How Ray Anderson's Green Company Became Sustainable

We speak with America's Greenest former CEO, Ray Anderson, to learn that an environmentally-friendly company is not a broke company.

Rebecca: Concerns about the sustainable company revolve around money, will it cost too much? Will it affect profits? Interface and its found to Ray Anderson our proof that successful comes to those who go green. Hi! I’m Rebecca and welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re speaking with Anderson to learn more how a business can go green as well as how his green shift has affected the way he lives his life. I know that the company has done will financially after this shift but was there an initial kind of out boring of funds to undertake this shift? Ray Anderson: From the day on we were head at the cost, the cost of ways lamination effort and waste lamination today is with 400 dollars and that is more than all fit everything that we spend. Sustainability has been self finding for us. Rebecca: I notice one principle that you keep asking yourself is how would nature do this? Ray Anderson: The head of design read Biomimicry the book by Janine Benyus, a Biomimicry means nature’s teach and nature’s inspiration, nature is mental and nature is measure, how I do this? so you read this book and then he said this is the mean for the far as I said go and see how the nature were design a floor covering. Fully span of day at the far can you look at the ground, look the far flow of the string beads, they finally don’t know these two things are like here, this total chaos so they came back to the design studio to design the carpet towel a module of carpet that the face design that no two towels are identical. There are some looks, like they belong together but everyone is actually different from every other one and then the year and half they went to the top to the best seller. It’s fast than any other product ever had in the company’s history and then I heard a speaker that begin every speech by having the audios. Close your eyes and in your mind has picture your ideal comfort zone that place of peace and then you says that. Tell me if you were somewhere out doors and nearly every hand I’ve done in that probably 500 times around the world the same exercise a nearly every handles up. It is amazed how we humans gravitate the nature. Rebecca: I know that some companies like you mention the interface consults on this type of thing some corporations are come to you for help such as Wal-Mart. Ray Anderson: This is the one of the most important things that happens in the industrial world. I know might to do because the now the CEO with Wal-Mart was the number man. When we decided to launch this effort with this top 25 people I thing it was Mike and as me where I come out and then I help and then he might the most remarkable statement and he to his speak was you don’t know it. but I this is the largest cooperation on earth spend 98% of my task or reputational issues is about what the public, the general public will continue to give us some license to operate and without that we have toast. So when Wal-Mart and Scott says here is where we going in 60,000 CEO’s hear that. That’s the essential through the industrial world, the life of which we have that saying before. Rebecca: How has your shift to green affected your life personally? Ray Anderson: I give up Jaguar for Prius and never let back that is my third Prius. My life and I move from 3600 square foot condominium to 2400 square foot condominium. We did build the house for vacation and off the grid meaning full of voltage and electricity so we collect this on the roof feet, wale and the septic system and we’re ready for the nuclear war. Be bought 86 acres there in North Carolina we put 7, 8, 9 of 86 acres into a forever wild conservation basement to protect it from the develop. Rebecca: Thank you very much. Ray Anderson: Oh you’re very welcome and it’s so pleasure to be with you.