Green is still a big buzzword in the industry, but is it still good business?

The Kirtland's Warbler, a once nearly extinct songbird, has found new life in a 24k gold-plated pewter salt and pepper set. The best-selling piece is handmade in the USA by Grant Dawson Collections using sustainable and recycled materials ($185).

Monica Porter, owner of high-end tabletop company Montes Doggett, said she believes her company is well-positioned for this reason. "People are not buying to throw away," she said. "They take pride in their knowledge of the story of a piece and how it was made. People are making a conscious effort to move towards sustainable practices. Customers are spending their money on quality, simplicity, durability and a story of craftsmanship."

The company's signature simplicity, displayed here in handled bakers and bowl, is emphasized by Montes Doggett's story of artisan craftsmanship and eco-consciousness ($55 to $108).

Porter said she is very optimistic that sales will strengthen in the fall due to a large number of product introductions in the spring. "The introductions should keep us ahead of the game," she said.

Her customers are being very careful and conservative. "Purchases are carefully planned and timed," Porter said. "Buyers are looking into products with a longer lifespan rather than the trend of the minute."

Andrea Phillips, owner of Felton, Calif.-based Zen Zen Garden & Home, agrees. She said retailers are generally more cautious and are buying less at a time. "On the other hand, our regular customers, especially the green and fair-trade ones, often express their gratitude and appreciation in the chic, organically beautiful and stylish nature of our products," she said.

Phillips estimates that about 90% of Zen Zen's products are eco-friendly and the company is working toward 100% as more resources become available.

"We use almost exclusively ecologically sustainable materials and/or recycled materials," she said. "Everything is handmade by village artisans or in our Belizean in-house fair-trade workshop with the smallest carbon footprint we can manage."

A fashion-forward line of placemats and runners is made in cooperative home village industries or in a Belizean fair-trade workshop from vetiver root and hand silk-screened trimmings for Zen Zen Garden & Home.

Cindy Testa, COO of Grant Dawson Collections, said manufacturing handmade products in the USA is the company's biggest challenge. Doing so cuts down on detrimental effects of shipping goods overseas, but the company's high price points "are a reflection of doing business in a country with strict guidelines for employers regarding safety, health care, wages, environmental impact, etc."

The company launched last year at the beginning of the downward economic spiral and has had to stretch its start-up capital much farther than projected. But Testa said the company "started with a business model that was based on environmental, social and economic sustainability; therefore, as things pick up in the economy, we are already well-positioned on the trend towards sustainability."

Testa noted there is now more variety and higher quality products being produced sustainably. "It is now possible to be luxurious, fashionable and cutting-edge, without compromising the environmental impact," she said. "The story behind the product has become an integral part of the product as well."

The D.C.-based company has a line of endangered species figurines, designed to call attention to how everyday choices impact the environment and its species. With that, the theme of the product, its composition and the way it is manufactured are all green-centric.

Grant Dawson strives to be as close to 100% green manufacturing as possible. The company uses 100% recycled paper, FSC-certified sustainable North American hardwoods, recycled glass, 100% recycled packaging, lead-free pewter and non-toxic finishes and adhesives.

The Phillips Collection's Butterfly bar table and stools are made from responsibly harvested and fast-growing mango wood. They were introduced earlier this year and have already become best sellers ($500 to $1,500).

The Phillips Collection is doing business with fewer overseas suppliers. While they can't control freight costs, Phillips said, they are optimizing the factors they can control.

He said, other than that, the company is doing the same things it has always done to stay competitive. "We're not interested in what anyone else is doing," he said. "We're looking at fashion trends and overseas trends and picking products we love. We let our designers go wild and then we pick what we like — so our products are quite unique."

While green products currently make up only about 30% of the lineup, Phillips said the eco-friendly Origins Collection is selling more strongly than not-so-green pieces, noting that 80% of the products currently in development are eco-friendly.

"Green is a buzzword and it creates excitement," he said. "We're selling a unique product at a reasonable price, and buyers feel like they got real value."

The Phillips Collection also uses low VOC finishes (volatile organic compounds), flat-packs products to reduce packaging and is shifting away from resin toward stone and reclaimed wood. The company is currently working with officials in Thailand to use the government-certified responsibly harvested wood, and the home office is in the process of going paperless.