What happens to your company’s swag when it’s no longer useful? If sustainability is part of your brand promise, it should apply to the entire lifecycle of your merchandise—not just how you buy it.
Events end with leftover inventory. Campaigns change. Companies rebrand. Products sit in warehouses or storage rooms long after their original purpose has passed.
And while companies have become increasingly sophisticated at sourcing, producing, and distributing merchandise, the process for what happens at the end of that lifecycle can be less defined.
In a recent webinar, we explored that gap with Supercircle, a partner focused on helping brands recover value from products at the end of their useful life.
The conversation went beyond simply asking whether swag can be recycled or donated. Instead, it examined how companies can build a more sustainable swag program through responsible end-of-life practices.
Sustainability doesn’t end at the point of purchase
Sustainable merchandise conversations often begin with the product itself. What is it made from? How was it produced? Where did it come from?
Those questions matter. But they only tell part of the story.
According to Doug Koon, Senior VP of Customer Strategy at Supercircle, companies have become increasingly sophisticated at the “forward logistics” side of the supply chain—sourcing, producing, and delivering products.
The infrastructure for what happens afterward, however, hasn’t always developed at the same pace.
And that matters because excess inventory is inevitable.
“Forecasting is by nature imperfect,” Doug said during the conversation. “You can do what you can to minimize excess inventory, but it will exist.”
That changes the question companies should be asking.
Instead of trying to eliminate excess entirely, what if the focus were on creating a repeatable system for what happens when it occurs?
Sustainable swag requires an owner, not just a champion
Another important question from the webinar: Who owns the problem?
Many organizations have an employee who cares deeply about sustainability and is willing to take responsibility when excess inventory needs to be dealt with.
That person can be an important catalyst. But a scalable sustainability program can’t depend on someone volunteering to solve the same problem from scratch every time.
“It’s great to have a champion,” Doug explained, “but I think it’s more important to have organizational buy-in.”
For brands serious about sustainable merchandise practices, responsibility needs to become part of the operating model.
That may mean establishing clear ownership internally and working with specialized partners that can provide the infrastructure, expertise, and recovery pathways required.
The result is a sustainability program that’s less dependent on individual effort—and more embedded in the way your business operates.
What does “operationalized sustainability” mean?
One of the most useful concepts from the webinar was operationalized sustainability.
What does that actually look like?
According to Doug, it means creating a sustainability solution that is repeatable and practical.
If every end-of-life situation requires a new conversation, a new vendor, and a new solution, sustainability remains reactive.
But if there’s a defined process for identifying excess inventory, routing items appropriately, and documenting the outcome, sustainability becomes part of normal operations.
In fact, the ideal process may be somewhat “boring.”
Everyone knows what happens when inventory is no longer needed. The right partners are involved. The company can track the results. And the process can happen without becoming a major internal project every time.
That’s what makes it scalable.
Why traceability matters for sustainable swag
A sustainable swag program also needs visibility.
It’s one thing to know that excess merchandise was sent to a donation or recycling partner. It’s another to know what happened after that.
During the webinar, Doug identified traceability as a starting point for building a more sophisticated recovery system.
Companies should be able to ask:
How much inventory entered the recovery process?
Where did it go?
What happened to it?
Was it recycled, donated, resold, or otherwise recovered?
Can we document the outcome?
That final step matters.
Without traceability, companies may know that merchandise left their warehouse—but not necessarily what happened to it afterward.
Better data creates greater visibility, accountability, and the ability to evaluate whether a program is actually delivering the outcomes a company expects.
Is donation always the most sustainable option?
Not necessarily.
One of the more nuanced points from the conversation was the importance of sorting.
It’s tempting to automatically donate excess swag. But different products can require different end-of-life pathways.
Condition, product type, material composition, decoration, and other characteristics can all influence whether an item is better suited for donation, recycling, resale, or another form of recovery.
Doug described sorting merchandise a critical decision point in the process—one that allows products to be routed toward the highest-value appropriate outcome rather than sending everything through the same channel.
Supercircle takes care of the sorting for you and makes the best judgment call on your swag’s next life–and Swag Pro helps your items get there seamlessly without effort on your team’s part.
How can companies measure the ROI of sustainable swag programs?
Sustainability and business value don’t have to be separate conversations.
During the webinar, we asked how companies can demonstrate ROI once they begin systemizing their sustainability practices.
There may be direct financial value when products are appropriate for resale. There can also be operational value in freeing inventory capacity, reducing opportunity costs, or moving products through a 3PL more efficiently.
Doug outlined several other potential sources of value, including:
- Resale: Some products may have recoverable financial value.
- Inventory capacity: Moving excess products out of storage can free up valuable space.
- Operational savings: Companies may reduce certain costs associated with storing and managing unwanted inventory.
- Material recovery: Some products may have value as recovered materials.
- Better data: Documented outcomes can give teams greater visibility into the performance of their recovery efforts.
The specific financial impact will vary based on the product, quantity, and recovery pathway. But the larger point is that a sustainable swag program can be evaluated through both an environmental and operational lens.
Sustainable swag starts with a plan for what happens next
So what should companies do if they want to build a more sustainable swag program?
Start by asking a few straightforward questions:
Do you know what happens to your swag at end of life?
If the answer is “someone figures it out,” there’s an opportunity to establish a process.
Do you know who owns the process?
Sustainability shouldn’t depend entirely on one person remembering to solve the problem.
Do you have recovery pathways established?
Identify potential partners and outcomes before excess inventory becomes urgent.
Can you trace the outcome?
Don’t stop tracking when products leave your warehouse. Understand what happens next.
Can you measure the value?
Look beyond the number of products diverted. Consider financial recovery, operational savings, and the data you gain through the process.
Is the process repeatable?
A one-time solution isn’t a program. The goal is a process that works across events, campaigns, gifting initiatives, rebrands, and other sources of excess merchandise.
Tell a swag sustainability story your brand can stand behind
Our conversation with Supercircle ultimately points to a larger shift in how brands think about sustainable merchandise.
A sustainable swag program doesn’t end at purchase. It starts with thinking about the entire lifecycle of your merchandise—and building the operational practices to manage it responsibly.
For companies with growing swag programs, that full lifecycle becomes increasingly important. Does your organization have a plan that works?
The good news is, you don’t have to do it alone. We’re here to help. Just get in touch and we’ll walk you through it.
