New normals
It seems like a lifetime ago when the covid crisis changed the world as we know it, and thankfully life seems to be returning to normal, albeit a new normal…
Our Plastic Cutback initiative which launched during the onset of the pandemic set out to challenge the status quo of how ‘normalised’ polybags had become in the packaging of fashion around the world… So we’re trying to create a “closed-loop”. From now on, when you buy The North Face from Surfdome or Webtogs, we’re making a promise: no polybag will end up in landfill as a result of your purchase. The product you receive won’t be wrapped in a polybag, which in turn won’t end up leaking into the environment, as so many of these bags do. We’re taking the plastic packaging literally out of your hands.
Patagonia support
Patagonia, a brand synonymous with pushing and championing sustainable business models way ahead of the rest of their peers, have supported this project from the beginning and continue to do so.
This means that if you want plastic-free Patagonia items, Webtogs is the place to visit.
Suggest solution
This is an interim solution, ahead of all our products being received without a polybag, where we remove the polybag ahead of shipping the item to our customers and recycle the polybag.
This means that the polybag is kept in a closed-loop system, rather than being released into landfill which is the case for ~90% of polybags.
Future outlook
Given the fact that plastics will pollute more than coal in the US by 2030, the traditional plastic polybag needs to be re-evaluated if we are to reduce our emissions in line with 1.5C and contribute to a holistically healthy planet earth.
Moving forward, we will continue to listen to the scientists and base our sustainability policies around robust climate and planetary frameworks in the most holistic way possible. Likewise, we will always listen to our customers who have responded in an extremely supportive way to the Plastic Cutback initiative.
The result of this approach has been that we are beginning to influence other retailers and policy, which is how real change and normalisation of a ‘no polybag’ policy can scale.
