Hoffman Estates, Ill. — Sears Holdings Corporation has been named a 2018 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence Award winner for continued leadership in protecting the environment through superior energy efficiency achievements. In addition, the Kenmore brand has been named a 2018 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year – Product Brand Owner. According to the EPA, it marks the first time a company has won all three awards: Retailer, Energy Management and Brand Owner.
Sears Holdings’ and Kenmore’s accomplishments will be recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on April 20, 2018.
Sears Holdings, an ENERGY STAR partner since 1998, will be honored for long term commitment to energy efficiency. The company’s related accomplishments in 2017 included:
- Energy Savings: From February through August 2017, Sears reduced total store energy consumption by 9% and saved 82 million kilowatt hours of power, which equates at an average rate, to almost $10 million.
- Responsible Appliance Disposal: Sears processed and responsibly disposed of more than 182,000 refrigerators, freezers, AC units and dehumidifiers from January 2017 through September 2017. These efforts resulted in avoided greenhouse gas emissions of approximately 226,000 metric tons CO2 equivalent.
- Product Selection and Sales of ENERGY STAR Products: From Sears’ sales of ENERGY STAR products in 2017, customers were able to achieve energy savings of 298 million kWh, $70 million in utility costs, 459 million pounds of CO2 reduced, or equivalent emissions of 44,000 cars. In 2017, SHC offered 849 unique ENERGY STAR certified models across categories such as lighting, appliances, consumer electronics, doors, windows, and HVAC. In Appliances alone, SHC saw a 9.5% increase in ENERGY STAR certified products over 2016 numbers. For the fourth straight year, more than 99% of Sears’ door and window installations were completed using ENERGY STAR certified products.
- Training: Sears conducted its Home Appliance business sales associate product training road show in 2017 to educate its associates on ENERGY STAR. Over 1,900 associates were trained and gained specific knowledge on ENERGY STAR certified products.
- Partnership: Sears and the Kenmore brand partnered with Amazon to launch major appliances on amazon.com. The launch and marketing materials have focused heavily on ENERGY STAR certified appliances and the majority of the products are ENERGY STAR certified. This is introducing the Kenmore brand and the ENERGY STAR Program to a new demographic audience.
“We truly value Sears Holdings’ partnership with ENERGY STAR and are honored to receive the Partner of the Year Award in Sustained Excellence for the ninth consecutive year in Retail and the seventh consecutive year in Energy Management,” says Edward S. Lampert, chairman and chief executive officer of Sears Holdings.
“The Kenmore brand has been an iconic American brand since 1913 and has been a significant supporter of ENERGY STAR since 1992,” says Tom Park, president of Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard brands at Sears. “In 2017, Kenmore increased the percentage of total sales dollars from ENERGY STAR certified Kenmore appliances by over 7% compared to the prior year.”
The 2018 Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence Awards are bestowed upon companies and other organizations demonstrating continued leadership in energy efficiency and commitment to the ENERGY STAR program. Winners hail from small, family-owned businesses to Fortune 500 organizations — representing energy-efficient products, services, new homes, and buildings in the commercial, industrial, and public sectors.
For a complete list of 2018 winners and more information about ENERGY STAR’s awards program, visit www.energystar.gov/awardwinners.
Sears Holdings Corporation operates through its subsidiaries, including Sears, Roebuck and Co. and Kmart Corporation, with full-line and specialty retail stores across the United States. For more information, visit www.searsholdings.com.
SOURCE: Sears Holdings Corporation