Hallmark holder speaks: Greengiving

In February, Greengiving was CSR certified by Keurmerk Nederland for the 3rd year in a row. We are very happy with that. We believe it is important to act in a socially responsible manner and to do business sustainably. We do this from a sober, practical attitude, with an eye for the world around us. The certification underlines that. In this blog you can read the story behind the numbers and scores of the CSR certificate.

Greengiving: green gifts
First a short introduction. Greengiving is a webshop for sustainable business gifts and promotional items. Our range consists of more than 1200 products with a green and sustainable character. For example, they are made from natural or recycled materials. Other products encourage reuse or are aimed at (energy) savings. The webshop is now available in 5 different languages, we are internationally active and the team consists of 16 enthusiastic and committed colleagues.

Sustainability and CSR in practice
In addition to the gifts – more about this in the next paragraph – our office building is an important part of our sustainable story. The glass building is gasless and is fully covered by the more than 100 solar panels on the roof. The interior fits exactly with what we want to radiate to the outside: green and transparent. Another part of our sustainable story is the minimal transport movements. We ship as much as possible directly from the supplier to the customer. We prefer products that are produced locally or in Europe. We minimize the sending of samples and always look for an environmentally friendly and responsible solution in the case of returns. In addition, we apply a number of basic principles, such as separating waste, reusing packaging and not using single-use plastic.

The Green Constitution
Greengiving stands for green giving. In order to achieve this, we have drawn up a Green Constitution against which all products are tested. This constitution states, among other things, that all our products are BPA-free and free of child labour. They also have to be sustainable or environmentally friendly in some way. This is expressed, for example, in the material, production, transport or recognized quality marks such as Fairtrade, GOTS and FSC. We are always looking at how we can act even more sustainably in all these areas. Does a product not meet at least one of the conditions? Then it will not be in our range either. This approach keeps us sharp and ensures that we are focused.

Suppliers
Although we do our very best to operate sustainably, we are also dependent on other parties. We therefore take a critical look at the way in which our suppliers shape sustainability and CSR. This is very clearly visible with brands such as Dopper, Tony's Chocolonely and Bambook. With other parties, we look at the overall course of the company and the product range, for example whether there is a green line in the range. We also ask for certificates that show that products are produced sustainably and environmentally friendly.

CSR objectives
We are currently working on our goal of shipping completely carbon neutral. Based on a 0 measurement, we map out where we are now in terms of emissions. We look at the entire process, from production to delivery to the customer. We then determine how we can reduce our emissions and, if this is not (yet) possible, how we will compensate. Furthermore, we continue to develop the product range, evaluate our processes and stimulate
customers to make increasingly sustainable choices. For example by choosing a fair trade cotton bag instead of a 'normal' cotton bag. In this way we make choices together that have a positive impact on the environment.

In short, our daily practice is aimed at acting sustainably and responsibly in both large and small things. And that a little better every day. Do you want to know more about Greengiving? Then take a look at our website www.greengiving.nl. And if you are still looking for an original sustainable business gift: we are happy to help you!