POC Member, Talking Tables, has just launched its latest Impact Report, detailing the progress it has achieved over the last year, as well as its ambitions for the next.
Beginning with a note from Talking Tables MD, Daniel Fagan, the Talking Tables Impact Report explained that the company celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2024 and therefore took the opportunity to “set our sights firmly on the future we want to build – one that is responsible, inclusive, and sustainable.”
People first
In 2024, Talking Tables achieved its Great Place to Work accreditation, which is assessed through an independent accreditation scheme and staff engagement survey, bolstering its People Pillar, one of its nine pillars for the year.
In addition to its pillars, it has The Talking Tables Way (The TT Way), a set of values everyone at TT aspires to, which are: agile, collaborative, customer centric, hardworking, go the extra mile, sociable, give back.
Supporting these values, are the two paid volunteering days every one of its staff is given, which in 2024 resulted in 461 hours volunteered, up from 421 in 2023, and 79% of its staff taking the opportunity to help out foodbanks, clean rivers and parks, steward at festivals and sports events and more.
Talking Tables offers subsidised club activities as well as £600 per staff member to spend on a wellness experience that lifts their sprits.
Continuing with its staff enrichment, Talking Tables had a number of Learning Months in 2024, the subjects for which included LGBTQ+, Black History, and social isolation among older people, for which it works with its partner charity Reengage.
Environmentally focused
Talking Tables’ Green Choice Group meets monthly, bringing people together from different areas of the business to discuss progress against the company’s sustainability focuses:
- Carbon product data: increased data understanding that supports tangible actions and progress
- Recycled material: increase the use of recycled material in product and packaging
- Sustainable product and packaging innovations: share updates across teams
- Extend product life cycle: share ways customers can extend the life of Talking Tables products
- TT office sustainability stewardship: ensure out own office and operations are supporting sustainable progress
- Voice of authority: through marketing and communications
One of its particular achievements for its Spring/Summer 2025 range was for 70% of the collection’s packaging to be made from recycled paper.
Community and beyond
For every online order placed on Talking Tables’ website, the company donates an item to a community gathering, in support of community events. For this it works closely with its chosen charity partner, Reengage, which holds monthly tea part social groups for over 75s.
Its supply chain is also a community, and Talking Tables ensures the length of it is compliant to the TT code of conduct (TT Way), through audits and visits. This includes the sustainable management of resources, fair and equal business conduct, and supporting and educating suppliers and their communities.
Product profiles
In 2024, Talking Tables increased its reusable table offerings, and made 100% of its games single-use plastic free and made from FSC material. For Autumn/Winter 2025, all its games be recycled FSC.
Where Talking Tables’ paper decorations and tableware are single use, they are recyclable, and its crackers and paper cups are plastic free. Further achievements include:
- Roll wrap made from recycled paper and is plastic free
- Stainless steel picnic plates – more sustainable alternative to melamine
- Table Kind collection fully compostable
- Totes are made from recycled plastic
- Standard napkins made from recycled and recyclable paper
- Plant-based tamper seals for games
- Candles packaging in recycled paper
- Handmade felt Christmas decorations from World Fair Trade Supplier, Hatale
For its Autumn/Winter 2025 range, Talking Tables has added handmade recycled cotton Christmas tree decorations, made from fashion industry waste fabric rescued from landfill.
Company commitments
Talking Tables achieved B Corp back in September 2022, so it is due to renew its certification this year, and hopes in the process to improve its score from 87.5 to 100+.
Other internal schemes include work with the recycling group, First Mile, to recycle as much as it possibly can, as well as performing recycling inductions for new employees.
Talking Tables works with Ecologi to offset its paper napkin production with tree planting, as well as planting for staff birthdays and as customer incentives. To date, this has led to the planting of over 50,000 trees.
Looking ahead, Talking Tables has divided its 2025 goals into five key areas:
- Workers: maintain Great Place to Work status, introduce 100 new user manuals to aid staff, support the next generation with six intern placements, and achieve zero gender pay gap.
- Community: hold two industry Talking Together events, each business unit to host quarterly community event and volunteering activity, support 150 community events, and eight foodbank group volunteering activities.
- Customers: launch a dedicated survey on customer attitudes to sustainability, improve customer happiness score to 9 out of 10.
- Environment: Recertify as B Corp, achieve First Mile gold status for office recycling, measure lifecycle of key product categories, and 25% of products to be made from recycled and upcycled materials.
- Governance: training on its anti-corruption system.
For the full Talking Tables impact report for 2025, click here.
