It’s the Season to Give Environment-Friendly Gifts

Gifting season is often the most confusing time for those who love the planet. Gifts help to show people that they are appreciated but also generate enormous amounts of waste and damage to the planet. That impact is multiplied in larger companies, where seasonal gifting is an expectation and an integral part of the culture. However, it’s possible to strike a balance between making employees feel appreciated and doing your bit for the planet. Sustainable gifts aren’t just easily available nowadays, but environmentally conscious employees also prefer them.

Does corporate gifting still matter?

When we look at the corporate presents we receive during the holiday season, it can be hard to fathom that what we’re holding is a chunk of a $125 billion market. Corporate gifting is as significant as ever, even if methods and gifts have changed form. According to the Business Gift Satisfaction Survey, knowing what gifts to give can make or break business growth. In addition, a sizable portion of respondents to the poll claimed that presents could have a favorable or bad impact on how they view a business partner. What’s interesting to note is that people are often most impacted or touched by presents that feel personal and meaningful. This is a key insight for companies who want to reach their giftees through meaningful connections and are ready to go beyond the thousands of branded plastic pens and notepads to do it.

Treading more lightly on the planet

Sustainable corporate gifting encourages waste reduction and a greener lifestyle for your customers and staff. Environmentally friendly gifts assist you in motivating the giftees to reduce their daily impact and practice more environmentally conscious behavior. It’s important to note that while gift cards seem to give recipients the freedom to choose what they want to buy and reduce waste significantly, they can also feel impersonal and often forgettable.

Gifting ideas that check all the right boxes

In case you’re behind on gifting, we’ve put together an end-of-year quick guide to sustainable gifting to make your life simpler!

Trees

Trees make for thoughtful gifts that are also environmentally friendly. Gifting employees a tree each is a wonderful way to recognize their value while encouraging them to connect with nature. You can adopt a tree in their name or purchase an entire forest and assign trees to your employees within that area. As an additional benefit, this is one of those environmentally-friendly presents that, when given with the help of, e.g., EcoMatcher, can have positive ripple effects on the environment and your company for years to come. If you want to know more about why tree gifting is the next cool trend, read our article on it!

Fair-labor clothing

Cheap T-shirts and sweatshirts made of cotton and polyester are no longer on trend or appreciated by many people. This is because they don’t last long, are damaging to the environment, and are often produced in inhumane conditions. On the other hand, all-cotton clothing is more durable, gentler to the touch, and recyclable to boot. It would be an additional benefit if the cotton used to make these t-shirts were sustainably grown.

Experiences

Gifting experiences is one of the easiest ways to minimize waste and maximize impact. Given that many of us are inundated with material goods and often tied to our desks on weekdays, gifting experiences can help employees and other recipients get back in touch with themselves and form a core memory thanks to your organization. Some out-of-the-box experiential gifts include:

• Farm-to-table gourmet experience
• Cocktail kits
• Mindfulness retreats
• Camping trips

Sustainable Gifting Overview