Sustainability

Sustainability lies at the heart of our business. And always has.

When people started to become aware of the plastic crisis, we were already promoting sustainable alternatives.

When the throwaway disposal economy started coming under fire, we were already talking about products with a purpose.

And when Modern Slavery and ethical practices rose up the agenda, we had already been implementing the highest possible standards throughout our supply chain.

Ultimately, we’ve always been ahead of the curve on this one.

Our catalogues have been chock full of sustainable, ethical, purpose-driven promotional merchandise and our creative teams focused on offering sustainable branding solutions long before everyone else was talking about it.

We are rightly proud of our track record on sustainability.

We’ve invested in it. We’ve educated ourselves on it. And we have the expertise to deliver on it.

There’s no jumping on the bandwagon or greenwashing here.

We’ve been doing the right thing because we want to, not because we have to.

And here’s how…

Making sustainability integral to our business

To us, acting sustainably as a business is not an add-on. It’s fundamental to every part of our operations.

We seek out and provide merchandise solutions to our clients which are not detrimental to the planet or human wellbeing but have the opportunity to enhance it.

We actively strive to reduce waste and minimise emissions including being powered by 100% renewable energy as a business.

We hold ourselves and our suppliers to the very highest ethical and regulatory standards.

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Our detailed policy is our declaration of how we behave as a business and just touches the surface of what we do and how far we intend to go in the future.

Greenwashing occurs when businesses exploit a lack of knowledge of what sustainable and eco-friendly really means. At Marke we stand firm against any greenwashing practice, ourselves or anywhere in our supply chain. So, we make it our mission to achieve the greatest transparency possible, through rigorous research and an in-depth understanding of products, materials, and manufacturing processes.

We also believe a key aspect of sustainability is creating branded merchandise solutions based on what people want to keep, not throw away. So our design and creative teams work with our clients to devise promotional campaigns where products will be loved, kept, and remembered. This happens because product ideas are tailored to the target audience and manufactured and designed to the highest level of appeal and quality.

Going above and beyond compliance

Yes, of course we want to comply with laws and regulation. But compliance for us is the baseline. We go further, consistently finding ways to push, improve, and innovate, to lead the market and be a powerful influential force for sustainability.

All associates are fully trained on our ethical and sustainability processes as part of their onboarding.

We hold the ISO14001 accreditation for environmental standards in recognition of our comprehensive efforts. All of the criteria applicants are judged on are embedded in our business as standard.

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We also work to rigorous supplier manufacturing certification standards.

This is includes Oeko Tex 100 – STANDARD 100 Label which certifies every component and tests for harmful substances to ensure the materials are harmless for human health.

And there’s also the GOTS – Global Organic Textile Standard. This lays out requirements to ensure the organic status of textiles, from harvesting of the raw materials through environmentally and socially responsible manufacturing, up to labelling, all giving credible assurance to end consumer.

To ensure our products are recycled (no greenwashing) we ensure they are fully traceable through the GRS standard, this gives us the security of having full transparency of the materials used in the recycling process.

Next level recycling standards

Recycling is a complex and often misunderstood process. And sometimes, just ticking the ‘recycled’ box is a way to put the responsibility for sustainable behaviour onto the consumer, even if an item can only be recycled under certain complex conditions.

At Marke, the recyclable status of products is analysed and like everything we do, we have high expectations.

Using advanced AWARE technology, traceability is taken to the next level. It gives the recycled materials a traceable passport so at any stage we can trace fabric, fibre, and products through the process back to the recycled source.

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And recycling isn’t just about what happens to the material itself. It’s about the water and energy used in the process, and that’s why we use this as an additional criterion when working with suppliers. We champion suppliers and products that save significant amounts of energy and water through the manufacturing and recycling processes.

Recycling of fabrics is a highly complex area with strong arguments on both sides. There’s a big focus on the recycling of polyester due to polyester being a plastic, and making garments from rPET rather than PET. However, recycling comes with its own challenges and further resources used, when using more natural products at the outset could be more sustainable. At Marke we keep ourselves updated and abreast with all the latest research and thinking, so that we can help our clients navigate through the options to the most genuinely sustainable choice.

Strong and sustainable supplier relationships

We have high expectations of our suppliers, expecting them to comply with the very highest environmental and ethical standards. This extends to the materials used inside products, and our strong stand on avoiding any conflict minerals, where we go further than simply stating our position, by empowering and educating our associates through specific training and an exam.

This is all important to our own reputation and to that of our clients. And it’s far from a tick box exercise. In fact, if a more robust supplier assessment is out there, we’d love to see it.

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Our supplier questionnaire asks detailed and searching questions around compliance with environmental practices and we expect to see clear evidence of everything stated. We believe transparency and information sharing is crucial to being confident in the integrity and sustainability of the supply chain.

But we don’t just assess. We work closely with our suppliers, and support them. We make it our business to fully understand the supply chain, including all supplier, sub-suppliers, components, materials, factories, and products. We then share best practice and help to overcome environmental challenges that different parts of the supply chain might be facing.

If our approach to sustainability seems off the charts detailed, committed, and robust, that’s because it is.

We’ve always believed in the principles of sustainability, not just talking about it or taking sustainability statements at face value, but driving up standards, understanding, and applying what can be complex and challenging measures.

The ultimate beneficiaries of our no-stone-unturned approach to sustainability, are our clients, and the end consumer. Our clients’ reputations are protected. And what ends up in the hands of the recipient of their merchandise is a product that can confidently be said to not damage the environment, people, or communities.

If you would like to talk to our experts in more detail about any aspect of our sustainability policy, practices, or products, please contact our team.

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