Corporate Social Responsibility

1)   Labour Standards  

At Smartbags, we have a strong relationship with our suppliers and the factories used to manufacture our products. Through our supplier relations, we are able to support and encourage advances in the working conditions of factory employees. We regularly monitor the progress of the factories used to manufacture our products, and have obtained an independent audit of the factory where our products are made. 

Smartbags does not condone child labour, and does not allow the factories we use to employ children. We insist on fair labour standards in our factories, and in recognition of this stipulate that there must not be any forced labour of any kind. We also do not tolerate any discrimination in the workplace, both in our UK office and in our factories. Our factory in China has established a policy against discrimination in the workplace, and this has been confirmed in the recent audit.  

We believe all employees should we safe in the workplace, and consequently require our factories to provide evidence of health and safety procedures in place. Our factories have at least one qualified health and safety officer, and this has been verified in the August 2009 audit. We can guarantee that all equipment used in our factories is well maintained and is regularly tested to make sure it complies with health and safety standards. Our factories are required to provide sufficient first aid supplies for their employees, and must have at least two trained first-aiders in their workforce. Likewise, fire safety procedures are in place, and fire drills are enforced and upheld at our factories. As part of our continuing commitment to employee safety, we are now able to guarantee that all workers in our factories are covered by a work-related insurance policy.  

Smartbags believes all employees are entitled to a fair wage, and reasonable working hours. The factories we use are required to provide evidence of staff records, which detail staff wages and working hours. Routine audits found that employees’ normal and overtime wages complied with local regulation. The factories used by Smartbags ensure that employees have at least one day off per week. Our factories have an annual leave policy in place in accordance with local labour laws. As part of the Freedom of Association requirements, the audit found that our factories have a labour union scheme in place, and have at least one staff representative.

2)   Adding Value, Fair Trade and Sustainable Livelihoods

We believe that it is our responsibility to continually add value to our business operations. As part of this, Smartbags has schemes in place to ensure that as a business, we give back to the environment, to our employees and to the wider community.

Our products can be reused and recycled, and contribute to a reduction in the use of disposable plastic carrier bags, which in turn constitutes a reduction in the amount of non-recyclable waste in landfills. Smartbags gives companies and organisations the opportunity to spread the ‘green’ message, which in turn encourages people to be more environmentally aware. This is particularly evident in our work with various county councils in the UK. Our bags have been used in projects to raise awareness about recycling and environmental issues, which have been highly successful in Nottinghamshire County Council, Reigate and Banstead Borough Council, and a community project in the London Borough of Haringey. We also take part in the Go Green 4 School initiative, where we supply bags to help with fundraising and awareness of social and environmental issues in schools. One of our proudest accomplishments was being awarded runner up position in Enfield Enterprises Green Business of the Year in 2008, which is testament to our commitment to improving greener practices in our local community.

The manufacturing of our products is done in China. We work very closely with our factories to ensure that the bag manufacture is as environmentally friendly as possible, and that the production process adds value to both the environment and to worker communities. In environmental terms, we ensure that our factories have waste recycling schemes in place, and that waste materials are disposed of in accordance with government regulations. Smartbags is a growing business, and there is increasing demand for our product. This means that we are able to guarantee work for our factories in China, which is beneficial to the local economy, as well as improving the levels of employment. Coupled with this, our logistics partner, James Cargo, participates and sponsors various social projects to aid those in communities who are in need. 

As well as offering factory workers a fair wage and reasonable working hours, we are also working with factories to improve conditions for worker families and the wider community. At present, our factories in China provide meals for employees. At Smartbags, all our staff are considered assets. For this reason, we are championing fair treatment of all workers. We are able to guarantee that all workers in our factories are covered by a social insurance policy, which covers medical expenses. We also provide ongoing training and development to all our factory workers, which gives them better opportunities for employment progression and improves their overall employability. The improvement in standards at our factories demonstrates our continued commitment to making overall working conditions better for our factory employees, as well as their families and the local worker communities.
 
3)   Environmental Standards

Our Products

We support the three Rs motto – Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Common sense tells us that to reuse something is better than continuous production and consumption. It is for this reason that we are encouraging companies and organisations to switch to our eco-friendly bags instead of using plastic carrier bags or paper bags. Although most plastic carrier bags are reused at least once, reduction in consumption would have a positive impact on the environment by freeing up the natural resources used in their production as well as reducing landfill issues. Smartbags helps the environment by giving companies and organisations the opportunity to use green alternatives with our reusable and recyclable bags and accessories.

There are many different types of plastic carrier bags in use: High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE), Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE), and degradable bags (biodegradable). The problem with recycling plastic bags is that these different types of plastic bags need to be separated. Conventional polyethylene plastic bags (HDPE and LDPE) can be recycled into new products, but if degradable bags are mixed in the recycling process, they can contaminate the process and compromise the quality of the newly recycled products. Biodegradable plastics are usually mixed with household waste in landfills where the necessary conditions to degrade are absent. It is a myth that degradable bags are environmentally friendly. The bags don’t actually fully degrade. They break down into smaller and smaller particles contaminating the soil and waterways and entering the food chain when animals ingest them. They need certain conditions to bio-erode such as light and heat, and when they breakdown they usually release methane which is a greenhouse gas. It is clear to see that woven and non-woven polypropylene is the most practical alternative material to combat the current problems posed by plastic carrier bags. Even paper bags, which are considered to be more eco-friendly than plastic bags, have negative environmental implications. Not all paper bags in circulation are made from recycled paper. Likewise, another problem is that these paper bags are often not recycled. Paper bags are also less durable than our polypropylene bags, so they cannot be reused more than a couple of times. The reusable and recyclable bags offered by Smartbags have positive environmental benefits. It is not only the bags themselves that are made from polypropylene. All handles, buckles, zips, studs and fastenings are made from the same material, so the whole bag can be recycled without the need to separate each individual component. Our products are made from up to 10% recycled materials. The factories we use have also demonstrated a continued commitment to improving their environmental policies, and have complied with local environmental regulations by obtaining official environmental approval documents. 

Our Materials

Polypropylene is manufactured in factories using fossil fuels, and consequently contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. However, the fact that polypropylene contributes to waste reduction and the shift away from single-use products, means that its ecological footprint is smaller than that of similar materials. Polypropylene is a thermoplastic polymer, and although it is a type of plastic, it has considerably more environmental benefits than other plastics. Polypropylene is classified in the same league as Polyetylene-terephthalate (PET), which is used to make recyclable plastic bottles. According to Green peace’s research into plastics, polypropylene uses fewer problematic additives, has reduced leaching potential in landfills, has reduced potential for dioxin formation during burning, and has reduced technical problems and costs during recycling. It is clear to see that the polypropylene bags offered by Smartbags have considerably more ‘green’ credentials than bags made from alternative materials. As well as this, the cost effectiveness of the material means that it is more financially viable for companies to switch to using polypropylene bags, and Smartbags are well placed to tend to this need and encourage other companies and organisations to switch to greener alternatives for their promotional bags and accessories.

Shipping and Transportation

In terms of shipping and transportation, our polypropylene bags and accessories are low density, and are considerably lighter than bags made from other materials, such as cotton and jute. Our bags and accessories are also flat-packed and take up very little space in transportation. Therefore, the reduced weight and dimensions of our products means that considerably more units can be transported in one shipment than that of other alternative materials. Thus, we are able to achieve a reduction in carbon emissions from freight transportation of our products. As well as this, we also encourage our customers to ship goods rather than using air transportation where possible.  

Energy Efficiency

We have been able to make energy savings in other areas of our business. Smartbags is an online business. We are therefore able to make energy savings by reducing the amount of fossil fuels needed to power our business facilities. As well as this, we discourage our staff from printing documents unnecessarily. Our office stationary (such as paper and envelopes) is from recycled content where possible; and we actively encourage recycling of waste paper, packaging and other green waste. By doing this, we aim to lead by example and operate our business in an environmentally friendly way, whilst encouraging our clients to follow suit.  

4)   Progressive Practices

Smartbags is an environmentally and socially responsible organisation. We are committed to continually improving our corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities in order to enrich the business and to add value for all stakeholders. Our CSR strategies demonstrate our pledge to making environmental and social improvements in the way we do business, and to increase the sustainability of our practices to improve our environmental impact. Our CSR goals have been broken down into the following categories.

i.   Environmental Sustainability

Smartbags works with suppliers and distributers who have similar environmental values. Through our strong supplier and distributor relations, we are able to assert our environmental policies and cajole our partners into improving their own environmental practices.

Our products are 100% recyclable, and recycling points are located outside many supermarkets throughout the UK. However, as part of our continuing commitment to recycling, we are encouraging our clients to provide recycling facilities for the bags they purchase from us; and to educate their customers into the environmental benefits of reusable polypropylene bags. We also aim to monitor clients’ progress by maintaining regular contact to see if office-based recycling facilities have been introduced. Through passing on our eco vision to clients, we aim to increase awareness about recycling, and to encourage even more people to use reusable and recyclable bags rather than disposable plastic carrier bags.

At Smartbags, we aim to lead by example, which means thinking about our own eco-footprint. At present, we take many measures in order to improve the environmental implications of our business. One area which we are keen to improve is reducing the amount of packaging used for our products, both in shipping and in distribution to customers. We use cardboard boxes and pallets for transporting our products, and currently plan to re-use our packaging materials where possible. We would like to extend this so that all packaging and shipping materials are either reused or recycled. In doing this, we are taking steps towards improving sustainability through setting feasible goals for improving company practices.    


ii.   Labour Standards

At Smartbags we are very fortunate to have such good supplier relations. We aim to take advantage of this in order to make continued improvements in the standards of our factories. This includes commissioning regular factory assessments and factory audits so that we are able to guarantee our labour standards comply with regulation. As well as this, we aim to improve working conditions in our factories for workers, their families and the worker community. The audit of our factory highlighted a few areas where improvements could be made, such as addressing logistical problems in the factory by separating the packing and storage areas, and increasing staff training for IT security. Taking these opportunities for improvement into consideration, we will work together with our supplier to make sure these issues are tended to. This demonstrates our commitment to monitoring and improving the ethical impact of our business.  

iii.     Communities

We believe it is equally important that as a business we give back to the community, both in the UK and in China. One of our main aims is to implement local cultural initiatives amongst our factory worker community in China. We believe these type of activities are indicative of our continuing commitment to improving conditions for factory worker communities.
 
CSR in the community in the UK is also important to us. In light of this, we would like to work with agencies such as WRAP; working together to prevent waste, increase recycling and develop growing markets for recycled and sustainable products. Our aim is to educate people about recycling, working in partnership with local authorities and public sector initiatives to spread our eco message, whilst adding value for local neighbourhoods though community projects and events.

As Smartbags continues to grow as a business, we would like to take advantage of even more opportunities to give back to the local community. One particular scheme planned is a competition for a local college’s art, design or fashion students to create a design for one of our bags. The winning design will then be used on all of the bags ordered by the college, which will be distributed to potential students attending open days. As well as being an excellent opportunity for the college to showcase the work of their students, this competition will also be an excellent opportunity for the students to gain real-world product design experience, which will be beneficial to their future careers. This demonstrates our intent to improve our business practices in a way that will be of ongoing benefit to both local and wider communities.

5)   Transparency

We believe it is important to operate our business with complete transparency. As well as giving our company increased integrity, we also believe that by operating transparently we are able to give our customers improved confidence in purchasing products from us. Smartbags is a socially responsible company, and do not conceal how we conduct our business practices. In light of this, we welcome our customers and clients to conduct their own factory visits and undertake their own evaluations of our factories. We also welcome governmental and environmental agencies to audit our standards and business practices.

6)   Quality Standards

At Smartbags, we have many quality assurance procedures in place. We maintain accountability throughout the whole process, from design to production to distribution. We put self-regulation before legislation, and believe that we can achieve the same quality standards without compromising on environmental policy. Likewise, we believe that all our workers are entitled to a fair wage, and have policies in place which make sure our products are manufactured to the highest quality whilst ensuring the ethical treatment of our staff. We pride ourselves on our strong supplier relations, and are consequently able to ensure that the manufacturing process for our products is regularly checked and subject to rigorous quality control checks.  

Online Profile

At Smartbags, we pride ourselves on being the specialists in woven and non-woven polypropylene bags and accessories. Polypropylene is a contemporary alternative to similar materials that have a negative impact on the environment.

Our eco-friendly products are made from polypropylene – a hard wearing, non-toxic, recyclable material. As well as this, polypropylene is durable, low-cost and versatile, so it can be customised to suit your needs. Our environmental shopping bags have a larger capacity than common plastic carrier bags. All our products are 100% recyclable and reusable; and better still, they are washable and water-repellent.

Its not just our products that make us special. Smartbags is a small company with big ideas. Our service is tailored specifically to your needs, meaning that we have many happy customers. Our business is your business, and we are able to take you step-by-step through the whole process to make your bags and/or accessories work wonders for your brand. Sold or given away, Smartbags are a fantastic way to promote your brand, organisation or campaign. Customise our bags with your own design and logo – instant advertisement for your company. As well as that, Smartbags are a good way of showing that you care about the environment.

We have an excellent relationship with our factories, and ensure that the best possible working conditions are upheld. After all, happy workers are more productive workers. Our shipping partners are reliable and trusted, as well as having excellent corporate social responsibility programmes in place to make sure that the whole process is as ethical as possible. Once you order with us, we have the facility to store your bags for you and dispatch them as required. This means that your bags are in good hands with Smartbags.