Why Modern “Corporate Gifts” Need a Sustainability Story That Actually Holds Up
🌐 อ่านบทความนี้ภาษาไทย / Read in Thai
In the past, corporate gifts were often treated as little more than branded giveaways, with little attention paid to material sourcing or environmental impact.
Today, as ESG becomes a standard part of corporate reporting and younger employees place growing weight on organizational values, corporate gifts have emerged as another meaningful touchpoint that visibly reflects a company’s sustainability commitments.
The Global Corporate Gifting Market Is Heading Toward $1.3 Trillion
According to The Business Research Company, the global corporate gifting market is projected to reach $1.31 trillion by 2030, indicating that organizations worldwide continue to prioritize this budget line even amid economic volatility.
Given the sheer scale of this market, the material choices behind corporate gifts carry an environmental footprint that is no longer something businesses can afford to overlook.
Eco-Friendly Promotional Products Are Outpacing the Broader Market
Data from the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) shows that eco-friendly promotional products generated $3.69 billion in U.S. sales alone in 2024, a 20% year-over-year increase, now accounting for 13.8% of total U.S. promotional products industry revenue—a growth rate that clearly outpaces the broader market.
Executives Increasingly View Sustainability as a Competitive Advantage
A survey conducted by Reuters in partnership with Perk.com found that 71% of C-suite leaders believe ESG investment represents a competitive advantage for their company, up from 60% the previous year.
This figure reflects that material decisions for corporate gifts are no longer left solely to procurement or marketing teams—they have become part of executive-level strategy directly tied to corporate image.
The Problem of Discarded Gifts—and Why Genuine Material Value Matters
Loop & Tie‘s Impact Report finds that as many as 40% of corporate gifts end up discarded or unused after being received, a figure that highlights a significant waste problem within the industry.
The same report notes that organizations choosing gifts based on quality and meaningful storytelling—rather than sheer volume or prominent branding—see recipients far more likely to keep and continue using them.
ESG Regulations Are Pushing Gift Procurement Toward Full Traceability
Market analysis of the corporate gifting sector in the Asia-Pacific region notes that regulatory frameworks such as the EU’s CSRD and the IFRS S2 standard are expanding to cover supply chain sustainability, meaning procurement decisions—including corporate gifts—now carry greater audit weight than before.
The same analysis also finds that 56% of corporate buyers say they prefer eco-friendly and sustainable gifts in order to align with their organization’s corporate social responsibility goals.
PiLeatha: Turning Corporate Gifts into a Story That Actually Holds Up
PiLeatha, developed by Evergen Technologies from pineapple leaf fiber combined with natural rubber, is already being used commercially in the corporate gifting category—including passport covers, card holders, and other corporate gift items—with exports reaching markets in the UK, the US, Canada, and Australia.
What sets PiLeatha apart as a material for corporate gifts is its genuinely traceable story: from agricultural pineapple leaf waste in Thailand, through a proprietary fiber-extraction process developed in-house, to a plastic-free finish that can be customized with natural dyes. This allows organizations that choose PiLeatha to communicate ESG value to employees, clients, and business partners with real substance and credibility—rather than a gift that carries a “green” label with nothing to back it up.
Sources
- The Business Research Company, Corporate Gifting Market Report — businessresearchinsights.com
- Promotional Products Association International (PPAI), Annual Distributor Sales Volume Estimate, February 2025
- Reuters / Perk.com, ESG Investment as Competitive Advantage Survey, 2024
- Loop & Tie, Impact Report 2024
- Hyve.Promo, Corporate Gifting 2026: APAC Trends (citing EU CSRD / IFRS S2 frameworks) — hyve.promo
