Sustainable Schwag for Trade Shows

By Beth Buehler

For meeting and event planners, sustainability is more important than ever and spills over into every part of a gathering. There are considerations regarding venue selection, menu, transportation, booths, marketing and much more. And what about giveaways? What does sustainable schwag for trade shows and gifting really mean? It can be something people will consume or use over and over instead of discarding, or it might be items made locally or from materials that are environmentally friendly.

“It means creating products that do not immediately end up in the trash or at the local thrift store and that the target audience will be proud to use or wear for years, not just days,” suggests Nick Hodges, founder of Eagle-based Fresh Kamp. “It also has to do with the design. You could provide a great product with a boring design, and this may lead to it still being trashed or not used.”

Each December, Destination Colorado Meetings hosts the Colorado Meetings Showcase, which features a trade show, entertainment, and holiday cheer. Upon arrival at the 2024 event, the nearly 400 attendees received clear stadium bags provided by VISIT DENVER that were selected for reusability purposes. “We host our Colorado Rockies networking event each year in tandem with a baseball game at Coors Field, so the clear bags given out at the showcase can be used again at that,” explains Cayley Loeffler, association manager for Destination Colorado Meetings.

There also were several good ideas for sustainable giveaways at the 78 booths attendees could visit at the showcase, which was held at Infinity Park Event Center in Glendale on Dec. 4. “I noticed a lot of schwag items were either very practical or were food-based, so they won’t be something that just takes up space or goes into the trash,” she says.

For example, Elevation Hotel & Spa in Mt. Crested Butte provided giveaways with local flair, including soap made by Crested Butte’s Colorado Real Soap Co. and wildflower seeds, which ties into the town’s status as the Wildflower Capital of Colorado. The Hoffmann Hotel Basalt Aspen offered windshield scrapers that are sure to be put to good use in a four-season state, and Rent-A-Theme Entertainment gave eye masks and lavender sachets with an attached business card that says: Rest. Play. Dream.

For a tasty treat to eat while mingling or to bring home, Romero Mexican Wedding Cookies had samples of their tasty products that can be gifted in reusable cookie tins. In addition, Holiday Inn Estes Park provided saltwater taffy, which is a well-known, must-have treat when visiting the mountain community.

Fresh Kamp also had a booth to display the sustainable, outdoor-themed schwag available through the Eagle-based company that was founded in 2022. Destination Colorado Meetings enlisted Fresh Kamp to create sustainable schwag for the IMEX America trade show held in Las Vegas in October. “Fresh Kamp did our IMEX gifting, which had a glamping theme and was centered around reusability: a metal mug with carabiner handle, a Charcu-to-Go snack container, and a multi-purpose neck gaiter,” Loeffler says.

The popular giveaways played off the organization’s Colorado-focused booth, where attendees wandering the trade show were greeted and supplier members had appointments with meeting and event planners. The metal cups also were gifted to the Destination Colorado Meetings Board of Directors during the organization’s 2024 Customer Appreciation Event held in Beaver Creek.

“We believe at our core in providing useful products that look great. We have zero intention in creating additional waste by providing low-value, low-desired products,” Hodges emphasizes.

Charcu-to-Go containers help prevent trash from being left on trails and in forests. Fun drinkware and collapsible and reusable water bottles help reduce single-use plastic, while Fresh Kamp neck buffs are made from recycled polyester, allowing these materials to be reused. The merchandise is “inspired by Colorado culture,” he says, and free graphic design services are available to customize the sustainable schwag for trade shows and gifting.

“Fresh Kamp started as an idea on a five-month-long road trip—a journey filled with breathtaking landscapes, campfire conversations, and endless inspiration. We knew we wanted to build something that felt as pure and outdoorsy as the experiences we were living,” Hodges says.

Or go artsy when selecting sustainable schwag for trade shows and other gifting. Elevated Art Experiences in Colorado Springs has a wide variety of handmade items that can be branded with a logo and message. Painted glassware, watercolor postcards and small paintings, hand-sewn gnomes, Colorado-themed sugar cookies, and ceramic trinket dishes, vases and votives are among the options available from Elevated Art Experiences.

Destination Colorado Meetings has utilized hand-painted wine glasses created by Elevated Art Experiences for CAE and Destination West gifting. In addition, owner and artist Teri Adams-Fjellman led one of the team-building activities at the 2023 CAE in Colorado Springs and attendees brought home a Colorado canvas they painted.

Another idea is allowing attendees to build their own schwag bag to take only items they will use. For example, when I attended familiarization trip for meeting and event planners and media hosted by Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel last summer, they did just that in the hospitality room. The theme was Camp Sheraton, and attendees could fill branded backpacks with hiking socks, hydration drink powder, a high-quality metal water bottle, protein bars, snacks, and more. I regularly use the water bottle and hiking socks and enjoyed trying a new type of hydration drink. Plus, friends and family see me using the water bottle and ask about it.

What are you doing for sustainable trade show schwag? If you are stuck in a rut and keep seeing the same things at other booths and events, it’s time to shake it up with these ideas.

Photos: Top photo and all photos unless otherwise indicated are by Magnolia Pine Studios.

Colorado native Beth Buehler has been editor of Colorado Meetings + Events magazine for 20 years and helped launch Mountain Meetings and Southwest Meetings + Events magazines. She has planned numerous meetings and events and enjoys exploring Colorado.