Successful examples of collaboration between social and traditional enterprises in Latvia and Europe

October 29, 2024

The “Buy Social Movement” has been active for more than 10 years, indicating that businesses, governments, and consumers are increasingly seeking opportunities to purchase from or collaborate with social enterprises and companies with social or environmental goals. Through the campaign to promote good examples within the Buy Social B2B project, we aim to raise awareness of this movement and highlight various examples of social procurement across different European countries.

Read more in the article about these collaboration examples: Sonido & Rimi; 4 Vēji & Madara; EkoBag & Erste Bank Serbia; AfB & Siemens; Lumeco & PwC Netherlands; Novitas Consult & Elixir Group; Swink & Deloitte; WILDPLASTIC® & OTTO; Tarem Services Limited & Zurich.

Support Line with Double Impact | Sonido & Rimi

Sonido
Sonido is a social enterprise founded in Latvia that provides employment opportunities to people from groups at risk of social exclusion, helping them overcome barriers in the job market. The company offers various call center and virtual secretary services, including feedback hotlines, complaint handling, and customer support. Sonido launched an innovative project, the “Let’s Talk?” hotline, designed to reduce loneliness by connecting people in need of conversation with individuals with disabilities who are open to sharing their experiences.

 

Rimi
Rimi Latvia is one of the leading food retail companies in Latvia, with over 135 stores across the country and more than 5,000 employees.

 

Collaboration
Rimi Latvia collaborated with Sonido to provide emotional support to its employees. The social enterprise provided a support hotline available to all Rimi Latvia employees, offering a safe space to talk and be heard, helping to address issues early and potentially prevent the worsening of mental health concerns.

Social Impact

  • The number of calls increased from 160 in 2018 to 11,466 in 2022
  • From 2018 to 2022, 59% of Sonido employees were individuals from social exclusion risk groups
  • 65% of callers reported that the conversation was valuable

Learn more about the collaboration

Inclusive Employment for Sustainable Packaging | 4 Vēji & Madara

4 Vēji

4 Vēji is a social enterprise established in 2020 to support adults with mental health challenges. While primarily producing corrugated paper, cardboard, and cardboard packaging, 4 Vēji also creates handmade items like soaps, bracelets, and ceramics, fostering inclusive employment opportunities.

 

MÁDARA Cosmetics

MÁDARA is a pioneering Northern European brand renowned for its commitment to natural beauty and sustainability. The brand is COSMOS ECOCERT certified, and its packaging is fully recyclable.

 

Collaboration
This synergy led MÁDARA to integrate 4 Vēji into its supply chain. The partnership not only provides meaningful employment to individuals with mental disabilities but also supports MÁDARA’s mission for sustainable and socially responsible practices.

Learn more about the collaboration

Sustainable Products | EkoBag & Erste Bank Serbia

EkoBag

EkoBag is Serbia’s first “green” social enterprise, established with a strong commitment to environmental preservation. The company recycles PVC film from old billboards, a material that would otherwise take up to 1,500 years to decompose. From this recycled material, EkoBag produces a range of items, including bags, folders, holders, and wallets.

 

Erste Bank Serbia

Erste Bank’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy prioritizes support for social entrepreneurs. It is the first bank in Serbia to introduce social banking services and has a policy of working with social enterprises for catering and corporate gifts.

 

Partnership

EkoBag and Erste Bank have developed a close partnership. Each year, Erste Bank purchases 150 to 300 EkoBag laptop bags, laptop backpacks, document bags, and other accessories for its employees. This collaboration reinforces both organizations’ commitment to sustainable practices and social impact by supporting green products and socially inclusive employment.

Social Impact

  • Nearly 5,000 square meters of PVC film have been recycled into products purchased by Erste Bank
  • EkoBag has employed two women over the age of 45 who faced challenges in finding work, providing them with stable employment and social support

Learn more about the collaboration

Social and Sustainable IT | AfB and Siemens

AfB

AfB is Europe’s largest nonprofit IT company, dedicated to promoting the circular economy by collecting, refurbishing, and reselling used IT and mobile devices from corporate clients. Its core mission, however, is to support people with severe disabilities in joining the workforce. Currently, employees with disabilities make up half of AfB’s workforce, emphasizing the company’s commitment to inclusive employment.

 

Collaboration with Siemens

AfB has been collaborating with Siemens for over 10 years. What began as a small initiative with a local Siemens branch has now expanded to a nationwide partnership across Germany. This collaboration covers over 80,000 IT workstations, where hardware is regularly replaced due to security or technological requirements.

Social Impact

  • Created 14 jobs for people with disabilities
  • Refurbished 115,000 Siemens devices, with a total weight of 678.3 tons
  • Through refurbishment, compared to manufacturing new devices, AfB helped save:
    • 10,780,094 liters of water,
    • 41,989,125 kWh of primary energy,
    • 5,859,159 kg of raw materials

Learn more about the collaboration

Environmentally Friendly Future | Lumeco and PwC Netherlands

Lumeco
Lumeco is a social enterprise that supplies and installs LED lighting solutions, revolutionizing collaboration among companies. The company’s vision and goal are to make commercial real estate more sustainable while creating social impact.

 

PwC Netherlands
PwC specializes in insurance, tax, and legal services, as well as consulting, while continuously striving to improve its sustainability impact across all offices and parking lots in the Netherlands.

 

Collaboration

The two organizations met in 2018 when PwC was looking for an opportunity to replace traditional lighting with circular LED solutions. Now, Lumeco’s innovative LED lighting solutions illuminate thirteen PwC offices across the country.

Social Impact

  • More than 80,000 kWh of energy saved annually
  • Material preservation thanks to Lumeco’s circular approach, which focuses on maximizing the use of existing materials, such as fixtures
  • Employees from socially disadvantaged risk groups have worked over 5,000 hours

Learn more about the collaboration

Socially Responsible Gifts | Novitas Consult & Elixir Group

Novitas Consult
Novitas Consult is a social enterprise based in Serbia that provides equal opportunities for people with disabilities by integrating them into the workforce. The company’s primary business activities involve sorting, packing, and repacking various types of products.

 

Elixir Group
Elixir Group is a leading fertilizer manufacturer in Southeast Europe, employing over 1,900 people.

 

Collaboration

Novitas Consult is a well-known local company with a good reputation, making it the first choice for Elixir Group when support was needed to procure New Year’s gifts for employees’ children. The first service agreement was signed in 2014, and since then, a long-term collaboration has developed between the two organizations.

Social Impact

  • More than 22 individuals with disabilities have been integrated into the workforce, supporting their social inclusion
  • In 2023, Novitas Consult packaged and delivered 738 New Year’s gifts for Elixir Group

Learn more about the collaboration

Neurodiversity Awareness | Swink and Deloitte

Swink
Swink is a social enterprise based in the Netherlands with a clear mission to harness the unique abilities of individuals with autism in the field of digital services. By embracing neurodiversity, Swink provides its clients with unparalleled service quality and innovative solutions.

 

Deloitte
Deloitte is a global professional services firm specializing in audit, tax, consulting, financial advisory, and risk management services.

 

Collaboration

The collaboration began in early 2022 when the two organizations jointly developed a proposal that ultimately won a tender for digital and web analytics services for 75 public sector organizations in the Netherlands.

Social Impact

  • 30 individuals with autism are employed
  • Created a social value of €30,000

Learn more about the collaboration

From Waste Bag to Parcel Packaging | WILDPLASTIC® x OTTO

WILDPLASTIC®
WILDPLASTIC® is a successful social enterprise that has established the world’s first supply chain for wild film plastic (LDPE), focusing on sustainability and direct collaboration with local organizations.

 

OTTO
OTTO is the largest online retailer in Germany. Every second washing machine and every third television ordered online comes from OTTO.

 

Partnership

In mid-2020, following a successful pilot project, the partnership was officially launched, introducing the OTTOBAG—the first parcel packaging made from 80% WILDPLASTIC®. To date, OTTO uses 100% WILDPLASTIC® mailing bags for its products.

Social Impact

  • 272,220 kg of WILDPLASTIC recovered and used for the production of OTTOBAGS
  • 648,337 kg of CO₂ emissions saved
  • 5,940 days with improved working conditions for waste collectors

Learn More About the Collaboration

Promoting Small Business Growth | Tarem Services Limited x Zurich

TAREM SERVICES Limited

Tarem Services Limited is a social enterprise with a significant mission: to address the issue of working poverty and create social value across the United Kingdom. Tarem is committed to raising the status of cleaners and support staff, ensuring they receive the respect and minimum wage they deserve.

 

Zurich

Zurich has been providing general insurance products in the United Kingdom for over 100 years and is committed to making a positive impact on lives and communities.

 

Collaboration

In collaboration with Global Workplace Solutions, Zurich initiated a partnership with Tarem, which now cleans seven Zurich offices across the UK. This partnership has also supported Tarem in developing the company’s performance metrics and achieving significant business growth.

Social Impact

  • 8 tCO2e accounted for by implementing a verified carbon emissions reduction project (VCS)
  • 10 employees work across 7 Zurich branches

Learn More About the Collaboration

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Buy Social Europe B2B is co-funded by the EU Single Market Programme and SAP, and it is implemented in collaboration with Euclid Network, Social Enterprise World Forum, Social Enterprise UK, Yunus Social Business, Social Entrepreneurship Netzwerk Deutschland (SEND), Social Enterprise NL, Reach For Change, Sustainable Procurement Pledge, Zurich Insurance, and partners from 17 countries.