Young entrepreneurs in the UK could save themselves as much as £3,000 per year by making several small environmentally-friendly changes to their day-to-day lives, research from 4imprint reveals.
Here are the firm’s top five tips for going green and improving your bank balance at the same time.
- Invest in a reusable bag
In October 2015, the UK government began charging shoppers 5p for every plastic carrier bag they needed from large retailers in a bid to reduce the eight million bags that are thrown away each year and sent to landfill sites, where the material they are made from means they are unable to biodegrade.
By taking a reusable bag to the shops – these can be purchased from most supermarkets, as well as 4imprint – consumers can save themselves around £65 per year, while also doing their bit for the planet.
- Take advantage of public transport
Traditionally, public transport doesn’t have the best reputation, but major infrastructure improvements have been made in recent years and it’s now a largely efficient way to get around.
Of course, occasional delays are inevitable, but so are traffic jams if you’re driving to work, so embrace the buses, trains and trams in your area and you could see yourself save as much as £5.60 per day.
At the same time, you’ll be helping to reduce the country’s carbon footprint, as currently 22 per cent of excess emissions come from transport on the roads.
- Don’t be a coffee snob
Coffee is becoming increasingly trendy, with more and more people fancying themselves as connoisseurs, but by making your own in the morning and taking it to work in a reusable thermal mug, you can save yourself £2.45 per day.
With figures showing that some 2.5 billion paper cups end up in landfill sites each year – enough to go around the world 5.5 times over – this highlights the benefits that taking your own mug can have for the planet, as well as your bank balance.
- Buy a lunchbox
Packed lunches may not have been cool at school, with bad memories of soggy sandwiches and lukewarm juice still leaving you a little emotionally scarred, but there’s also nothing cool about spending £2.85 a day more than you need to.
Invest in a cooler bag and fill it with your favourite healthy snacks each day to cut down on packaging waste and save yourself a little cash at the same time.
- Beware of BPAs
BPAs are a harmful substance that are found in some plastic bottles and can present danger to people’s health, as well as the environment.
By investing in a reusable, BPA-free plastic bottle and refilling it with water each time you go to the gym, you could save yourself £1 every day, taking your total daily savings to £11.90, which equates to £3,000 per year.
4imprint provides a wide range of reusable goods as well as printed promotional products such as t-shirts, stylus pens and power banks.
