For many years we had a choice between buying what you really want or being a conscientious shopper and going for Fairtrade, eco-friendly products regardless of whether they actually looked good or worked. But times have changed and now, there’s a host of small companies proving you don’t have to sacrifice aesthetics to maintain your ethics. Among them are the Oxfordshire-based Hen and Hammock who sell a range of products to brighten up your garden, and believe that by choosing what we buy and sell, we all have the power to shape the future. ‘We believe that what we buy has a major impact on the environment. It is our duty as consumers to buy products which make a better world,’ says Hem and Hammock co-founder, Andrew Jones. And he’s right.
But excellent ethics aren’t the only thing the company has going for it. 10 per cent of profits are donated to non-profit organisations, including the Bumblebee Conservation Trust last year. Hen and Hammock also offsets all of its carbon emissions with Climate Care and sources its stock from suppliers who take environmental ethics as seriously as they do. Typical is garden furniture manufacturer, Arbor Vetum who use reclaimed timber. Recycling teak from early 20th century structures, Arbor Vetum became the first company in the world to be awarded the FSC Recycled label and the first in Europe to receive the Rediscovered Wood Certification by SmartWood.
To find out more, go to: www.henandhammock.co.uk
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