Ethstat wins King’s Award for Enterprise in sustainable development

Ethstat Ethical Stationery CIC has been awarded a King’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development, recognising its work to help organisations use everyday procurement as a force for good.

The Croydon based social enterprise supplies sustainable office products and ethical procurement solutions to organisations across the UK, with customers including Nationwide, Greenpeace, Amey plc and Amnesty International, alongside businesses across construction, infrastructure, housing and corporate procurement.

Its model helps organisations use routine procurement decisions to reduce waste, choose ethical suppliers and create measurable social impact.

The King’s Award is the UK’s most prestigious business honours and recognises outstanding achievement by British businesses. Ethstat received the award in the sustainable development category, following years of work to show that sustainability can be embedded into purchasing decisions, supplier relationships and day to day business operations.

Founded on the belief that business can and should be a force for good, the company has built a model that challenges traditional procurement by placing sustainability, ethical sourcing and social impact at the centre of commercial decision making.

The organisation says its work has helped more than 1000 people get back on their feet, supported 1157 real living wage placements and generated more than 991,000 hours of living wage work.

Its environmental work has also removed more than 32 million single use plastics, planted over 27,000 trees and saved more than 2000 tonnes of CO2 beyond neutrality.

Yasmin Halai-Carter, chief executive officer and co-founder of Ethstat Ethical Stationery CIC, said: ‘This award means an enormous amount to us because it recognises the belief that has driven Ethstat from the beginning: that business can be commercially successful while creating real social and environmental impact.

‘Sustainability should not sit in a report or be treated as a marketing campaign. It should be embedded into strategy, procurement, partnerships and culture.

‘The King’s Award gives us a bigger platform to champion ethical procurement, sustainable business and supply chains that genuinely create positive impact. We are incredibly proud of everyone who has backed a different way of doing business.’

The recognition comes at a time when organisations are under growing pressure to demonstrate credible action on sustainability, responsible sourcing and social value. The company’s model helps customers align everyday business supplies with wider environmental, social and governance goals.

Dr Bruce Halai-Carter, co-founder and chief sustainability officer, said: ‘Procurement is one of the most powerful but overlooked levers for change. Every order placed by an organisation is also a choice about the kind of economy it wants to support.‘

This recognition shows that sustainable procurement is not a niche concern. It is a practical, measurable way for organisations to turn values into action.’