Polishing 'Things Unduly Receiving Dominant Support'

I used (and still do, a bit) work in ad/marketing.

And nothing was surer than night followed day than when a new broom swept into a client's marketing department, they'd just have to make their mark.

Sort of a territorial marking thing.

And nothing made us happier at the agency, because a) it was more money, and b) having lived with marketing stuff more intimately, for longer, we were bored with the 'same old, same old', too.

That the consumer was probably fine with it, and would be for years, really didn't come in to it.

So it's kind of interesting that, when opportunity to do so much more knocks, the focus of gazing still seems to be pretty much at the collective navel.

http://www.packagingnews.co.uk/in-depth/the-perilous-world-of-the-revamp

Of course, I now have extra, vested interests in thinking beyond the box, about the box and how the box can be reused...

'In a consumer-centric world governed mostly by a desire to get an end benefit, while a new look may serve those within an organisation more, a desire that actually adds value… to the purchaser… is more likely to drive extra sales.

Boosting recyclability is of course great, but creating reuse keeps the brand in the home, and heart… not out via the bin. Much as that may tick a tonnage box.'

Ok, so your arteries are still clogged...

And the salt is seizing up your heart.

But this works (a bit better) environmentally:

http://www.kfc.com/packaging/lineup.asp

Have to love that first word!

Imagining is good. Doing even more satisfying.

I grabbed an opportunity for a plug:

Re-Imagining the Scotch Tape Dispenser Without Changing it at All

You never know; it may get through to the right person.. eventually.

It's a pity, as I was all raring to cme up with some ideas for a current second use and a designed-in one.

Maybe I still will.

CATEGORY - THE INCREDIBLE BULK

I see merits, and hence opportunities, in bulk buying.

I even have a few ideas of my own.

Hence I think a category is in order.

Artciles

WRAP - Retail Trials Could Signal a 'Reusables Revolution'

It even has my favourite RE:word in it!

Info

Junkk washes greener?

I've shared them, and the story, before, but in the spirit of positivity and 'as one door closes...' I think it's worth doing so again.

You're looking at the Junkk.com 'brochure'.

Roughly lifesize, this little... very little... piece of printing was the result of an encounter with a passionate environmentalist, and has turned into one of our more successful promotional tools, especially in combo with the Vac:Sac (I get stopped and asked what it's all about... and produce a card. And, if I am lucky, the recipient does turn it into a passport-sized picture frame - mine is in its 4th year protecting the boys' images - that is also a wallet-borne promo for Junkk.com in everyone's pocket... especially when presenting said picture of loved ones and then, hopefully, asked about the frame).

Anyhoo, the first flyer outing was not so successful, an A5 card, and I paid the price. I was at some show and this bloke barrelled up waving it and demanded... 'Is this made from recycled paper!!!!?' Erk. I didn't know. I doubted it. As I had to get it done fast, and cheap. Not the ideal environment for the, um, ideal environment to be specified, waited for... or afforded. Especially when trying to share a whole stand of lovely reuse ideas to a bunch of folk now much more interested in this piece of paper being waved about.

So I determined to resolve this to avoid such confrontations. Hence the pocket picture frame came to be. And, months later, the guy did re-appear, and did again raise his voice, and ire, in challenge.

Only this time, mid-flow I quietly and politely (well, as you can) interrupted and said 'It's better than recyclable... it's reusable, which is even higher on the 're-hierarchy', and better for the planet'. The appreciation of the audience for this solution felt good. Oddly, the man in question seemed even angrier, but left, muttering. Can't please everyone, all of the time.

I was minded of the opportunities of aspects of this when reading a fellow eco-blogger's post the other day...

Ecover packaging - is it really recyclable? (where facilities exist, perhaps)

The key here is in the bracket, as a brand or retailer, while still a major part of the process, is still very much at the hands of our fragmented recycling collection and processing systems around the UK.

You can do all you can (as such as ecover and Innocent I truly believe are trying to do), but at the end of the day... not all that is green can be black or white. Or, in this case, make recyclable as easily in one county, or even town, as another (witness ours, where a great home kerbside/public space skip, segregated waste collection combo is being scrapped in favour of a single green wheelie that sends all your waste in a black plastic bag to a remote MRF to, one fears, produce box-ticking but possibly less than industry-desired recyclate. Hardly great for my kids' futures, and hence a real enviROI eyebrow-cranking target for me).

Far be it from me to 'defend' a brand that uses plastic, or indeed any other packaging, but I do tend to accept more than others that, in a modern, consumerist, growing population, time-poor, work-from-home separated, etc, etc, society, that some has to be inevitable, for logistics alone, and for the environment even, especially with protection issues. Hence I am more interested in and devote my time to uses, or rather resues, more than bans, though reductions in unnecessary areas are of course desirable.

And ecover, bless 'em, could hardly do more, though much of what they do get up to can get shared in a way that does bring them under perhaps more scrutiny than others. A higher standard and all that. But in a world where making things green often does add a cost penalty, and a cost penalty can lead to poorer competitiveness, especially on the shelves, so much of their CSR, from green-roofed factories to the actual contents of their products, does suggest going as an extra a mile (well, kilometer... they are based in Belgium I think) as is possible in a credit-crunchy era. Especially when I suspect all most now want, or are having to weigh up between pocket and planet, is whiter whites for the least money, rather than just the greenest ones.

But these things do need discussing, and debating, so I felt the urge to try at least to point out one area that was eyebrow cranked by one (the author), not answered by another (the ecover PR lady) but actually was in part addressed already(ecover and Junkk.com).

I won't repeat my reply (actually two now) as it's in the thread on the link, but I hope it shows a real attempt to see the merits of what can often two very polarised views - that of manufacturer and campaigner - and try to navigate to a positive compromise that can satisfy some (if not all), and lead to dialogues that can make for better future solutions.

Now, where is Tesco's number?

RE-miss?

Spot the missing word here.

Now, what could we turn this into?

Sorely missed

New funding scheme for food packaging innovation

'...a tender process is underway, whereby initiatives from the food manufacturing sector focusing on reusable and refillable packaging, new merchandising and dispensing systems or product reformulation will receive funding for up to 50 per cent of the project costs.'

I guess we must have slipped their mind, what with Junkk.com and RE:tie n' all.

Ah well, back to the pointless proposal pushing. You never know; they might get interested this time.