The Sustainable Sequin Company strives to be as sustainable as possible in all aspects of business.

At The Sustainable Sequin Company, we use sequin film made from 20% recycled PET (rPET) and 80% polyester. The advantages of incorporating recycled materials are significant. A 2017 life-cycle analysis revealed that manufacturing rPET produces 79% fewer carbon emissions than its virgin counterpart [1]. Additionally, it curtails the necessity for primary extraction of oil and reduces landfill waste. However, we can do better.... 

Over the past 5 years we have been researching + developing biobased biodegradable sequin film which we believe will have further sustainability benefits during manufacture, use and disposal. We plan to have these sequins available soon!

Small quantities of sequins (5-10 grams) are packaged in recycled card boxes with recycled, unbleached paper wraps and recycled paper stickers. Larger quantities are packaged in biobased, biodegradable bags and protected with reused or recycled padding. Postage boxes are made from recycled cardboard and we use paper tape rather than plastic sticky tape.

In 2023, we focussed on minimising our paper and card usage. Resulting in a reduction in paper usage of: 22% for our wraps, 25% for our compliment slips, + 50% for our packaging lists. In addition, we have downsized our address stickers by 33% + lightened our postage boxes by an average of 19%.

In the process of punching and cutting sequins, we're conscious of waste generation, which manifests in the form of leftover film (punchinella) and tiny punched circles. Approximately 30% of the sequin film becomes punchinella or tiny circles. To combat this, we've designed our punches to minimize waste, calculating the waste ratio for each sequin shape we offer. You can find this information in the product details within our shop.

To ensure none of this waste ends up in a landfill, punchinella is available for purchase through our shop. Any imperfect pieces are donated to local community projects. We're exploring uses for the tiny circles, potentially incorporating them into other products like buttons.

Sequins for digital application are traditionally housed on spools. Once the sequins have been used, these spools often become waste. Typically crafted from virgin plastic, the potential for reuse is often underutilized.

Recognizing this challenge, we've created spools made from recycled cardstock and bound with plant-based glue. Post-use, these card spools can be easily recycled. Not only are they a sustainable choice, but they also weigh 34% less than their virgin plastic counterparts, significantly reducing carbon emissions during shipping. While we're proud of this advancement, we want to do more. We're now exploring alternative, zero-waste methods to further reduce our impact.

We're dedicated to not only measuring and reducing our own carbon emissions but also actively supporting projects that prevent and capture carbon. To date, we've successfully prevented 84.68 metric tons of CO2 equivalent from entering the atmosphere and removed an additional 4 metric ton of CO2 equivalent.

This is achieved through the purchase of carbon credits from Ecologi, which are verified by the Gold Standard or Verified Carbon Standard.

While it takes years for a newly planted tree to significantly impact carbon levels in our atmosphere, we consider responsible tree planting a crucial step in healing our planet.

For every order placed, we proudly plant a tree (with a minimum of 100 trees planted per month). To date, we've planted 3,346 trees globally and contributed to the restoration of 15 square meters of vital UK wildflower and wetland habitat through Ecologi.

We've assessed our historical use of synthetic plastics, both recycled and virgin, and are committed to funding the collection of at least this amount of plastic waste by the end of 2024. So far we have funded the colletion of 1,000kg of ocean-bound plastic waste (equal to 50,000 plastic bottles) through Plastic Bank.

While plastic offsetting isn't flawless, we believe it is the most viable option currently available to combat existing plastic pollution.

As proud members of 1% For The Planet, The Sustainable Sequin Company pledges to contribute 1% of our annual revenue, not just profits, to our partner Redress.

Redress is an environmental NGO based in Hong Kong, with a focus on Asia, and is dedicated to accelerating the transition to a circular fashion industry by educating and empowering designers and consumers to minimise the negative environmental impact of clothing.