At BIC, we believe in simple, inventive and reliable solutions for everyone, everywhere. And we believe in acting responsibly with the planet, society and future generations in mind. 

Sustainability has been a cornerstone of our business for more than two decades, and our approach to it is rooted in our company’s values and woven into our day-to-day operations. True to our philosophy of honoring the past and inventing the future, we want our commitment to sustainability to be long-term and far-reaching. 

Our ambition is to ensure that we limit our impact on the planet and make a positive contribution to society, including the lives of our consumers and team members.

 

Our Sustainability Report 2023

 

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT APPROACH

Environmental

From the beginning of every product journey, our design principle is to create maximum longevity using just what’s necessary. With this as our starting point, we aim to eliminate waste and pollution, minimize the impact of our products throughout their life cycle, and recirculate the materials they are made from, supporting a more circular economy that benefits people, our business, and the world around us.

With this philosophy guiding our new approach to responsible innovation,
we continue to move towards a circular economy
through our efforts in our factories, transportation and packaging:

 

FACTORIES

As we approach our target to use 100% renewable electricity by 2025, we will continue to find ways of increasing our use of renewable energy sources, including through building on-site generation infrastructure, such as solar arrays at our factories.

 

TRANSPORTATION

BIC is committed to continuing to minimize our impact on the planet, including reducing emissions and energy, waste, and water use across both our own operations and our supply chain.

 

PACKAGING

BIC is committed to achieving 100% recyclability for our packaging by 2025, and, since 2011, we have worked in collaboration with our stakeholders to explore the creation of eco-friendly packaging alternatives.

These practices have had a positive impact on BIC's business worldwide:

TRIPLE CERTIFICATION

All three BIC shaver factories have received ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certification.

Over 90%

of BIC products are manufactured in BIC-owned production facilities.

4%

reduction in water consumption per ton of production between 2022 and 2023.

12%

reduction in energy consumption per ton of production over last ten years.

SOCIAL

At BIC, we thrive on a shared culture, enriched by local nuances and needs, including:

SAFETY AT WORK

HEALTH AND WELLNESS

LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

 

 

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

A Belief in Inclusivity

Our business is truly global, and our workforce—representing 89 different nationalities—reflects the diverse backgrounds and experiences of the communities where our products are made and sold. We strive to create a culture where all team members feel comfortable that they can bring their full selves to work.

We are committed to increasing the number of women in director and above positions 
to 40% by 2027. In 2023, we made a number of strides towards this target:

• Achieved 35% female representation in level 4 and above leadership roles
• Continued to implement our human capital management systems to improve talent identification and management;
• Systematically submitted a gender-balanced list of candidates to all level 4 and above vacancies;

Societal

We are proud of our commitment to improving learning conditions worldwide and believe we can make a positive impact through the work of our BIC Corporate Foundation for Education, BIC Global Education Week and more. 

PROMOTE ACCESS TO EDUCATION

BIC and its team members contribute time and donations to support access to education. 199 million children have benefited from improved learning conditions since 2018, with 900,000 euros invested in philanthropic projects.

GIVING BACK TO COMMUNITIES

In 2022, BIC and its subsidiaries initiated 90 philanthropic programs that involved volunteering, product donations and financial aid carried out worldwide.

THE BIC CORPORATE FOUNDATION

Born of BIC's desire to promote and structure its philanthropic approach, the Foundation supports increasing access to education, putting emphasis on the funding of social entrepreneurship and innovation in education. 47 projects were supported in 20 countries since its creation.

BIC’s approach to products and packaging is based on our 4R philosophy, inspired by the principles of the circular economy to change the linear ”take-make-dispose” model into a new way of designing products to keep them in use and prevent them to become waste or generate pollution.

Reducing the number of raw materials used to make our products, including as many recycled or alternative materials as possible, making more refillable products, and improving the recyclability of our products and packaging will contribute to making our economy more circular.

Our Circular Economy

REDUCE THE USE OF RESOURCES

CHOOSE RECYCLED/ALTERNATIVE MATERIALS

DESIGN REFILLABLE, LONG-LASTING PRODUCTS

IMPROVE RECYCLABILITY

Our Progress

99%

of cardboard packaging comes from certified and/or recycled sources.

98%

of plastic packaging material is PVC free.

81%

recyclable, reusable or compostable plastic in consumer packaging;

92%

of BIC® products are produced in BIC-owned factories.

78%

of writing products are packaged in boxes, trays or bags of 10+ products in Europe (87.1% in North America).

62.1%

recycled materials are used in BIC plastic packaging.

BIC continues to explore how to maximize the use of recycled and alternative materials in BIC products. 

  • In 2023, a retractable gel pen made from 78% recycled ocean-bound plastic waste was added to this range. Today, all our major stationery lines include at least one product made with alternative materials.

Partnerships & Memberships

THE ELLEN MACARTHUR FOUNDATION

In 2020, BIC became a member of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, global thought leader on Circular Economy. Its various programs will enable BIC’s teams to expand their knowledge, develop their skills, build a network and collaborate with key organizations on topics related to the circular economy.

Learn more >

BIC'S PARTNERSHIP WITH TERRACYCLE

The BIC-TerraCycle program offers the collection and recycling of used writing instruments - BIC-branded or not - in France.

Learn more >

UBICUITY

A partnership with Govaplast and Plas Eco for the design, manufacture and distribution of “Ubicuity™, the ‘write’ kind of bench™” furniture. Govaplast converts plastic materials into recycled plastic boards. Plas Eco uses these boards to design, manufacture, distribute and market products in the Ubicuity™ line.

Learn more >

Climate change

Climate change is one of the most important challenges of our time. At BIC, we are working to reduce our impact on climate change through better energy management and by addressing other major sources of emissions, including raw materials and transportation.

12 %

reduction in energy consumption per ton of production over the last ten years

91%

of the electricity used in BIC factories is of renewable origin.

1.06%

Keep air freight below 2.3% for intra-Company transport.

CDP CLIMAT : NOTE A- AT LEADERSHIP LEVEL

Over the past 10 years, BIC has received an A or A- score through the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a globally recognized authority on carbon emissions. This ranking highlights the company's commitment to reducing its impact on climate change and supporting the circular economy.

BIC, SIGNATORY OF THE FRENCH BUSINESS CLIMATE PLEDGE

BIC has renewed its commitment to the climate by signing the French Business Climate Pledge alongside 100 major French companies. BIC was one of the first signatories of this initiative after its creation in December 2017.

California AB 1305 Disclosures

AB 1305-compliant substantiation for our climate goals and accomplishments is provided in our Sustainability Report and Universal Registration Document (URD).