Kum & Go Receives Sustainability Accolades

July 12, 2012

Kum & Go convenience store’s commitment to sustainability is winning the company awards and making headlines in Iowa where the 400-store chain is based.

Adam Hammes

The chain was recently recognized by Iowa's Metro Waste Authority as the large business winner of its annual Environmental Impact Awards, according to a report by the Iowa Business Record, which featured Adam Hammes, Kum & Go’s manager of sustainability on the cover this month.

West Des Moines-based Kum & Go goes about its sustainability projects very methodically, according to Hammes, who noted that each initiative must prove its cost effectiveness before it is approved. Although more costly in the short-term, well conceived green store designs payoff long term.

"It's more expensive to do that kind of store design, so we budget for that and just know that it's an investment in our environmental/sustainability effort," he said. "A lot of times, convenience stores dabble in environmental stewardship and sustainability, but after they see what the cost is, they scale right back. We're in it for the long haul."

Environmental initiatives included in new store designs eventually find their way to existing store remodels and retrofits, Hammes said, noting that being a small family business helps the chain to be more environmentally mindful because it is part of the culture.

"We have a lot of investment not only in the company but in Des Moines and the communities we're in, so we can think a little long-term versus with public companies, (where) there's a tendency to do quarterly reporting and that's what drives things."

Among its many initiatives, Kum & Go recently transitioned to LED lighting in its 27 newest stores and retrofitted LED lighting into 164 existing stores.

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