Taking responsibility for public health in the area of optical retail and eye health is the foundation of Synsam’s sustainability agenda. Good vision enriches people’s lives and well-being. Every day, our employees improve many people’s quality of life, helping them to see well and look great.
In addition to our focus on customers’ needs for vision correction, Synsam also wants to offer circular and locally produced products. These two initiatives are at the heart of the Group’s environmental efforts. Synsam’s production and innovation centre on Frösön provides the market with spectacles manufactured in Sweden. We are convinced that geopolitical risks are reduced and innovation is strengthened when production takes place closer to the market. We also provide a good work environment, create jobs in sparsely populated areas and initiate local collaborations.
The Group constantly strives to better understand the risks and challenges of its business. The 2025 climate assessment in accordance with the GHG Protocol shows that the Group’s largest climate impact is found within Scope 3, primarily related to purchased goods and services in the value chain. The climate calculations cover Scope 1, 2, and 3, providing a comprehensive view of the climate impact from Synsam’s own operations and across its value chain.
Our stakeholders have taken note that sustainability is an integral part of Synsam’s business. In 2025, Synsam Sweden won the Optician of the Year award for the forth year in a row at the Market Awards, where sustainability management was one of the criteria. Synsam was also recognised in this year’s Allbright report as one of Sweden’s most gender equal companies.
Sustainability highlights of the year 2025:
- The “Everyone should see!” initiative turned six years old and since its launch, more than 76,000 children have received support to participate in sports on equal terms.
- Synsam Sweden was named “Optician of the Year” at the Market Awards for the fourth consecutive year, with sustainability efforts being one of the evaluation criteria.
- Synsam Group’s production facility in Frösön continued to develop, manufacturing 100,000 frames in 2025.
- Allbright named Synsam one of Sweden’s most gender equal listed companies in its annual Allbright report.
- Synsam further developed and strengthened its climate calculations in line with the GHG Protocol. In the 2025 Annual Report, Synsam published a complete climate assessment across Scope 1, 2, and 3 for the first time.
- The work on CSRD continued, and in the 2025 Annual Report, Synsam published its first sustainability report in accordance with ESRS.
Synsam’s value chain
The Group bears a great deal of responsibility as the leading optical retail chain in the Nordic region and one of Europe’s leading players in the optical retail sector. Synsam’s entire business is based on a value chain where the Group takes responsibility for its impact on people, society and the economy. It is Synsam’s responsibility to work with its suppliers and partners to examine various parts of the value chain from a sustainability perspective. This encompasses design, purchase of raw materials, production and transport in operations, sales, product use, and reuse and recycling. Synsam strives to have a positive impact on people, society and the economy by making conscious decisions throughout the value chain.
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Sustainability management and governance
Synsam’s sustainability governance is part of the Group’s corporate governance model. Sustainability work at Synsam is governed by the Group’s sustainability framework and other policies. Group management has the ultimate responsibility for goals, implementation and follow-up. Synsam’s values – customer focus, responsibility and innovation – together with the company’s Code of Conduct, set the framework and provide guidance in decision-making and actions for the entire Group. The Code applies to all employees and is part of the on-boarding programme for all new employees. Synsam’s Supplier Code of Conduct is based on the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related UN Conventions, the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, and the UN Global Compact. Synsam is able to guarantee safe, high-quality customer interactions by always following rules and guidelines to ensure clinical quality. The use of certifications is an important part of ensuring an offering of high clinical quality. As an example of clinical quality, the Swedish stores are certified according to the quality standards of the optical trade association Optikbranschen. This certification is based on the rules governing the clinical aspects of the optician’s activity and summarises the National Board of Health and Welfare’s regulation for opticians and the Patient Data Act (PDL) in a certification that is regularly checked and audited through in-store visits. Processing customers’ personal data in a safe and secure manner is extremely important to Synsam.
Synsam works actively to ensure compliance with data protection legislation such as local patient data laws and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Synsam has a number of Group-wide and countryspecific policies to support its sustainability efforts. These include the Code of Conduct, Supplier Code of Conduct, whistleblower policy, health and safety policy, equal treatment policy and anti-corruption policy. The Group’s policies are available on its intranet.
Synsam Group’s sustainability reporting includes disclosures in accordance with ESRS and the EU Taxonomy Regulation and is integrated into the Group’s Annual Report. During 2025, Synsam has worked to align its sustainability reporting with the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), and the 2025 Annual Report constitutes Synsam’s first sustainability report in accordance with ESRS. Read our reports here: Reports and Presentations.