Innovation

Bikupan specializes in selling environmentally conscious products. The small shop caters to customers that care about the environment and support products that promote a more sustainable future. The company's ideals, which emphasize ecological, fairtrade-certified, and locally made goods, reflect this. Since they have direct control over their supply chain, they have already optimized the majority of the Scope 1 emissions under the GHG protocol. The business uses paper shopping bags instead of plastic ones and encourages clients to bring their own bags. In addition, a lot of products are packaged in recycled paper. The company tries to buy as many goods made locally as possible, and even forgo buying cheaper goods because they have longer transportation distances and therefor have larger ecological footprints. This way they are directly reducing their Scope 2 and Scope 3 emissions. Another benefit is that the company can be certain that the promised standards are upheld by purchasing from local farmers who have knowledge of how the products are made.

Bikupan's waste management system has also been improved by owners or employees eating food that is about to spoil. Expired fruits and vegetables are donated to nearby farmers or family members to feed their animals. The company disposes of perishable products in a compost container in the backyard. Packaged goods with a limited shelf life are put in a special sales section and are sold at a discount. All of this contributes to reducing their waste, which is essentially nonexistent as a result.

The examples provided show how the company has already implemented several steps to become more sustainable. Because they mostly use social media, their website, and a few in-store events, they keep advertising costs low and waste to a minimum.

Inspiration

Before Bikupan, there weren't really any other stores which specialized in sustainable and locally produced goods in Jönköping. A few years prior to the launch of their company, Birgitta Ericsson, one of the founders, happened upon a store of similar nature in the Swedish city of Lund, which resulted in how Bikupan came to be.

''We were inspired by their alternatively grown and produced goods that we wanted to bring this idea back to Jönköping and start our own store'' Bikupan tells us. Previously, people who have raised sustainability issues and cared for the environment in Jönköping have faced difficulties in getting their voices heard in the city. This of course was the first main obstacle Bikupan had to face on their long journey. After coming back from her trip, pondering over this idea and talking to other like-minded people, they together started the cooperative and Bikupan opened their doors for the first time in 1989.

Overall impact

The social and environmental aspects of Bikupan's impact can be separated into two categories. In terms of the environment, it is clear that Bikupan makes a concerted effort to cut emissions through reduction in plastic usage, a shortening of their supply chain as well as a reduction in travel distances. The environmental impact is a factor in almost all of their decisions. According to the Worldwatch Institute, purchasing locally sourced products results in 5-17 less CO2 emissions than purchasing products with ingredients that have traveled great distances. The majority of their freshly produced commodities, such as vegetables, are both locally produced and seasonal.

The social component is the second aspect of Bikupan's impacts. One factor that Bikupan continuously considers in their operations is raising awareness. They have previously worked along with the Students for Sustainable Action (SSA) the sustainability board at Jönköping University. They frequently host various lectures, talks, and activities that are open to everyone, like plant exchanges and vegetarian Christmas dinners. In contrast to harsh criticism, people are far more open-minded to change when the topic of sustainability is presented in this way along with enjoyable activities.

Business benefit

As was already mentioned, Bikupan is the only well-established grocery store in Jönköping, and they put a strong emphasis on local and environmentally friendly goods. They are able to assure their consumers of the quality of the items since their supply chain is so condensed in comparison to other, larger networks. People are placing increasing pressure on shops and companies in the modern day to uphold their values as they become more and more conscious of how important our planet is. Comparing Bikupan to the other more well-known grocery store brands, this provides it a competitive advantage. Bikupan's consumers are more devoted despite the fact that their prices are slightly higher than competitors, since they are more inclined to support the cause and return to the business. Customers are prepared to pay more for sustainable items.

A new opportunity was created when employees with family in Iran and Greece joined the company. Due to the travels and connection to their home country they were able to acquire new suppliers from those regions. Additionally, the required product standards could be held by both employees being able to visit the production facilities. This also increased the variety of products offered in the store while giving Bikupan a slight competitive advantage compared to larger grocery stores in the area, since they can offer more exclusive and exotic products to their customers.

Social and environmental benefit

Bikupan cares about their social responsibility in their line of business, which includes looking out for their employees and their environmental impact. For many of the workers and volunteers working there, they compare the operations of Bikupan to that of a refugee or a safe haven. Many people in today's culture lead very stressful lives, with busy schedules and frantic daily routines. For these people, spending a short time working at Bikupan is incredibly calming and tranquil, and it gives them a chance to unwind after their typically stressful workdays.

Bikupan has also collaborated with Arbetsförmedlingen (Sweden's state-owned Employment Agency) by allowing those who are burnt out or in need of "job training" to come work there for a while. Work training is defined by Arbetsförmedlingen as spending time in a workplace and participating in operations. The workers will have the opportunity to work with supervision without any productivity requirements. As a result, Bikupan is able to support their community even more while also receiving a few additional helping hands at the store. This collaboration has been quite successful and contributes significantly to the efforts of Arbetsförmedlingen.

Due to their focus on sustainability, the company creates additional awareness regarding this important topic for customers. Moreover, they set a good example to other stores in the surrounding area. They do not hesitate in paying a fair price for the sustainable products. By doing this they support the fair-trade market and the efforts of local producers working towards the goal of a more sustainable world.

Interviews

Christina Evertsson, Founder

Stefan Rydberg, Founder