Alain Guillot

Life, Leadership, and Money Matters

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What If My Business Isn’t Environmentally Sustainable In The Slightest?

It would be incorrect to say that no business can improve their sustainability measures. Moreover, it would be wrong to say this is something you can choose to reject in the modern era. After all, it’s more than just conscious consumers who care about their environmental impact now, and doing so can actually bake more reliable operations into your brand. For example, a seafood restaurant that contributes to sustainable fisheries will simply be more likely to buy the product they love indefinitely, be that caviar or another celebrated item. As such, it just makes sense to contribute in that way.

But what if your company isn’t particularly sustainable in terms of its main focus? What if there’s little you can do in terms of your in-house processes to reduce emissions or make products that are more sustainable? Sometimes, you may have done everything already, or just can’t see a means of developing that function now. 

In these scenarios, a little creative thinking can be helpful. Here’s how to get started:

You Can Donate To Charities That Work On Sustainability

The great thing about the division of labor is that if you can’t work on one thing, you can certainly support someone who does. So for example, donating some of your profits to sustainability causes, be that tree-planting charities, those who recycle waste, or just local campaign groups, you’re actively contributing using your platform. Sure, you might not do any of the work, develop any of those practices in-house, but you’re having an effect with your platform, and no one can accuse you of not making a difference. This might even cancel out your general operations depending on the scope of your support.

Some Suppliers Or B2B Partners May Have Sustainability Schemes

Moreover, some of your partners may even take genuine strides towards sustainability in their model. Even services that specialize in plastics such as JDI Plastics will have their own sustainability efforts – https://jdiplastics.com/sustainability/, and this way you can more easily work with partners who care about what they do, and seek to minimize its impact. Again, if you have many in your operational supply chain caring about sustainability, that influence paints your firm in a better light, and shows you’re putting thought into your daily approach:

Consider The Full Product Journey

It’s not just about how you create a product sustainably, but how you manage it over the course of its life. After all, a product you’ve created remains a product you’ve created even after a customer has purchased it. Perhaps having a helpful wastage scheme can prevent your product from occupying landfill. We see this with many tech firms, they’ll recycle the smartphones that are traded in when a new product is given. This is just one example. You might have a chance to integrate sustainability at an end-point rather than a baked-in development strategy. If so, you could see the options open up as you move forward.


With this advice, you’ll be certain to manage your business well, even if it’s not so environmentally sustainable.


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