In today’s world, our environmental impact is at the forefront of everyone’s mind, consumer and retailer alike. With customers becoming more conscientious about their choices, it is imperative that businesses re-evaluate their approach to embrace eco-friendly practices and to align with a greener, more sustainable future for all.
Here are just a couple of ways that large scale retail stores are embracing this landscape of sustainability and exploring forward-thinking strategies.
Tiffany Store Façade Made From Recycled Fishing Nets[1]
Tiffany’s new store in Singapore’s Changi Airport is a spectacle in itself with a vibrant 3D printed façade inspired by Singapore’s coral reefs.
The façade was created using recycled plastic, partly sourced from fishing nets, combined with screen printed glass printed with a colour gradient moving from Tiffany’s signature blue to a deeper oceanic blue.
The façade provides a stunning visual effect to catch the eye of visitors to the airport, along with being made up of a 75% thermoplastic base recovered from multiple recycled plastics, including fishing nets – a real problem and affliction on the world’s oceans.
Ocado Digital Deposit Return Scheme[2]
Ocado have recently implemented a trial for a digital deposit return scheme which saw 3,000+ customers claim monetary rewards for recycling two and four pint milk bottles.
Using technology from recycling company Polytag via the Bower app, customers are able to scan codes printed onto Ocado’s own brand of four and two pint milk bottles directly before recycling to receive a 20p reward into their digital wallet. These serialised codes are only able to be scanned once, preventing customers repeatedly claiming from the same pack, and the Bower app uses GPS technology to ensure the consumer claiming the 20p is standing within close distance of a registered home recycling bin.
This project is a win-win for all, with customers encouraged to actively recycle packaging whilst receiving monetary reward for doing so!
The traditional expectation of retail is often associated with fast fashion, wasteful practices and excess packaging. This landscape is undergoing a profound metamorphosis with sustainability shaping every facet of the industry, with customers even turning away from retailers who have not embraced these eco-friendly trends.
With these two examples just being a drop in the ocean (if you’ll excuse the pun) when it comes to the fresh steps retailers are taking to show up as more green, sustainability is more than just a buzzword – it’s a transformative force shaping the future of retail and indeed, the future of all of us and our planet.
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