MBIE states that “Sustainable business means doing things thoughtfully by thinking ahead and looking at how your actions impact the environment and surroundings. Sustainable business is about looking at the products and services used in your business and thinking about their impact on the environment.”
Here at Romantic Gestures NZ, we have chosen to focus on sustainability over aesthetics which is more important to us when it comes to providing for our valued clients. Our gift boxes are not designed to be colour coordinated with items that are neither useful nor beneficial. They are designed by those who benefit from them and are both intentional and purposeful.
A recent post of ours on social media received one comment asking where could they read about our sustainability initiatives which led me to create this post. I often share our initiatives but having them all in one place is a great way to be informative, especially for those who are new to our site.
Long before starting our business, back in 2014, I was a single Mum of 2 small children. Suddenly becoming a single parent was not something I thought would ever happen however the unsafe situation at the time required me to leave everything I knew behind and start again.
So having experienced that I knew the future of our business had to somehow revolve around providing opportunities for other sole parents by having their own franchise and being able to support them and their children, sustainably.
Our business is operated remotely and is an online digital platform providing products and services, nationwide. When working remotely there are lower overheads and costs involved as opposed to running a bricks and mortar store.
To reduce energy costs, we use LED bulbs for lighting, have an insulated office and use a natural source for heating. We use reusable coffee cups and kitchenware for our bookings, in the office and when travelling.
As an online digital business, we provide FREE resources on our website to help couples build and sustain positive relationships.
Not only do these resources provide opportunities to help couples, but they also limit the number of printed materials and products we provide by having the information all on one website.
We choose to have our business cards printed; however, these are attached to our complimentary gifts which are used in every household we give them to. We support businesses who minimize their use of plastic packaging and congratulate the supplier of our complimentary gifts for recently removing all individual plastic packaging of the items we purchase.
All products purchased from us are sent in plant based eco courier bags or brown paper which is recyclable.
Our locally made reusable wooden gift boxes are sustainable and we choose not to have them branded so that they can be regifted or repurposed for other uses around the home. All items in our gift boxes are intentional and chosen to be used to enhance the five senses.
We support other small NZ owned and operated businesses where possible especially those who have an ethical, organic, or fair-trade philosophy. Our current range of chocolates are packaged in home compostable packaging, our beverages are either in glass bottles or cans and both can be recycled. We do not purchase from suppliers who use Palm Oil.
We encourage the use of plants in both homes and offices and another one of our complimentary gifts is by way of giving seeds of love handmade cards for every gift box sold which are made by a local social initiative to support people through trauma.
Not only do plants provide many health benefits but they are also good for the environment as well. We focus on those that are beneficial to our clients and can lead them to destress, rest and relax such as lavender and other essential oils which can be found in our range of ecofriendly air fresheners.
We use dried lavender and rose petals which can be used more than once and also have a dual purpose.
When we learn about businesses who donate the planting and gifting of native trees through social initiatives, we support them whenever possible. We support local and national pay it forward initiatives including running our own one through our local community for the past 7 years.
Our range of cards can be reused, many times over, and can provide hours of entertainment and support for our couples and their friends. This supports a circular economy where products are provided that have can be used for as long as possible, more than once. This concept can be applied to almost all the contents of our gift boxes.
We have just launched a new product line of biodegradable balloons for all our proposal bookings which are both environmentally friendly and sustainable.
We frequently share blog posts about meaningful handmade gifting and how handmade gifts and time spent creating memories are far more important than buying expensive gifts.
Here at Romantic Gestures NZ, we believe that intentional gifts and effective communication are the key in maintaining positive and sustainable relationships. Feel free to get in touch if you have a sustainable product that you think would be perfect for our gift box range.
