You’ve probably noticed the increase in “sustainable gifting” talk, and the scrutiny over where gifts come from and what they stand for. The days of ticking the “corporate gifting” box with whatever was on page one of a catalogue are over. Your clients, employees and stakeholders are asking harder questions, and those questions all come back to values.
Why corporate gifts have to do more
Across the UK and Europe, gifting has shifted from impulse-buy to impact-led. People still love receiving something special, but they’re increasingly uncomfortable with gifts that feel wasteful, throwaway or misaligned with their ethics. Sustainability is now one of the top criteria influencing purchase decisions, and this mindset carries straight into the workplace – into procurement meetings, HR budgets and marketing plans.
For businesses, this means every spend is under the CSR and ESG microscope. It’s no longer enough for a gift to look impressive; it has to tell the right story about how you treat people, how you source products and how seriously you take your environmental responsibilities. When a company sends out hundreds (or thousands) of gifts a year, those choices add up. In carbon, in packaging, and in the message they send about what really matters.
How gifting supports CSR and ESG goals
Thoughtful corporate gifting can be a powerful extension of your sustainability and social impact strategy, rather than a contradiction to it. When done well, it can help you:
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Reduce environmental impact
Choosing products with minimal, recyclable or biodegradable packaging, lower transport emissions and a realistic chance of being used (not binned), immediately supports environmental commitments. A simple, consumable gift that is genuinely enjoyed is far less wasteful than a novelty item destined for the back of a drawer. -
Support local and ethical supply chains
Working with local producers, small businesses, and social enterprises allows your gifting budget to support jobs and communities close to home. This aligns neatly with the “social” aspect of ESG, where businesses are asked to demonstrate how they contribute positively beyond their own four walls. -
Bring your values to life
A values-led gift can reinforce your commitments to wellbeing, inclusion, appreciation and community far more effectively than any policy document. When people receive something that feels thoughtful, low-waste and aligned with the company’s stated values, trust grows – and culture strengthens.
In short, gifting has become another way to answer the question: “Do we do what we say we do?”
Where biscuits meet responsibility
Now imagine that every biscuit you send is doing double duty: delighting the person who receives it and quietly supporting your ESG checklist at the same time. That’s where a bakery like ours naturally fits into the future of corporate gifting.
Kindness as a mission, not a tagline
Most gifts are transactional: you pay, something arrives, and everyone moves on. At The Biskery we start somewhere different: with a mission to make people feel appreciated through something as simple and comforting as a biscuit. Each week, biscuits are gifted for free to people who could do with an unexpected moment of kindness, with the long-term goal of making millions of people feel seen and valued.
This matters for your CSR goals. It means your gifting budget isn’t just “buying biscuits”; it’s amplifying a kindness-first mission that directly supports wellbeing, appreciation and human connection. All central themes in modern ESG and people strategies. You’re not just thanking clients or colleagues; you’re contributing to a wider culture of care.
Local, small-batch and made-to-order
Sustainable corporate gifting guidance consistently highlights the importance of short supply chains and local production. Buying from a local bakery that bakes in Leeds and ships across the UK reduces unnecessary transport compared with imported or mass-produced products. You can point to a real place, real people and real ingredients behind the biscuits – something procurement and ESG teams increasingly want from their suppliers.
Because every biscuit is made to order, there’s no mass overproduction, no forgotten pallets sitting in warehouses and no need to discount or discard unsold stock. This smaller, more responsive way of producing food fits neatly with low-waste ambitions and responsible resource use.
Low-waste by design
If you’ve ever opened a gift and been buried in plastic, you’ll know how jarring that feels in a world trying to use less of it. Sustainability guides for corporate gifting repeatedly stress the importance of minimal, recyclable or reusable packaging and the need to avoid gifts that create unnecessary waste.
Biscuits, by nature, are an immediately useful gift. They get eaten, shared around the office, and enjoyed with a warm beverage; they don’t gather dust. Pair that with thoughtfully chosen, right-sized, recyclable packaging, and you have a low-waste alternative to bulky hampers stuffed with plastic fillers, miniature bottles and novelty items that often end up in landfill. For companies aiming to reduce waste across their operations, this is an easy, feel-good win.
Human connection baked in
A growing number of corporate gifting experts are talking about gifts as “statements of purpose” – tangible ways to show what you stand for. Branded and personalised biscuits are perfect for this: they can carry messages of thanks, recognition, encouragement, and they can subtly echo your business values.
Imagine an employee opening a box to find biscuits with their name and a message celebrating a work anniversary, or a client receiving biscuits that echo the values behind a shared project. These moments build trust in a way that generic gifts never can. They spark conversations, create memories and remind people that there are real humans behind the brand.
Making your ESG team proud of your gifting line
If you’re responsible for corporate gifting, you might be navigating questions from procurement, sustainability officers or finance about how gifts line up with ESG goals. Here are some of the ways a partnership with us can help you answer those questions with confidence:
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Environmental responsibility
You can talk about small-batch, made-to-order production, minimal and recyclable packaging, and the choice of a consumable gift that generates little long-term waste. This supports environmental targets without compromising on delight. -
Social impact
You can point to a clear, ongoing kindness mission: free biscuits gifted weekly, a focus on appreciation and community, and a commitment to making more people feel valued. Your spend helps to fuel that mission, turning corporate budgets into small acts of everyday good. -
Local and ethical sourcing
You can highlight the decision to support a local, independent producer with transparent, small-scale operations rather than anonymous mass production overseas. This contributes to local economic resilience and a more relational, less extractive way of doing business. -
Culture and wellbeing
You can demonstrate how personalised, thoughtful gifts support internal culture: they boost morale, recognition and belonging, which are key concerns for HR and leadership teams alike. These are the stories that belong in impact reports and town hall meetings – gifts as a visible expression of your values in everyday moments.[]
Gifts that feel good in every way
Corporate gifting isn’t going away; if anything, it’s becoming more intentional. The challenge (and the opportunity) is to choose gifts that feel good for the person receiving them and for the people signing off on the ESG report.
Eco-friendly, socially responsible gifts show that you’ve joined the dots between what you say and what you do. When you choose locally made, low-waste, kindness-led biscuits, you’re not compromising between delight and responsibility – you’re combining them. Every bite becomes a small reminder that business can be warm, thoughtful and deeply human, without losing sight of the planet or the people who call it home.
