This is a guest article by Jo Jeffery, Head of Brand Development at Talking Tables
It was at her mother’s kitchen table, that founder Clare discovered her love of tablescaping and the joy of bringing people together. Such was the appeal, Clare made the decision to give up the security of her successful corporate career to launch Talking Tables, from her own kitchen table. This year, Talking Tables is celebrating its 25th birthday, and 12 years of FSC-certification (FSC®C111442). To this day it’s very much still a family owned and led business.
Bringing people together
The desire to bring people together lies at the heart of everything we do at Talking Tables. From cake toppers, to napkins, to games, we are the go-to brand for design-led and sustainable products that add fun and style to every gathering, helping to create lasting memories of time together. You’ll find our collections in many of the world’s top retailers – from John Lewis, to Selfridges, to Barnes and Noble and leading independents. As well as on our website.
Our eco-journey
Sustainability is a core value for us and we have held an FSC certification for 12 years. Our paper products are made from paper from FSC forests and more recently we have put a greater focus on FSC recycled paper. For example, 28% of packaging in our spring/ summer collection is made from FSC recycled paper, with a further 42% from non-certified recycled paper (we’re working on getting the FSC-certified percentage up).
Transparency is important to us and we believe having an FSC certification provides our customers with the confidence to make informed buying decisions. People are increasingly wanting more visibility on supply chains and the FSC logo is highly credible and confers trust.
We received B Corporation certification two years ago and are on a continuous improvement journey. In addition to using more recycled materials we are also introducing more reusable products as we are committed to offering items are either recyclable at home or reusable. To this end we are really pleased to be able to say that our Talking Tables spring/summer collection contained no single use plastic.
Sourcing is becoming increasingly closer to home – 44% of product is now sourced in Europe. We continue to work with the reforestation group Ecologi on tree planting and carbon impact initiatives. We offset our paper napkin production and use tree planting as birthday gifts for staff as well as a marketing reward for customers instead of discounting, for example for newsletter sign ups. We have planted 45,939 trees to date.
We are keen not only to offer customer sustainable choices, but to spread better practise throughout the industry. We work with the industry’s association, the Giftware Association, to bring brands together to share experiences and best practise by hosting regular Talking Together events at our South London HQ. Topics have included sustainability, B Corp and supply chain.
Giving Back: A commitment to people and planet
We recognise that not everyone has the opportunity to gather together with others or celebrate what should be a special occasion. We are committed to giving the experience of gatherings to more people, including those with less opportunity to get together. We work locally with charities like Lifeline and foodbanks and also nationally with Re-engage, who bring the elderly socially isolated together via tea parties. We also hold get-togethers for local older people at our HQ, with different teams taking turns to host. Our people also enjoy two paid days to volunteer and have taken part in activities ranging from beach cleans to packing hampers at foodbanks. Last year we volunteered over 400 hours in this way.
Find out more about Talking Tables.