Communicating Sustainability - Embracing the Green Revolution

At the beginning of the pandemic, the natural world had a chance to repair itself and began to do so right before our eyes. Regeneration was happening all around us and gave, and continues to give, great hope.

Research during the summer of 2020, showed that 84% of consumers want the brands they purchase to communicate sustainability, to stand for something, to support causes, and provide a benefit to society beyond consumption and profit.

Over the past years business, governments, universities and millions of people around the world have taken action to create a more sustainable world. However, few companies are translating their high level corporate commitments (to sustainability) down to the level of their brand.

When communicating sustainability there are several basics to keep in mind:

1. Express optimism – this is not a denial of what is, but a belief that the future is positive.

Check out the Smithsonian’s #earthoptimism.

“To be effective, we require and deserve a conversation that includes possibility and opportunity, not repetitive emphasis on our undoing”, Elin Kelsey, Professor, University of Victoria, British Columbia.

2. Be honest, clear, and transparent.

3. Communicate values more and growth at all costs less.

4. Health and well-being are front and centre in people’s minds and can be an important element of sustainability messaging.

There is an opportunity for guidance and solutions from key players across the world to enable healthier and more sustainable living.

5. Engage people through education, storytelling and programming to connect on an emotional level.

6. Embrace the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and communicate your actions relative to the Goals.

David Attenborough recently said: “this is the very last moment we have in which we can hope to stem some of these disasters”.  We have been given a chance, perhaps the last chance, to come together to make change and to save our natural world and ourselves.

Let’s use this moment to embrace sustainability and communicate with impact, connection and understanding.


By: Jane Mitchell, Oyster Promo Inc. jane@oysterpromo.com

Vancouver-based ChopValue is taking the design world by storm, one chopstick at a time.

The idea came to founder Felix Böck in 2016 while eating sushi with his partner. Böck, frustrated about the 600,000 tonnes of waste produced in Vancouver each year as a result of demolition and construction, had proposed a project to take material from those worksites and reuse it in the wood industry -- but it produced minimal interest from stakeholders.

At dinner that evening, his partner glanced down at their chopsticks and suggested starting a bit smaller, with something more tangible.

As Böck began to consider the concept, he realized he could repurpose used chopsticks to create a viable business model in the circular economy, saving materials that would otherwise be discarded as waste -- and prove the naysayers wrong.

Since then, ChopValue has recycled nearly 30 million bamboo chopsticks. The company has partnered with more than 300 restaurants to source its used chopsticks -- collecting roughly 350,000 chopsticks each week -- which are converted into new material through a combination of heat, steam and pressure.

When the chopsticks arrive at ChopValue’s Microfactories, they are cleaned and aligned together before being coated in a water-based resin. From there, they head to the oven to dry out and then to the hydraulic press where they are shaped into tiles, the building blocks of all the company’s products. The process takes about six hours and involves consistently high temperatures, which helps sterilize the new material before it’s used to create the various finished products ChopValue offers.

“We sell a wide variety of sustainable WFH and lifestyle products, such as height-adjustable desks, coasters, serving boards, and C-Side tables — all of which can be personalized with engraving,” marketing manager Alison Lee said, noting ChopValue’s ability to customize items means its products are popular as gifts for everything from weddings to corporate gifts to housewarming presents.

While the wall decor and coasters that marked ChopValue’s first foray into the sustainable design marketplace remain its most popular products, the company is getting ready to begin manufacturing its newest offering, SMILE, a modular shelving system. As with all ChopValue products, each shelf is carbon negative, storing more carbon dioxide inside it than was used to produce and deliver it.

The company currently manufactures its product line at Microfactories in Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal, where it can also create custom items for other businesses -- things like community tables, wall panelling and retail display units. But with the launch of its turnkey Microfactory franchise concept this spring, it’s clear ChopValue is targeting expansion on a global scale.

“We are focusing on educating the importance of ‘made local’ to customers,” Lee said. “With a network of Microfactories, we operate based on the needs of each respective community, making sure we utilize local resources. This also means a decreased distance for transportation of goods, leading to lower shipping costs and faster lead times.”

“With Microfactories operating in multiple cities, we can truly be local, wherever our customers are, for a more efficient process while being a carbon-negative company.”

Oyster Promo is pleased to offer custom ChopValue products that can be engraved with your design.

Written by Diana Foxall

Jamie Weksberg didn’t intend to go into the promotional products industry when he first joined the business that would become Corporate Confections, but over the past four years, he has established a loyal client base that keeps coming back for more as the company expands its offerings.

Weksberg began working for the Toronto bakery as a general manager, saying he was attracted by the technology that printed edible designs onto cookies and cupcakes for events like weddings and birthdays.

“But little did I know until I actually arrived, they weren’t doing extremely well -- and the owners, a few months after I got there, were speaking of selling the business, of getting out of it,” Weksberg said. “So I purchased it, and I decided to change it from a storefront to a business selling into the promotional marketplace.”

Corporate Confections uses a digital printing process to create the designs on its cookies -- with a machine similar to a textile printer that uses edible inks. Since shifting the business to the promotional products industry in 2016, Weksberg says they are now on their third generation of printing equipment, with regular upgrades to meet ever-growing capacity requirements.

When the company first entered the market at the PPPC National Convention in January 2016, its main offering was its signature customized cookies.

“That was our first product, that’s where we started and it’s also the most unique to us -- that ability to put a full colour, custom logo directly onto a cookie or onto an icing,” Weksberg said. “There’s no icing sheets, no bad taste or consistency in the mouth, so really a great quality product. I think that’s what sets us apart from any of our competition.”

From there, the product range has grown -- and now includes other flavoured cookies, candies and chocolates. But Weksberg says Corporate Confections is quite literally breaking the mold when it comes to promotional chocolate, opting for a colourful, artisanal approach to branded products instead of the standard shaped offerings common in the industry.

“Very often what we find is people come to us because of our cookies, (they) like our quality and like working with us, and then they’ll start using us for the other parts of our line,” Weksberg said, noting while the original branded cookie remains the most popular, their candy and chocolate sales are gaining ground.

And the company’s products aren’t just tasty -- part of Corporate Confections’ appeal is its ability to successfully produce dazzling creative projects. Every member of the customer service team has a background in design or marketing and uses their artistic expertise to bring a client’s idea into reality.  

Weksberg says one of his favourite orders involved making shoeboxes for a popular shoe company.

“It was a life-sized box made out of gingerbread cookie, and inside they then kitted that with some shirts and some other items, and we sent these kits out to a hundred different influencers,” he said. “It was a fully edible gift box with their branding on it, with some extra design on it, and that was probably the most unique and fun, amazing project we’ve worked on.”

“If clients bring us something that’s unique and fun, we love doing it. That’s the most exciting time for our team, when we can get creative and try some new stuff.”

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Weksberg is optimistic about the coming months. The cancellation of events has impacted Corporate Confections’ sales, but the fast-approaching holiday season marks the company’s busiest time of the year.

“I think for us this year, we’re really excited to be bringing a few new items out -- in particular, our CandyPost line,” he said. “With most people changing to work from home now and having to drop ship things across the country, we can do that extremely affordably through standard Canada Post mail now.”

“But people also love food and what you’ve seen time and time again in the last hundred years is that when it’s a tough time for people, when there are recessions, when there are tough things going on in life, candy companies have always done well, chocolate bar companies have always done particularly well in that time,” Weksberg said. “And what we expect to see now, particularly over the holidays, is that our clients -- your clients -- still want to give gifts. You still want to show appreciation, we just have to change how we’re doing that.”

“I think people are going to be taking advantage of cookies and candies and chocolates to really send a positive emotion out to your staff at home or out your clients. That’s what we’re all looking to do now -- create that one moment of escape, of joy, from our very different lives working from home, and I think a lot of companies are going to take advantage of that.”

By Diana Foxall

Oyster Promo Inc. is launching a new campaign called 50,000in4. 

We have a goal of selling 50,000 custom reusable face masks in four months.  We will be supporting Canadian made by purchasing face masks Made in Canada and we will be donating $1 from the sale of each mask to charity.

Support Canadian made to help build our economy, make a difference through our donation and have beautiful custom face masks designed to keep people safe.  Our chosen charities are:  jack.org and Ocean Ambassadors Canada.

Details: 
Masks are made from 50% recycled PET.
100 mask minimum order
We can help design your mask
Masks come in a variety of sizes
Shipping is 2 - 3 weeks after artwork approval
If you have a team or group that will be purchasing masks, we can set up a 'storefront' for people to purchase individually.

For more information email: jane@oysterpromo.com, call 902.452.9664 or go to: www.50000in4.com.

Reusable masks are becoming the norm and are being required in many more locations, in particular for indoor activities and on public transit.  Now is the time to make sure you and your employees are prepared with masks that are on brand and sustainable.

Masks not only promote health and safety for you and those around you, but your branded masks can be designed to reflect your business look and feel.  Our suppliers are on board and have many different kinds of designs, fabrics and fashion forward options.  While single use masks will always have an important role, going the reusable route is a better long-term environmental choice.

Considerations

1. Fabric: cotton, polyester, recycled PET, microfibre fleece, bamboo are the main fabrics being used.  Most masks also have some spandex which is usually in the tie backs or ear loops.

2. Size and ties: some mask styles are one size only, while others come in multiple sizes from child to youth, to adult women's and adult men's.

3. Decoration:  masks can come in one colour silkscreening, multiple colour heat transfer or full sublimation.

4. Timing: masks that are custom made can take between 3 - 4 weeks from approval of artwork to shipping.  Pre-made masks that just need branding added can often be turned around in 7 - 10 days from approval of artwork.  Non branded can ship next day. 

5. Sustainability: masks can be made from recycled PET, organic cotton, bamboo or other sustainable materials.  Choose the recycled or organic option if you can.  Also, consider where the masks are coming from and if you can make the distance between manufacturer and final destination shorter - so much the better from an environmental perspective, supporting local, and shortening the supply chain.

6. Specialized: hearing impaired masks are made with a clear plastic insert over the mouth so that people who are used to lip reading will still be able to do so. This has been an important option for the hearing impaired.

7. Insert pockets:  many masks are being made with a pocket on the inside so that a filter can be placed in the mask.  Filters can be as simple as a piece of paper towel or coffee filter or a WHO certified filter.

See Face Masks 101 for more information.