5 Ways for Brands to Get Up to Speed on Sustainable Practices
You cannot stop climate change alone, but you can take proactive steps to protect the environment as a responsible business.
Making your company more environmentally responsible can help the overall business performance, regardless of size and industry type. The number of conscious customers is growing daily, and they want to support brands that mirror their ethos.
Why Should Businesses Move Towards Sustainability?
The demand for ethical businesses is at an unprecedented high. Consumers today have higher expectations of companies than ever before. They know that industry initiatives can have a greater overall impact on the environment beyond individual efforts. Companies can match the values and meet the expectations of their customers by implementing eco-friendly strategies. Make efforts to transform into a conscious brand that customers will be thrilled to support.
What is Required to Improve a Brand's Sustainability?
Most mistakenly believe that natural eco-fabrics are all there is to be sustainable. But sustainability encompasses more than just eco-friendly and natural materials. It also includes (but is not limited to):
Brand Management: Company operations, employee engagement, educational training, product circularity, brand transparency, traceability, etc.
Environmental Impacts: Impacts on the environment related to the business's supply chain operations, water conservation, energy utilization, CO2 emissions, waste management, recycling, packaging system, etc.
Social Responsibility: Fair treatment, living wages, work hours, work surroundings, workplace harassment, etc.
That said, here are a few pointers that can help a brand become more sustainable.
5 Strategies to Shield Your Business from Sustainability Challenges
Adopt Strategic Sourcing
Businesses can lower scope 3 carbon emissions by supporting their supply chain partners in switching to 100% sustainable energy. Dedication to the purest energy source will aid in decarbonizing energy use and also help strengthen the brand credentials. Brands can also incorporate more environmentally friendly materials to make the product easy to salvage for reusing or recycling.
Assess Wasted Resources
Reducing waste is one of the simple steps that businesses can take to move toward sustainability. While some trash cannot be avoided, it is important to be aware that any waste increases the carbon impact and causes financial penalties. Companies produce waste in a variety of ways including ink waste, material leftovers, printing mistakes, etc. It is imperative to take measures, pay attention to the larger waste areas, and explore effective remedies. Organizations can also introduce performance parameters in the working quarters that focus on waste to expedite changes.
Provide Sustainability Training
Corporate training and engagement, from the CEO, and executives to employees, is essential regardless of where a company stands on the road to sustainability. However, the term sustainability carries strong connotations and has diverse meanings for different organizations. So, defining what sustainability means to your business is the first step. Is it to obtain a specific certification, reach net-zero waste, lower carbon impact, or catch up with the sector's top performers? It becomes simpler to choose and achieve the goal after knowing exactly what the company's sustainability goals are. Corporate sustainability training teaches individuals the skills they need to make wise choices and encourages behavioral change. It offers an insight into the greater good, understanding what it takes to become green and where and how to put the efforts.
Include Eco-Friendly Supplies
"Sustainable" primarily refers to products and businesses that follow green business principles. Say, businesses that employ green energy in place of carbon fuels, offer organic products and mitigate their carbon output. If you're not already giving your customers a selection of eco-friendly goods, now is the time because the tide is pretty high. According to an international IBM survey on consumer goods—
70% of consumers who buy with a purpose spend an additional 35% more on sustainable products.
57% are ready to change their old shopping behavior if it means it will lessen their impact on the environment.
79% agree that firms must offer guarantees of authenticity/ certifications.
71% are prepared to pay 37% more for businesses that uphold transparency and traceability.
In an era where the eco-friendliness of a product drives consumer purchase decisions, most companies' clients and partners have ethical and sustainable purchasing policies. Incorporating sustainable products can make it easier for your clients to achieve their objectives, while also setting your business apart from the direct competitors.
At Gallant, we offer private label organic and fairtrade cotton products with a fully traceable + transparent supply chain with credible and measurable impact data. Our products include:
Bulk drawstring pouches - mostly used for packaging
Custom makeup bags - mostly used as gift with purchase (GWP) item
Organic cotton bulk t-shirts - mostly used as a retail product
Get in touch with us via phone or email to explore all the products we offer. Our products are 100% customizable to meet your branding needs.
Practice Transparency & Traceability
Being open and honest with customers demonstrates that the company is aware of who is creating its product and where it's coming from. Displaying factories and partners on the website exhibits the company's confidence in sharing that information with the public. Documenting emissions (data transparency) can assist organizations in detecting performance gaps and making an effort to lessen their ecological footprint. It also helps companies ensure that suppliers are following the required sustainability protocols and not harming the environment throughout the supply chain. In short, transparency and traceability help businesses monitor their environmental performance and identify the issues that need to be addressed.
