two awards. We work extremely hard to make the most responsible beds possible, and that's why we weave our own mattress fabrics, we grow our own natural fibres at our own farm, and make our own award-winning springs.”
Click here to find out more about BFM’s Future of Furniture campaign.
Pictured: The Vita Group's Nick Wood (left) and UK sales director Greg Flynn (right) with BFM chairman Nick Garratt
