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As shopping habits become more and more important, consumers not only prefer environmentally friendly products, but also brands that are sustainable in all aspects of their operations.
In the United States alone, there are basically 6 million express deliveries every day. The packaging and delivery methods of these products have a great impact on the earth's environment and are also of concern to consumers. Amazon has also begun to implement an environmentally friendly packaging plan.
How can packaging and logistics meet environmental standards? We found eight Shopify independent station sellers' environmentally friendly product packaging and logistics solutions. We have compiled the following eight suggestions for your reference.
- Buy carbon offsets to offset your carbon emissions
- Use sustainable packaging
- Provide empty packaging recycling program
- Reclaim packaging on behalf of suppliers and cancel products that are inconvenient to transport
- Ships from local stores and does not accept returns
- Reduce product packaging size
- Packaging using biodegradable materials
TAMGA Designs: Purchase carbon offsets to offset carbon emissions TAMGA Designs Brand Story When Eric and Yana Dales, founders of TAMGA clothing design company, were doing humanitarian relief work in Bangladesh, they saw that fast fashion companies were using non-recyclable raw materials and equipment, which caused the loss of environmental and social resources. Seeing this, they decided to set up an environmentally friendly clothing company.
This is how TAMGA Designs came about, a brand that combines fashion, humanism and environmental awareness, and can be said to be the origin of the sustainable development movement initiated by the Dales in the fast fashion circle. At the beginning, the goal of the enterprise was not to accelerate the disappearance of ancient Indonesian forests. They found a factory that used sustainably grown eucalyptus and beech trees, as well as low-pollution dyes. As the business grows, logistics and transportation consume resources, and TAMGA's goal has gradually changed to become a carbon-neutral company. At the end of each month, the Dales couple will record the mileage and weight of the goods during transportation, calculate the economic cost of the carbon emissions generated, and purchase carbon offsets to offset these emissions. TAMGA has shared the process and hopes that other companies can follow suit. The packaging used by TAMGA clothing design company is 100% biodegradable. Its founder Eric believes that the time and economic cost spent on researching this environmentally friendly material is worth it. Small businesses should not think that this will damage their profits. In the long run, this will have a positive impact on their net profits. Because today's consumers value environmental protection, this product packaging can leave a good impression on consumers and help build brand loyalty.
Note: Carbon neutrality means that people calculate their carbon dioxide emissions and the economic cost of offsetting them, and then pay special companies or institutions to offset the corresponding amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere through tree planting or other environmental protection projects, so as to achieve environmental protection. For example, "Earth Hour" is a similar action.
Zero Waste Cartel: Bulk Shipping
Zero Waste Cartel Brand Story When three friends, Harriet Simonis, David Fragomeni and Scott Ferguson, went surfing in Bali, they were disappointed to find that the sea was full of disposable plastics and abandoned fishing nets. Since then, they have been inspired to practice a zero-waste lifestyle (that is, almost no garbage and waste of resources). Then, after searching for environmentally friendly products without plastic packaging on the Internet, they were sad to find that most products on the market use plastic packaging. So the three decided to change this situation and co-founded Zero Waste Cartel, which provides reusable or biodegradable environmentally friendly product packaging, including bath products, body care products and kitchen supplies. (Pictured are the three founders of the Zero Waste Cartel brand) When they decided to use non-plastic packaging, they encountered a series of challenges. For example, it was difficult to find a factory that could truly provide packaging made of biodegradable materials. Finally, they found a suitable cooperative factory in the United States, their main sales location, which further shortened the logistics time and distance and reduced the impact on the environment.
(Pictured is a pack of 10 bamboo toothbrushes from Zero Waste Cartel) Harriet, one of the founders of Zero Waste Cartel, believes that bulk shipments are more valuable to customers and better for the environment. Zero Waste Cartel only sells bamboo toothbrushes in packs of 10, encouraging consumers to stock up or group order, which is a more environmentally friendly way of shipping.
Rothy's: Using sustainable packaging
In 2016, Roth Martin and Stephen Hawthy invented women's shoes made from recycled plastic bottles. Their styles are beautifully designed, durable, and machine washable, and they have since established the brand Rothy's . Their products are both fashionable and environmentally friendly, and have even captured the hearts of princesses and supermodels.
In addition, the brand also produces 3D knitted uppers, which do not waste 30%-40% of the material like traditional cutting methods. Like TAMGA Designs, Rothy's funds ecosystem services and forest protection projects to offset the carbon emissions caused by the production and transportation of products. Rothy's packaging also reduces waste. Its shoe boxes are made from second-hand recycled materials and are strong enough to be shipped individually and can be recycled . (The picture shows Rothy's biodegradable shoe box) Rothy's brand adopts new ideas and concepts from products to packaging, which is very different from the traditional manufacturing method of women's shoes. And in the process of consumers purchasing products, it minimizes resource waste as much as possible.
Meow Meow Tweet: Offers empty box packaging recycling program
Meow Meow Tweet Brand Story Meow Meow Tweet is a natural skincare brand that provides natural cold-pressed, unrefined plant essential oils and essences. Its founders are a vegetarian couple who love animals, so you can see that the product packaging not only has cute animal illustrations, but can also be recycled sustainably. (Pictured is Meow Meow Tweet brand paper packaging)
The brand's packaging uses biodegradable materials and paper tape. The brand's solid products, such as deodorants, soaps and lip balms, are packaged in biodegradable paper. Liquid products, such as facial cleansers, toners and sunscreens, are packaged in glass or aluminum bottles. When plastic pumps are used, they are recycled by TerraCycle . (The picture shows the packaging of Meow Meow Tweet brand sunscreen) The two main principles of the Meow Meow Tweet brand are reusability and recyclability. Through Shopify's plug-in Returnly, the brand allows consumers to disinfect and send empty packaging back to the seller to reuse the packaging, changing the impact of long-term use of disposable packaging. Wild Minimalist: Recycling packaging on behalf of suppliers and cancelling products that are inconvenient to ship
Wild Minimalist Brand Story In 2017, the Camerons founded Wild Minimalist, which provides reusable packaging products to replace disposable plastics, such as bamboo tableware, reusable coffee cups, tote bags, wooden cleaning brushes that can replace sponges, etc., to replace disposable products used in people's daily lives. However, US regulations require imported goods to be wrapped in plastic, but do not require whether these plastic packaging are recyclable. Therefore, the brand requires suppliers to ship in original packaging, and they will repackage to avoid unnecessary waste. (Pictured is Wild Minimalist's zero-waste products) In addition, they also adjusted some products to make them lighter for transportation and reduce carbon footprint. For example, some of its glass products are very popular, but the delivery of glass products requires foam packaging, so they cancelled the online sales of glass products. Unwrapped Life: Ships from local stores and does not accept returns
Unwrapped LifeBrand Story
Beauty and cosmetics brands have a hard time striking a balance between product sustainability and effectiveness. Unwrapped Life has done just that. Their shampoos and conditioners are wrapped in biodegradable paper, which creates almost no waste. They also ensure that no product is affected by the packaging before the end of its life cycle. (Pictured is Unwrapped Life's shampoo and conditioner set) The zero-waste environmental protection concept also permeates other aspects of Unwrapped Life's operations. For example, their entire packaging process is paperless, and orders are completed through mobile phones and tablets, without the need for printed packing slips. The office uses reusable water dispensers and biodegradable coffee filters, and employees fully accept this approach. (The picture shows Unwrapped Life's biodegradable paper packaging)
The brand is currently looking for a logistics center that fully complies with the principle of no waste and no plastic packaging. In addition to the online store, Unwrapped Life has distributors in North America and ships from local stores to reduce carbon footprint and get to customers as quickly as possible. In addition, the company's return policy is also very special. They do not accept consumer returns. In fact, this move is to hope that people can "think twice before buying" to avoid unnecessary waste. Holy Lamb Organics: Reducing product packaging size
Holy Lamb Organics Brand Story Holy Lamb Organics’ bedding and mattresses have attracted a loyal following and rave reviews, thanks to its founder’s zero-waste philosophy. Its product models are carefully designed to make the most efficient use of every cut, with any excess used elsewhere. The same is true of the company's wool suppliers, who use cardboard rolls and kraft paper for packaging, and waste materials can be sent back to the supplier for recycling. When it comes to logistics and packaging, the Holy Lamb Organics team has a knack for putting products into packaging. They don’t add extra materials and vacuum seal the mattresses for shipping. For other shipping and logistics accessories that are not under their control, they also make up for it by purchasing carbon offsets. (The picture shows the packaging of Holy Lamb Organics) Holy Lamb Organics' next step is to find logistics partners in major receiving locations that can shorten delivery time and distance, and also save costs from cooperating wholesalers.
Hero Packaging: Using biodegradable packaging
Hero Packaging Brand Story In the above examples, we can see that most of the packaging used by sellers is biodegradable. In view of the increasing concern of many sellers, the last one is Hero Packaging, a supplier dedicated to producing 100% biodegradable packaging. The sellers started out as a fashion brand when they realized how much plastic waste was created by clothing packaging. So they decided to make their own packaging. After some research, they found that they could use biodegradable packaging instead of plastic packaging. The biodegradable material they found was composed of 30%-40% corn starch and cassava root, and the rest was made of polybutylene terephthalate. [Note: Polybutylene terephthalate, or PBT, is a biodegradable thermoplastic polyester widely used in the transportation industry. ]
Now, the company has achieved local success in Australia and is also showing a trend in North America. In order to meet new demands, they have begun to cooperate with logistics centers in the United States. The brand representative said that their goal for the current fiscal year is to further reduce the carbon footprint by reducing the distance from the warehouse to the customer.
Find the right solution for your business
Although the eight sellers above sell different products in different categories, their common starting point is to protect the environment. With countless marine creatures killed and injured by domestic garbage, and the Amazon rainforest, the lungs of the earth, being devastated by fire, it is urgent to protect the earth's environment.
For sellers, providing environmentally friendly packaging can share value with consumers and attract customers while reducing harm to the earth . If companies think long-term, they need to find creative and unconventional solutions to minimize the carbon footprint when distributing products.
Depending on the industry, geographic location and resources, the logistics solutions suitable for the business will also be different. I hope these seller cases can attract the attention of sellers and consumers and make them examine their daily behavior. The following is the carbon footprint calculation method prepared for everyone, go and check your own carbon footprint! Statement: When reprinting this article, the title and original text must not be modified, and the source and original link must be retained. |
