With the arrival of the holiday season comes a seemingly infinite call to shop. Advertisements for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and endless other sales flood social media. What’s often swept under the rug are the impacts of our choices as consumers. Producing your favorite holiday gifts can have serious implications for the environment and choosing to purchase sustainably made goods is crucial to holding brands accountable and paving the way for a more sustainable future. Brands that are leading the way include Patagonia, Lush and Allbirds.

Clothing: Patagonia

Patagonia’s sustainability initiatives are extensive. The brand has committed to using recycled and sustainably sourced down, organic cotton and other materials, and is aiming to eliminate virgin petroleum material, which emits large amounts of carbon dioxide when produced, in all products by 2025. They plan for 100 percent of their packaging to be reusable, home compostable, renewable or easily recyclable by 2025 and to have a net zero carbon footprint by 2040.
Patagonia also aims to reduce waste through their Worn Wear program that allows customers to send in used Patagonia gear, which is then resold in exchange for store credits. The company donates one percent of sales annually to provide grants to environmental organizations and works to connect individuals with these groups through Patagonia Action Works.
In 2022, Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard “gave away” the certified B Corp and California Benefit Corporation, with 100 percent of the company’s voting stock transferred to the Patagonia Purpose Trust, protecting the company’s values. 100 percent of the non-voting stock is donated to the Holdfast Collective, an environmental nonprofit. Patagonia’s leadership in sustainability makes it a perfect brand for holiday gifts you can feel good about.

Cosmetics: Lush
Lush, a British cosmetics company, has also taken strides to implement sustainable practices. The company has worked to use recyclable packaging or

eliminate it altogether when possible. Approximately half of their products have no packaging and 90 percent of the packaging materials used are recycled. Additionally, customers are incentivized to recycle packaging through the company’s Bring it Back program. This program gives customers in the UK and Ireland 50 pence of store credit in exchange for each eligible product package returned. Customers also have the choice to return five packages in exchange for a face mask (applicable in all Lush locations). The company estimates that creating pots and bottles with 100 percent post-consumer recycled plastic saves about 65 tons of carbon dioxide and 90 tons of virgin plastic each year.
Lush aims to use sustainably produced materials and is working to eliminate palm oil and natural mica, which are often harvested inhumanely. They claim to be reducing energy use by replacing inefficient equipment, increasing insulation, educating employees and generating some energy on-site. The company also strives to limit water use, estimating to save 450,000 annually just from selling shampoo bars. Lush’s commitment to sustainability makes it a leader in the cosmetics industry.

Footwear: Allbirds

Allbirds has taken sustainability to a new level. While the certified B Corp does sell some hats, socks and other apparel, its focus is footwear—selling running, hiking, water and casual shoes. Allbirds utilizes natural materials that are sustainably sourced, such as wool gathered from regenerative agriculture farms, staying clear of plastic unless it is recycled. The company even created its own sustainable material for shoe soles, SweetFoam®. Created from sugarcane, SweetFoam® is the first carbon-negative green EVA. Allbirds aims to reduce the use and carbon footprint of raw materials in their products by 25 percent and double their lifetime by 2025.
The company recognizes that despite its efforts, it still has an environmental impact. In order to offset this, it invests in environmental projects that sequester carbon. This includes the Argentina Wool Improved Grazing Project, which works to transition growers to regenerative farming practices. Allbirds aims to cut its per unit carbon footprint in half by the end of 2025, as highlighted in its 2022 Flight Plan, an outline of its sustainability initiatives and goals.

Patagonia, Lush and Allbirds are among the companies working to reform the apparel and cosmetics industries by making sustainability a priority. As consumers, we have the power to encourage sustainability by supporting brands that are taking strides to protect our planet and produce responsibly. We only have one planet. Let’s start shopping like it.