From new sustainable and plastic free grocery stores to blank canvas sneakers that promote creativity, here are some things that made us say “That’s interesting!” in the studio this week.
Buy back Billy.
Swedish furniture retailer IKEA is launching a new initiative just in time for Black Friday. They will be buying customers’ unwanted IKEA products for upto 50% of their original price (in vouchers) so they can resell them as second-hand furniture. Like many other brands, IKEA has been trying to re-visit its business model to become a more circular and climate positive business. It’s a great example of how brands can make a smooth, credible transition into sustainability by evolving their core offer and leveraging their existing reach, capabilities and image.
Give yours back here
Shoes to dye for.
Introducing, the power of three: the brand, the retailer and the colour expert. A new inspiring collaboration between sports brand Reebok, shoe retailer size? and dye brand Rit invites consumers to get creative with the iconic, re-designed Club C sneakers. A special version of the sneaker – called “Self Dye” – is made from 100% white canvas cotton instead of leather, perfect for consumers to customise themselves at home using specially formulated colour formulas from Rit. A fun, interactive and uplifting way for brands and retailers to connect with and inspire consumers in the current circumstances.
Dye it yourself here
Sea-aged wine.
The typical process for wine ageing is in caves or underground cellars, where temperature and light conditions are low… An environment that can also be found at the bottom of the sea! Intrigued by this and inspired by a single malt whiskey aged in seawater-soaked barrels, Giovanni Colugnati and Victor Tsvetanoc decided to produce a sea-aged wine by setting up a collaboration between designers, wine experts and bottle makers. Dogma wine is bottled in France, placed in bespoke cages, dropped 25 meters deep in the Black Sea, and left to age for four months. In order for the bottles to withstand these conditions, a few alterations are made to the classic materials used: the cork is sealed with gold or silver wax, and the label is made out of brushed pewter metal. The result is a happy mixture of the disruptive and the unexpected: the novelty of sea-aged wine is elevated by the the input of the ocean, which transforms each bottle into a completely unique object.
Drink and dive deep here
Greener convenience.
Another unmissable circular example this week, Asda supermarkets recently opened a new store in Middleton (Leeds) founded on the principles of reduce, reuse and recycle. It will be used as a trial to see what works and what doesn’t, building towards the objective of opening more sustainable stores in 2021. The store has refilling stations, loose fruit and veg, reverse vending machines where consumers can recycle plastic, glass and cans, and a vintage clothing aisle. Their mission is to encourage customers to shop more sustainably but to also reassure them that it’s still at an Asda price. Looking ahead to ways of keeping retail spaces relevant and convenient post-pandemic, brands like Asda can become daily sustainability partners for consumers by re-thinking their offering and innovating towards a circular way of living.
Circular Economy in the bagging area here