Top Tips for Retailers to Be Sustainable Over Christmas and Beyond
by James P. Outreach & PR ExecutiveChristmas is around the
corner, and this year’s festivities look set to be more digital than
traditional. With new lockdowns being implemented in the UK and beyond, the
likelihood of people turning to online retailers for presents remains high.
Traditional bricks-and-mortar
shops accounted for £60.9 billion worth of sales in 2019, compared to £22.3
billion from online stores. But in 2020 that picture looks different, as figures show the pandemic—and Christmas—will see digital shopping overtake the high
street.
From an environmental
point of view, though, this means more parcels and more deliveries to help cope
with high demand. Today, we look at how retailers can be more sustainable over
Christmas and beyond.
Pick the right
packaging
The importance of how you package your products has grown
over recent years. Social media and the ‘unboxing’
craze have left people wanting an experience
personal to them.
This can be achieved through eye-catching packaging, but at what
cost to the environment? Around
12.7 million tonnes of plastic waste end up in
oceans every year, harming sea life and damaging habitats.
The issues surrounding single-use plastic have led to the
re-introduction of a bill that pledges
to push for the ban of single-use items. And this is
where retailers can come in.
Switching from plastic to paper is a smart way to become more
sustainable without sacrificing the look and quality of packaging. The
advantages of using paper are plentiful—it’s recyclable, renewable, and
biodegradable.
You can even replace protective materials like bubble wrap with
a paper alternative and ditch plastic tape for a self-adhesive paper version.
The market for paper packaging is growing and it’s something retailers can take
advantage of without diminishing
appearance and safety.
Choose the right courier
Transport is the most
polluting sector in the UK, with parcel deliveries
contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. But with action being taken on the
sale of petrol and diesel cars, courier services are also trying to reduce
their pollution figures by turning to emission-free methods.
Before you decide which courier provides you with the most
affordable or reliable service, it’s good to see which companies have already
introduced green schemes. Ones you can benefit from now and in the future.
This can come in the form of local services who use pushbikes
to deliver goods. On a national scale, look at providers who’ve turned their
focus to electric vehicles and even battery-operated bikes—like the Royal
Mail’s e-Trikes.
It doesn’t stop at which type of vehicle is used. To help limit
travel time, couriers can use a returnable transit packaging product like a
reusable plastic
pallet. This increases vehicle fill by up to 40 per
cent, making your business more efficient with deliveries and better for the
environment.
Give
something back
Another way to help the environment is by offsetting your
carbon emissions. One way to do this is by planting trees. Introducing an
initiative where you plant one tree for every ‘x’ number of items sold not only
helps you become more sustainable, but it shows customers that you care for the
planet by offsetting the emissions you’ve produced.
There are charities across the country that plant trees in
towns and cities. Teaming up with one via an official partnership is a
fantastic way to support your local and national causes and help build brand
loyalty for your business.
You can even help your customers offset their impact too. This
can be done by stating your packaging is recyclable and asking them to recycle
it, or by introducing reusability into the products you sell, for example
reusable cups and tote bags.
That’s our list of ways retailers can be more sustainable
over Christmas and beyond. The immediate future of the industry may well live
online, but an increase in deliveries doesn’t mean that becoming sustainable is
an impossible task to achieve.
Sources
https://loadhog.com/product/pally/
https://www.itv.com/news/2019-03-19/royal-mail-to-trial-e-trikes-for-letter-and-parcel-deliveries
https://www.packagingnews.co.uk/top-story/new-bill-aims-widen-single-use-plastic-bans-06-11-2020
https://www.businesscloud.co.uk/news/start-up-harnesses-power-of-youtube-unboxing-craze/
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Created on Dec 6th 2020 03:28. Viewed 306 times.