Why E-commerce is Eco-friendly
How can I reduce consumption of resources and energy while shopping online?
The most important thing to look for when shopping, whether online or at a brick-and-mortar store, is quality. Are the materials used sustainable? Are the items made with Fair Trade policies? Are they made to last years and years? Do you trust the store standing behind these items? Buying high-quality items that are built to last helps reduce consumption in the long run, while saving you money.
The 18,000+ customer reviews on our site and extensive information about materials, safety and sustainability help you make smart choices so you can get more while buying less. Ordering multiple items in a single shipment, and shopping from an online store that offers a wide variety of products will also reduce consumption of resources overall.
Why is shopping online more eco-friendly than shopping at the mall?
"Shipping 10 pounds of packages by overnight air -- the most energy-intensive delivery mode -- uses 40 percent less fuel than driving roundtrip to the mall. Ground shipping by truck uses just one-tenth of the energy of driving yourself." - Center for Energy and Climate Solutions
All products, even the ones you find in your local store, come from a warehouse. When you shop online you cut out one trip the items you purchase have to make – rather than shipping from the manufacturer to the warehouse to the store they’re shipped straight from the warehouse to you.
Not only do you reduce the amount of energy and resources used in transporting the items, but you also cut out the need to light, heat, cool and run a brick and mortar store. Think of it this way- shopping online is like carpooling, your package shares a ride with hundreds of other packages rather than hundreds of people driving to several different stores.
But what about the packaging involved when you ship?
"Between the oversize cardboard boxes and the foam peanuts, mail-order packaging can be highly wasteful. This bag [reuseit™ Bags Workhorse Style 1500] arrived folded up in a tiny envelope.” – The Wall Street Journal, Catalog Critic
We strive as a company to continually reduce our eco impact. We consciously reduce the amount of packaging it takes to get your order to you with no damage whatsoever to items. Our boxes are made with 40-60% recycled content and we always choose the smallest one for each order. Whenever possible, we opt for envelopes over boxes we’ve replaced bubble wrap with recycled paper packaging. All packaging we use is recyclable and we never use those nasty packing peanuts!
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