Making Your Events More Sustainable: Small Steps for Big Impact with Sauveur

PLEB asked Matthew Shaw, Co-Founder & Director at SAUVEUR to pen an article as a PLEB guest writer, on how sustainability principles can be included when planning and organising weddings and events.

November 1, 2024
Matthew Shaw

Words by Matthew Shaw, Co-Founder at Sauveur

There is, quite understandably, a lot of discussion around sustainability in the events industry. Embracing a sustainable approach to events requires a thorough re-think in how we work and also honesty. Events by their very nature are far from sustainable! Gathering large numbers of people, wining and dining them, providing entertainment and everything in between is both a lot of work and also requires a vast amount of resources. Events are temporary and we are required to create a complex infrastructure in a matter of hours or days to house the guests, and also the teams looking after the guests. We are making conscious decisions to adjust how we work and who we work with to design events with a smaller footprint and to ensure a smooth and mindful approach to event delivery.

Timing is key

Ensuring ample planning time is vital to a sustainable event approach. Whilst there are times where a rapid event delivery is necessary, and we always aim to avoid overly drawn out planning, allowing time helps in a number of areas. There is simply no denying that rushing equals waste. Events often fall victim to last-minute nature (and we will need our clients’ support to avoid this too) but we must try and avoid sliding everything towards the end of the planning timeline. This often means that elements are sourced in haste and convenience trumps quality or sustainability. Last-minute production is also not conducive to sustainable work ethics and a happy, creative team. Sometimes great work is indeed done under pressure but, more often than not, we see better and more creative work when we have had the time to develop ideas, question concepts, and rework things that need adjustment.

Wild Weddings by SAUVEUR, featuring a wedding tent in the great outdoors with tables, fairy lights and trees surrounding it.
Image credit Aurelien Langlais

Who you work with
This is, of course, not solely limited to event production or the creative industries but taking care to audit who you work with is central to sustainable event delivery. We take great pleasure in working with independent suppliers and producers through prioritising craft and experience. I believe this has both a positive effect on the footprint of the event but equally the overall quality. Meeting and working with such a broad set of skills and craftspeople is one of the great pleasures of working in events. This does have a budget consideration but when budget is limited we always suggest a simpler event with high-quality suppliers rather than trying to do it all by cutting corners.

Distance Matters
Distance and travel is always a consideration and two areas where this most often rears its head is with catering and florals. These days almost everything is available everywhere but this is usually not the right route to go down. When considering our catering partners we always want to ensure that menus prioritise seasonal, local produce. If we’re contacting a new caterer and receive back a long menu that feels like it doesn’t get updated throughout the year this is a red flag to us. We work with a fantastic caterer, Jimmy Garcia Catering, who specialises in 10-mile menus which are developed using ingredients sourced within 10 miles of their kitchens in London.

Prioritising locally grown flowers and foliage can also improve an event’s sustainable credentials. This can sometimes mean encouraging a client to avoid their favourite flower for their wedding because it isn’t in season and needs to be shipped in from Amsterdam but there are so many fantastic solutions closer to home. We produced a beautiful wedding in Sussex last year where all the flowers were grown 30 minutes away from the wedding venue and picked the day before.

Managing Waste
Waste is a constant buzzword and consideration in the live events industry. The temporary nature of events is something we are always grappling with and there are three main questions we look at for each event: food waste, reducing in advance, unavoidable waste.

Food waste can be managed in advance by designing menus and quantities appropriately. Everyone wants to be a generous host but the flipside is landing up with vast quantities of waste post event. It’s important to work with your caterer and planner to understand what people will consume and how they consume it. Dessert stations and cheese buffets are all fun ideas and can be done well but these often leave to waste. Similarly with sharing-style menus where manners mean dishes are always left with food on them.

We do also often need to ask the question – is everything necessary? The most notable items often left behind at events are the trinkets and ‘gifts’ given to guests that either people don’t want or forget to take home with them. I’m often on the warpath against wedding favours as whilst they can be a nice touch they are rarely something guests actually want or need and land up being left behind or binned shortly after.

Inevitably there are always items left over after events and this is unavoidable. What isn’t unavoidable is taking the time to recycle or find new homes. Before each event we do a thorough review of everything being purchased for an event to understand what we will be left with afterwards. These may be items that the client wants to keep but if not we can make plans to gift these to local charities or shelters. More often than not there is a home for everything and wonderful charities like Floral Angels in London assist with delivering floral arrangements to hospices and care homes where they can be enjoyed for a few more days.

Making cocktails at a SAUVEUR Wedding.
Image credit Bizzy Arnott

Wedding table spread using locally grown flowers by SAUVEUR.
Image credit Lucy Davenport

Wedding dinner table spread by SAUVEUR.
Image credit SAUVEUR

SAUVEUR Theatre on-stage event setting.
Image credit Laura Arnot Photography

Looking after your teams
This is central to our approach at SAUVEUR as sustainable working should also consider the people doing the work and ensuring they are supported and happy. The people you work with and their lives and health are equally important. This links back to avoiding the last-minute nature of events but it should go beyond that. Ensuring your colleagues, partners, and suppliers are supported and thriving is not only important on a basic human level but also vital for developing trusted teams and working relationships which is often forgotten (or disregarded) in the creative industries. Working in the events industry can be relentless with late nights and antisocial hours. When it comes to building your event schedule some of the most important lines are your team’s movements, working hours, rest breaks, and meal times!

There is a lot of work to be done in recognising and improving a sustainable approach to event delivery. We are on a continuous learning curve both in our working practices but also in working with our clients to ensure they understand the sustainable decision-making involved.

Thank you,
Matthew Shaw, co-founder and director at SAUVEUR.

Matthew Shaw, Co-Founder at SAUVEUR lighting a candle at one of the SAUVEUR wedding events, adding a personal touch.
Image courtesy of SAUVEUR

ABOUT SAUVEUR
Unlike traditional event planners, SAUVEUR considers the full journey which every person – from the host to the guest to the supplier – will experience, while not compromising on this for the sake of aesthetics or current trends. Guided by people, detail and experience, SAUVEUR’s philosophy ensures that all elements – from the event design through to the schedule, guest communications and experiences – are considered, as well as involved, each step of the way.
Website: sauveurstudios.com
Co-Founder: Matthew Shaw
Contact: [email protected]
Location: UK, with a Global Presence

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