building internal systems or actively advising customers on regulatory requirements, with very few saying it’s not on their radar. The return isn’t always growth. Sometimes it’s simply staying in the game. There’s also progress happening in places that don’t always get labeled as sustainability at all, like better inventory planning or precise production. Waste reduction is happening, but it’s not being driven by campaigns. It’s happening because the systems are improving. It’s a useful reminder that the most effective sustainability strategies tend to look a lot like well-run operations, because when I look closer, some of the more visible impact areas are still inconsistent. Fewer than 1 in 5 distributors have formal packaging guidelines in place, and even fewer are actively measuring reductions. Progress is real. It’s just not always happening where we talk about it most. Not everything in the data shows a clear win. Some investments are hard to measure. Some are expensive. Some don’t generate new revenue at all – they just reduce risk or meet expectations. That’s part of the picture, too. If the concept car phase was about showing what’s possible, the daily driver phase is about what holds up over time. And what holds up isn’t always the most exciting. It’s the things that make the business run better, make it easier to say yes to customers and make it harder to get caught off guard. Responsibility isn’t an initiative anymore. It’s how the business runs. Vroom vroom! Wimbush is director of sustainability and responsibility at PPAI. Elevating Merch PPAI 100 survey feedback shows us that what’s good for business – merch people actually keep – is also good for the planet. That means greater durability, higher-quality products or retail-aligned brands that are marketing solutions first. The impact of a product isn’t just in how it’s made. It’s in how long it’s kept. PPAI • JUNE 2026 • 27 Responsibility | Voices
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