Polling shows that people, for the most part, want to buy products that are better for the environment and don’t like receiving items with too much single-use packaging. But figuring out how to accomplish those goals is often elusive. Distributors – in concert with sustainably minded suppliers – can help end-users navigate these concerns by answering these questions.

1

Why is there so much packaging?

Three-quarters of America would like to see more companies offer plastic-free options, and 72% agree that companies should stop producing and using so much single-use plastic, according to a recent IPSOS poll on behalf of the nonprofit Oceana.

That stat holds true for promotional products end-users, too. Jim Erhart, marketing manager for Accurate Perforating in Chicago, has been buying B2B swag since 2016. He runs several branded merch stores and has worked with multiple distributors over the years. One thing that bothers him: packaging all over the place. “I recently bought some branded mints in these little stainless-steel containers. They’re a quality product; the lid is secure, but each one is wrapped in plastic,” he says. “It seems wasteful to me.”

2

How do I shop my values without blowing through my budget?

Pacific WRO prefers to buy high-end branded apparel that people want to wear and keep, but the tension lies in finding a cost-effective way to do so.

Matt Johnson, marketing and communications manager for Pacific WRO, an interior design and furnishing firm in Portland, OR, tries to be thoughtful about the swag his company gives to clients, considering whether a particular promo item will be appreciated and used, or is more likely to go straight to a landfill. “Most of our individual clients and employees are very passionate about the environment and manufacturing ethics, so it’s something we want and need to care about,” he says. “But there’s a tension because to get branding on a small run of premium products costs, well, a premium.”

Sometimes, he adds, his company can justify the cost of higher-end items. For instance, PacificWRO will give its architecture clients logoed notebooks, using the specific brand of paper they love. For an internal club that walks the stairs in the company’s Portland high-rise every day, Johnson sourced higher-end sustainable tees for members. “We’ll just pay the premium on the order to get our logo and the stair club brand on there,” he says. Other times, however, the added cost of sustainable choices means the company simply won’t buy promo at all, rather than “fudge on their values” with a cheaper-priced alternative.

3

What should I do with unwanted swag?

Recent widespread tech layoffs have another unintended consequence: a surplus of unwanted swag either in company supply rooms or the closets of the newly laid off. Supply chain expert and content strategist Patrick Van Hull pondered this question recently on LinkedIn: “With all the layoffs, I know there are piles of company T-shirts, hoodies, mugs and bags that stir up all of the wrong feelings.” He asked his followers what they do with such items, and indeed, it’s a question many people have about logoed shirts they no longer need or want.

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