Rooted in Hong Kong since 1973, Nobletime is a well-known local retail chain selling a wide range of products from toys and confectionery, to gaming devices and audio products. Its commitment to reducing waste has incarnated across its retail stores, warehouses and offices to minimise the environmental impact of business operations. With its main operations based in the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA), five of its retail stores at HKIA participated in the Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Charging Pilot Scheme in 2018, where the stores practiced waste separation and recycling, as well as waste quantity measurement for a 1.5-year trial period. The pilot scheme enabled the stores to estimate their MSW charges (approximately HK$300 per store) and enhance staff engagement in waste reduction through incentive programme. With its devotion and achievements in waste reduction, Nobletime was recognised as one of the winners of the ‘Best Green Practice in Shops – Retail Sector’ award in the Hong Kong Green Shop Alliance Award 2019. 

Nobletime has been actively promoting a paperless office and warehouse to eliminate excessive use of paper, which is the major type of waste produced. From increasing the use of email and mobile apps for internal communications, file sharing and archive, to working jointly with its production line to ensure minimal product packaging, the company significantly reduced paper waste by 80% in a year, which also contributed to zero waste for 6 months consecutively. In addition, LED lights and motion sensors have been fully adopted in the office and warehouse since 2018 and reduced electricity usage to around 60%. The company’s management also initiates regular internal meetings every 3 to 6 months to evaluate the execution and results of the green measures. 
 

Nobletime has implemented different initiatives to engage retail staff and customers in responsible use of plastic and paper. The company launched an incentive programme to motivate participated stores in the MSW Charging Pilot Scheme, as well as enhance staff awareness to sustainability. For instance, stores were evaluated every 3 months and to be rewarded with cash voucher for achieving the waste reduction target. Rewarded Stores were seen to have better waste reduction results and successfully lowered the MSW charges by 2-3%. In addition, Nobletime also shares green news and tips via various electronic channels regularly to educate and encourage customers to ‘Think Green, Go Green’.  
 

Nobletime will continue to enhance waste reduction across business operations, production and administration, and strengthen staff and customer engagement in different green practices. Moreover, the company will maintain the practice of regular meetings with management, sales and warehouse representatives to review and discuss waste reduction strategies every 3 months for continuous improvement.