Corporate Christmas Hampers That Are Good For society: Sustainable Gift Ideas

Corporate Christmas hampers can be a great way to ensure that your employees are not left out of the festivities this year. They are also a fantastic way to show loved ones just how much you care about their well-being and happiness. Unfortunately, they can just as easily come with a negative connotation. After all, it is not hard to see why people might question why companies would find it necessary to include these types of gifts in their seasonal offerings. 

When you consider the number of resources that go into creating these types of hampers, there has to be another reason for offering them aside from simply being nice and giving people what they want. That being said, if you take the time to research this topic in more detail, it can turn out to be a good deal for your company and the environment as well.

A Brief Explanation of Corporate Christmas Hampers

A corporate gift hamper is a collection of items that are presented to your employees for recognition, appreciation, and reward. Corporate gift hampers are commonly used by large companies and can be gifted to both clients and also to employees. They may be purchased in bulk or custom-made to suit individual needs. 

Corporate gift hampers can be given at any time throughout the year, but are generally given at Christmas and on other special occasions such as birthdays and anniversaries. The items in a corporate Christmas gift hamper can be anything from food and drink to reusable gifts and everything in between. 

There are many things that you can put into a corporate gift hamper to make it more special, so take your time when planning your corporate gift hampers and consider everything that you might want to include.

Why your company's Christmas hamper should come from a social enterprise

With all of that being said, it’s important to think about the social aspect of these gifts as well. After all, it’s not as if companies are doing themselves any favours in the grand scheme of things by offering socially irresponsible items in hampers. 

The gift you give is a reflection of your values. With more and more workers wanting to work for companies that care about sustainability gifting an ethical gift hamper is a great way to show that you share this value. Sustainable Christmas gifts for businesses can be hard to find. 

To identify a company that genuinely cares for staff, communities and the environment look for a company that is a registered Community Interest Company (CIC). These types of companies are social enterprises that exist to create a positive social impact. Social Stories Club is one of these companies and gifting one of their sustainable corporate Christmas gifts to employees is a wonderful opportunity to show your team that you care about their well-being as well as caring for local communities. 

You can use these hamper types as a great way to boost employee morale and boost employee retention rates at the same time.

How can you choose a sustainable Christmas gift hamper for your employees?

Picking a sustainable Christmas gift is about choosing the right corporate gifting company. There are many significant points that a company has great sustainable values. Some indicators of a sustainable company are that they have a long-term vision, they focus on their core values, they take care of their employees, and they have a good workplace culture. Here are four pointers that a gifting company is sustainable.

• The company is a living wage employer.
  
  A living wage employer is a business that pays its employees a wage that allows them to meet their basic needs. This may include paying for food, housing, and other necessities. A living wage employer considers the cost of living in the area where they plan to operate. By comparing these costs with what they pay their employees, they can set a fair living wage. A living wage can vary depending on location. Some areas may have higher costs of living than others. For example, London is known for its expensive housing and high cost of living. As a result, it is common for London workers to earn more than those in other parts of the country.
• Offsetting carbon emissions
  
  Offsetting the emissions from a company’s operations is an important strategy for reducing carbon emissions. Offsetting means that a company uses some of its profits to pay for projects that reduce emissions elsewhere. These projects can be in any sector: transportation, buildings, agriculture, and so on. Offsetting helps companies reduce their overall emissions by making them more efficient and by investing in projects that can help them achieve their climate targets. Companies need to offset their emissions to achieve climate targets. Companies need to offset their emissions because they may not have the ability to reduce them all by themselves. Carbon offsetting is an important tool for companies across many sectors to mitigate their carbon footprint. Companies can purchase offsetting services or projects such as planting trees, creating eco-friendly products, or buying renewable energy credits from organisations such as Clean Power Finance or Avoided Deforestation Partners. Given the importance of mitigating climate change, offsetting is becoming increasingly common among companies around the world. Therefore, companies need to understand the various ways they can offset their carbon emissions and how it benefits them both financially and environmentally. A way your corporate gifting company can be more sustainable is by offsetting carbon from the delivery of your Christmas gifts. Social Stories club is a corporate gift company that offsets its carbon and we have planted over 1000 trees.
• Providing job opportunities to individuals with barriers to employment
  
  Social Stories Club is a corporate gifting company that hire individuals with barriers to employment. The challenges of finding a job are not just for young people. People with disabilities, older people, and individuals with language barriers are just some examples of people who face similar challenges, but often receive fewer job opportunities and less support to help them find work. Offering employment to people with barriers to employment can help them reintegrate into society and feel valued. It can also provide an opportunity to build skills and experience that can be useful in later life. Companies can also learn from the employees they hire: they may find they have better ideas about how to run their business or are more likely to treat staff fairly.
• Sustainable products inside the hamper
  
  As you can see, it’s important to think about the social and environmental aspects of these gifts. You will want to make sure that the items you choose are sustainable. You can choose a corporate gifting company that uses more sustainable options for items like coffee, tea, or cocoa. At Social Stories Club every item inside our corporate Christmas hampers creates a social impact and has a fascinating social story. To choose which ethical gifts are inside your hamper you can build your own gift. 

Where can you find a corporate Christmas hamper with sustainable packaging?

If you are looking for sustainable corporate Christmas hampers that also happen to have low-impact packaging options, Social Stories Club is the place to go. We strive to reduce the negative environmental impact with our gift boxes. 

We are constantly researching and implementing methods to reduce our waste and improve our carbon footprint. In addition to our biodegradable, sustainable gift boxes and reusable, sustainable gift hampers, we also use sustainable paper for our story booklets. We send out our biodegradable gift boxes in biodegradable mailer bags which are easy to open for individuals with disabilities. 

We designed our boxes to have delicate illustrations of people carrying out the United Nations' sustainable development goals on the packaging to educate people on social issues to attract customers to our sustainable gift boxes. Our filler is not plastic packaging peanuts, instead we use compostable wood wool, which we obtain from responsibly managed forests.

Why do employees expect their Christmas gifts to be sustainable

In addition to the social and environmental aspects of these gifts, you will also have to think about the expectations that your employees have when it comes to the types of gifts that they expect to receive this season.

It’s no secret that sustainability is a hot topic right now. From the food we eat to the materials we use, we have a responsibility to make sure our choices positively impact the world. Enduring companies are taking notice and making changes to their operations to be more sustainable. 

This has created an environment where it’s easier than ever to find products that are made with respect for the environment and people. And, as consumers, we can take action too by choosing products that align with our values. You may be surprised at how many people care about sustainability. It may not be something you think about every day, but it’s a topic that is important to many people.

In 2017, 75% of people said they were concerned about climate change and 64% were interested in sustainable products. And when it comes to food, 82% of people are concerned about how their food is grown and 80% want sustainable alternatives.

To learn about how Social Stories Club is sustainable, head over to our impact report.

How a sustainable gift is an unusual Christmas gift idea that build valuable business relationships

If you want to ensure that your corporate Christmas hampers are sustainable, you can also take advantage of the fact that these gifts are also great for building relationships with your employees. 

After all, you do not have to just send them a typical Christmas hamper to build these types of relationships with them. Instead, you can opt for gifts with social stories. Sending a gift that also transforms communities around the world is both meaningful and sustainable. Sustainable Christmas hampers from Social Stories Club are a truly unique gift. If you want to ensure that your employees do not receive the typical gifts that everyone else does, you can opt for truly unique gifts that are good for society.

Conclusion

Christmas is a time of year when people come together with loved ones and celebrate the season. In addition to the usual festivities, there are also many wonderful gift ideas that you can consider. To make your holiday season more meaningful, you can also consider gifting a sustainable corporate Christmas hamper.

These types of gifts are a great way to show your employees that you care about their wellbeing and happiness as well as communities around the world. For the healthiest and most sustainable gift, you can consider opting for a vegan or vegetarian food-themed corporate Christmas hamper. These types of hampers are great for providing your employees with sustainable items. To check that the company you are buying gifts from is sustainable check out the company’s impact report. Whether you are looking for bespoke corporate gift hampers or branded gift for corporates, Social Stories Club is the place to start looking.