When a delegation from Meetings Michigan attended IMEX America 2025 in Las Vegas, they featured custom Pure Michigan pins crafted by Detroit-based company Rebel Nell from authentic city graffiti. The woman-owned business transforms reclaimed urban art, like graffiti paint chips, into handcrafted jewelry and gifts while providing employment and career support to women facing housing insecurity.
“Their work is a powerful example of sustainable gifting that reflects Michigan creativity and creates meaningful community impact,” explains Kim Corcoran of Meetings Michigan, part of the group who helped lead the effort to promote Michigan as a destination for meetings, events, and incentive travel at the conference. In the past, Corcoran says Pure Michigan-branded Fill it Forward water bottles that prompt donations to clean water initiatives with every fill were distributed.
Choosing swag and other gifts that are eco-friendly or otherwise sustainable through area ties and sourcing is a growing industry trend. “We are much more thoughtful about what we use for gifting,” Corcoran says. “We want to make items truly meaningful and useful, something that will not end up in the trash a few days later.”
Repurpose With Purpose
At Rebel Nell, which recently opened a new store in Grand Rapids to supplement its retail outlets and production space in Detroit, every piece of jewelry is made from something that typically would have gone into a landfill. “We’re known for repurposing fallen graffiti [paint chips],” shares Vice President of Operations and Development Kim Blair. “Or, if there are buildings being torn down, [we think,] ‘What can we get from that building?’ We are able to not only repurpose and prevent something from going into a landfill, but also to capture it and make it into something someone can remember, [giving] it meaning and purpose.”
Items come with custom product cards that tell the backstory of the materials used. Engraving is an option in some cases. Clients also can request custom-made creations that use corporate colors or goods like bottle stoppers and key chains made from smashed and repurposed bricks.
Pingree Detroit also specializes in upcycled or recycled materials, while operating on a zero-waste platform and model designed to uplift veterans and Detroiters who can benefit from the boost of a job or learning a new skill. Co-founder and CEO Jarret Schlaff says the company draws heavily from scrap leather that comes off automotive production lines to craft its coasters, key chains, toiletry bags, and other accessories.
“We’re a small, worker-owned co-op, meaning there are 18 of us that handcraft each piece, and 77% of our profits go right back to the workers in the form of support services, profit sharing, and free skilled-trades training,” Schlaff explains. “Folks feel good when they get our gifts. It’s all made locally, supports our team, and keeps things out of the landfill.”
Growing Product Lines
John Shaler, sales representative for promotional product supplier Image Builders Marketing Inc. in Jenison, says the market for sustainable business gifts has grown steadily over the approximately 35 years he has worked in the field. “For some people, it’s a hot button, and other people don’t ask me about it at all,” he says. “But almost all our vendors nowadays have sustainable options.” Shaler cites examples of water bottles made with recycled consumer waste. He notes for some clients, just knowing that a product comes with a guarantee that a portion of sales is donated to support environmental causes is enough.
When it comes to clothing items, some meeting planners will specify that apparel must be manufactured in a facility that pays a living wage and adheres to fair labor practices, Shaler says. They also tend to favor items made with recycled cotton or that are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, because it supports sustainable forestry, protecting habitats, biodiversity, and workers’ rights.
Products made with bamboo, which has less impact on the environment than traditional materials due in part to its rapid growth, also rate high among the eco-conscious. Shaler recommends gifting bamboo or clay planters that come with seed packs.
Thinking Smarter
At Bundled in West Bloomfield, co-founder Chelsea Gheesling says the company’s “just-in-time” ordering model is in itself sustainable. “We only order what we have already sold as a gift,” she explains. “So, we don’t have any overhead or waste.”
Gifts come packaged either in recyclable material, baskets, or a product the recipient can use. “Picture you’re a new hire and your company wants to send you a backpack, journal, pen, mouse pad, and some treats. We would put all of that inside the backpack.”
At Walking Lightly in Ferndale, owner and founder Tessa Benziger says she relies on area makers for many of the products she offers. Those include planners and journals, mini notebooks, notepads, note cards, wooden bookmarks, greeting cards embedded with seeds for planting directly in the ground, and compostable Swedish dishcloths that can be personalized for large orders. “We have a refillable metal pen,” Benziger says. “It’s so nice to have a hefty metal pen, and it’s also a great reminder that we go through a lot of plastic pens we don’t think about.”
bundledgifting.com
imagebuildersmktg.com
michigan.org
pingreedetroit.com
rebelnell.com
walkinglightly.net
