In recent years, the concept of sustainability has shifted from a trend to a necessity—especially for small businesses. Not only does enhancing sustainable practices help the environment, but it can also lead to increased profitability and customer loyalty. However, integrating sustainability into small business operations can be challenging. So, let’s explore how small businesses can harness the power of sustainability by identifying and overcoming some basic sustainability-integration challenges!
Why Sustainability in Small Businesses Matters
Sustainability in small businesses goes beyond reducing their carbon footprint. Instead, it involves incorporating eco-friendly practices into every aspect of operations. From sourcing materials to waste management, small businesses can make a significant impact by adopting sustainable practices. According to Entrepreneur, sustainability can be achieved through three key pillars—environmental, social, and economic sustainability. By identifying the challenges related to these areas, small businesses can play an integral role in building a sustainable future. According to Forbes, small businesses are more agile and innovative than large corporations—this makes them ideal for implementing sustainable practices. Ultimately, we believe that small businesses can inspire larger corporations and consumers to prioritize sustainability by taking the reins and leading by example.
Sustainability Challenges & Solutions
We won’t sugar coat it—small businesses face several challenges when implementing sustainable practices. Limited resources, lack of expertise, and the perception of high costs are just a few of the common roadblocks. According to Cultivating Capital, small businesses often struggle with determining how to best approach making their business sustainable, planning sustainable changes, and securing capital to make sustainability-minded changes. The good news is that these challenges are able to be overcome with just a little bit of assistance and effort!
- When it comes to figuring out how to make your small business more sustainable, don’t try to reinvent the wheel! Lean on proven frameworks created by sustainability experts and take the time to educate yourself on sustainability planning. We’re really interested in the ESG model that has small business owners think about their business’ environmental and social impact and how they can create effective policies and procedures to become more sustainable.
- Much like with business planning in general—a common topic on the Growth Capital Blog—sustainability does not have to be perfect. It does have to happen, though! Consider engaging in a simple three-step process to get the ball rolling—engage people, assess your current sustainability status, and map out where you want to go! You need to be talking to people—your partners, employees, and customer base—about sustainability issues and possible solutions as a way to build a culture of sustainability-minded practices if you really want to get serious about it!
- There are two ways to approach not having a significant amount of capital to make sustainability-minded changes. First, you can make some simple, every day changes to your small business that will have an impact over time. For example, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) shared some eco-friendly tips this past Earth Day—a few simple ways to start include changing to energy-efficient lighting or going paperless! You can also check out some of the SBA’s loan programs that allow you to improve and upgrade facilities and equipment—we recommend the 7(a) and 504 programs!
While these are only a few of the challenges you might face when working toward making your small business more sustainable, none of them are insurmountable!
Moving Toward Sustainability with Growth Capital’s Help
Ready to pursue some sustainability-related capital? Let Growth Capital help! The SBA’s loan programs are offered through Certified Development Companies (CDCs) like us so that you feel supported throughout the process. For over 40 years we’ve been helping Northeast Ohio’s small businesses navigate SBA loans and more, and we’d love to help your small business next! Contact us today to get started!