A sustainable card from Kaartje2go

For your birthday, your Christmas cards or just for fun – a card through the letterbox always brings happiness. The webshop Kaartje2go.nl wants to do this in the most sustainable way possible. Because let’s be honest: cards do have an impact on the climate.

Sustainable on all fronts

Kaartje2go sends millions of cards a year. “That number comes with a responsibility”, says Mark van Kasteren, Chief Marketing Officer at Kaartje2go. So sustainability is at the top of our agenda. We’re aware of our impact on the environment. The trick is to handle it responsibly as a business”.

How does Kaartje2go do that? To start with, it looks at the office premises and mobility. The premises use green energy, all the waste is separated and no fewer than 84 % of the staff come to work by foot, by bike or by public transport. But even more important, of course, are the products. Customers can choose 100% recycled paper for their cards, or one of the other FSC-approved papers. All the postcards, envelopes and boxes are made of recycled paper. Cards are printed at a carbon neutral printing firm, which also uses green energy. This firm also has printing presses with a heat-recovery system, which heats the building in the winter.

In addition, orders are combined as much as possible and Kaartje2go supports PostNL’s Green Post project. In other words, Kaartje2go looks at the whole chain.

Three forests already planted

Three years ago, the ‘Kaartje2go goes green’ initiative generated the idea of planting their own forest through Trees for All. Since then, they’ve already planted three corporate forests, totalling 6,500 trees in the Netherlands and abroad. The partnership suits both parties well. Van Kasteren explains, “The people at Trees for All are approachable and always have a smile for you. That makes it pleasant to work with them”. And hearing that makes us smile again.

Steps towards a smaller footprint

Kaartje2go has already taken many steps towards becoming climate-neutral. But they’re not there yet. They’re currently taking stock of their total carbon emissions, and they’ll offset the emissions that can’t be reduced. In addition, their ambition for the coming years is to get rid of all the plastic in the packaging. “Take the traditional window envelope, for instance, where you can see the addressee’s name through a strip of plastic”, says Van Kasteren. Kaartje2go is aiming for the smallest possible ecological footprint, so they won’t be stopping at three forests. Forest number four is already scheduled for this year.