Very sustainability score: 45/100
Very is a UK online retailer selling clothing, homeware and electricals through very.co.uk, with its own credit service, Very Pay; sales of goods are about 79% of its revenue and interest from Very Pay lending about a fifth. Its group accounts are filed by VGL Midco Limited, incorporated in 2021; its roots go back to 2003 (The Very Group Limited, 04730752).
More about Very
It has been owned by Carlyle, via Bird Bidco, since November 2025. It had about 3,068 employees and £2,087.4 million revenue in its year to June 2025.
Founded 2021Head office Liverpool, UKStaff ~3,068 (FY to June 2025 average)Revenue ~£2.09B revenue (FY to June 2025)Website ↗
Very's footprint was 1.55 million tCO2e in its 2024 financial year, almost all of it the goods it sells, their use in customers' homes and their delivery, and about a fifth lower than in 2021. Its sites run on renewable electricity backed by certificates, and it has SBTi-validated absolute targets with net zero by 2040. It aims for all the timber in its furniture to be certified by 2027 and took back 41,117 electrical items for recycling, but its figures have no external assurance and it publishes no operational waste or water data.
Very scores 45/100 (Below expectations) on SINK's independent climate assessment, scored from public data only. Scores are free. Companies can never pay for anything about their own score. Last verified November 2026.
That places Very joint 280th of 934 companies scored, and joint 11th of 24 in E-commerce / Online Retail.
What is Very doing well, and where does it fall short?
Strongest on Targets & Commitments and Controversies & Red Flags (9/10, 8/10). Weakest on Water Impact and Emissions Trajectory (4/10, 5/10).
Where Very lost points
For each question that lost points, the evidence our public rubric looks for that we didn't find.
- Emissions from its own operations7/10Its own emissions aren't independently verified or tracked over several years.
- Emissions from its supply chain6/10No full value-chain map or supplier engagement programme.
- Whether its emissions are falling5/10No evidence of a year-on-year fall in its total emissions.
- How clean its energy is6/10Less than 90% of its energy shown to be renewable.
- Its effect on nature5/10Its effect on nature isn't measured or independently verified.
- How it uses materials and handles waste5/10No measurable waste or recycling targets reported publicly.
- Its effect on water4/10No measured water footprint with reduction targets.
- Its climate targets9/10No validated long-term net zero target.
- How openly it reports6/10No annual impact report, or no pay linked to climate targets.
A score changes when the evidence does. We use new published evidence at the next rescore. Anyone can send us new evidence, free. How to send it.
How is Very's SINK score calculated?
Same ten questions for every company. No private weighting.
SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × ScaleWhat evidence is Very's score based on?
10 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which of the ten questions it informed.
40% of them were published by Very itself; the rest come from independent sources.
About a fifth of Very's revenue is interest from Very Pay lending (£427.0 million of £2,087.4 million in its year to June 2025). SINK scores Very as an online retailer because most of its revenue comes from selling goods.
“emissions reduced 66% (1,776 tonnes”
“We have reduced scope 1 and scope 2 greenhouse gass emissions by 67% since FY21.”
“will prioritise the sourcing Forest Stewardship Council”
“The Very Group commits to reduce absolute scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 42% by FY2030”
“It uses few eco-friendly materials.”
“67.3 / 250”
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How does Very compare with other e-commerce / online retail companies?
Where Very sits among e-commerce / online retail peers.
Among the 24 major e-commerce / online retail brands we've scored, Very is tied =11th of 24, with 3 others.
Who scores higher in E-commerce / Online Retail?
The 3 companies in the sector scoring nearest above Very.
Booking Holdings has cut operational emissions 85% since 2019 and secured SBTi-validated net-zero targets by 2040.
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See the breakdown →Which companies moved this week, and why.
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