Small Businesses and Sustainability – The Challenges and Possible Solutions

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Small Businesses and Sustainability - The Challenges and Possible Solutions

If you run a business in the UK, chances are it’s a small one. 99% of UK businesses are classified as SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) – a whopping 5.6 million businesses (Forbes 2023).

At TLC, we’re keen to operate sustainably, so we looked into various accreditations and carbon capture/neutral schemes. The challenge we faced was finding something relevant to our industry and manageable for a company of our size.

This got me thinking about how small businesses can make meaningful contributions to sustainability without wasting too much time and resources.

As a small business owner, you probably wear many hats – sales, HR, procurement, accounting, legal, customer services, etc. Now, you probably need to add sustainability manager to that list, too.

Focusing on print and printed materials, let’s delve into the various challenges and how to potentially overcome them.

Financial Constraints

Imagine you run a café on the high street offering takeaway coffees. Naturally, you’d want to provide customers with coffee cups that can be recycled or composted, made from sustainable materials, or both. The problem is these options are pricier than the less sustainable alternatives. I contacted a large catering supplies business, and their regular paper cups were 2.3p each, recyclable ones were 3.6p, and compostable ones were 4.2p. When margins are tight and costs are rising, this presents a real challenge for small business owners.

Ideally, your customers would bring in their own cups, and you’d reward them with a discount. However, not offering disposable options could alienate more people than it would attract. You could offer your customers the choice of cup, but is that practical? Asking every customer, “Would you like your Flat White in a compostable cup for an extra 5p?” during a busy rush could frustrate customers and slow down service.

Possible Solutions:

  1. Incentivise Sustainable Behaviour: E.g. encourage customers to bring their own reusable cups by offering a small discount. Over time, this could reduce the number of disposable cups needed.

  2. Bulk Purchasing: Negotiate better rates with suppliers for sustainable products by purchasing in bulk or teaming up with other small businesses to leverage collective buying power.

  3. Surcharge for Sustainability: Implement a small surcharge for compostable or recyclable cups. Be transparent and show customers that the extra cost supports sustainability efforts.

Limited Resources

When we set out to formalise our sustainability policies, we faced the issue of limited time and resources. Larger organisations have dedicated staff to manage sustainability initiatives, research new practices, and integrate them into the business. But 99% of companies don’t have this luxury.

Possible Solutions:

  1. Consultants and Experts: Hire sustainability consultants who, for a reasonable fee, can guide small business owners through the maze of regulations and requirements. They will assess your business practices, create a plan, and help you implement it.

  2. Incremental Gains: Focus on small, incremental changes that collectively make a significant impact. For example, switching to energy-efficient lighting or negotiating better rates on recyclable materials can be a good starting point. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing – every little helps.

Measurement – Is It All Worth It?

A challenge for small businesses is measuring whether the incremental changes they’re making have any meaningful impact on sustainability and if this is at the cost of profitability. For example, if a coffee shop has switched to compostable cups, how can it tell if it’s selling more coffee as a result? Perhaps the last point could be considered cynical, but if a small business can leverage its genuine sustainable practices and generate extra profit, surely that’s desirable?

Small businesses often lack the standardised metrics and measurement frameworks that larger companies can access.

Possible Solutions:

  1. Online Tools and Calculators: Use simple and accessible online tools to track your carbon footprint and measure the impact of your sustainability efforts. These tools are designed to be user-friendly and can provide valuable insights.

  2. Carbon Offsetting: Invest in carbon offset programmes, such as tree planting initiatives or funding renewable energy projects, which help to neutralise your carbon footprint. This is an excellent option for businesses wanting to make a measurable impact but finding full accreditation, like B Corp, out of reach.

  3. Simple Metrics: Track straightforward metrics such as energy consumption, waste reduction, and cost savings from sustainable practices. This data can provide a clear picture of the benefits and effectiveness of your efforts. It’s all about finding what works best for your business and building on that.

Conclusion

Small businesses can make significant sustainability strides by addressing financial constraints, managing limited resources, and effectively measuring their impact. By starting with small, manageable changes and leveraging available tools and expertise, SMEs can contribute meaningfully to a more sustainable future while maintaining profitability.

Ultimately, it’s about making sustainability a part of your business ethos. Every small step counts; collectively, we can make a big difference.

Chris Rothwell – August 2024