Our business started as an experiment. When we discovered that most trees felled in London – whether due to age, disease, or urban development – were simply chipped and burned, we wondered if we could create a business that gave these 'waste' trees new life as timber.
Fast forward to today, and we’ve built a loyal base of customers who appreciate not only our timber and furniture, but also our mission to recycle local trees into lasting, sustainable products.
Counting carbon
Our commitment to building a sustainable business led us to wonder about our carbon footprint. By stopping trees being burned, we keep carbon out of atmosphere, but how much? And to what extent is that offset by the emissions we produce as a business?
Using tools and government data available online, and with some expert help, we crunched the numbers. The result? A net negative carbon footprint. After accounting for our own business emissions, we stopped 122 tonnes of CO2 entering the atmosphere in 2023.
Why this matters?
This result is more than just encouraging - it's a breakthrough. We've found a way to recycle urban tree ‘waste’, saving carbon and making a viable business out of it. The usual approach – chipping timber for biomass power generation – fails to capitalise on wood's potential for long term carbon storage.
Whist burning timber is often labelled as 'carbon neutral,' that's only true over decades. When a mature tree is burned, all the CO2 it absorbed during its lifetime is released back into the atmosphere. Given the urgent need to reduce emissions, we believe keeping carbon locked in timber as long as possible is a smarter approach.
Why preserving trees beats planting alone
We're big fans of tree planting, but it's not a quick fix. Our calculations show that it takes 20 years for 5 newly-planted trees to absorb the amount of CO2 lost from burning a single mature one. Stopping trees being burned unnecessarily has a more immediate effect.
Growing for greater impact
Our analysis reinforces our belief in our business model. The best way to increase our positive impact is to keep growing our business, repurposing even more of London’s felled trees each year. As we expand, we’re committed to reducing our own emissions, particularly in fuel consumption, making our business model even more sustainable.
Timber as a sustainable material
We’re passionate advocates for using timber as a sustainable material, not just our own. Long-lasting wood products don’t just store carbon; they encourage tree planting, sustainable forestry and reduce reliance on less eco-friendly materials. When responsibly sourced, transported short distances, and crafted into durable goods, timber is one of the best environmental choices available.
Read more about our carbon footprint and our carbon calculations.
