One of Australia’s largest online fashion retailers has announced it will start transitioning to delivery satchels made from 100 per cent post-consumer plastic waste.
In a social media post on Tuesday 26 May, THE ICONIC stated that it’s the first major Australian and New Zealand retailer to make the move to 100 per cent recycled plastic satchels.
“From today we’re transitioning to more sustainable satchels. This means your next order sent by THE ICONIC warehouse will be delivered in a satchel made of 100% post-consumer plastic waste – recycled plastic that has had a previous life and can be recycled again,” the company said in an online statement.
“Achieving 100% recycled content wasn’t easy in our usual black design, so we’ve made the switch to white! Bringing this project to life has been an incredible journey and involved many cross-functional teams.”
Since 2018, THE ICONIC has been a signatory of the Australian Packaging Covenant (APCO).
“A huge congratulations to APCO Member, THE ICONIC, for the launch of its new delivery satchels, made from 100% recycled plastic and fully recyclable via REDcycle bins in Coles and Woolworths supermarkets,” APCO said in a social media post on Tuesday.
“This is a significant commitment and is a perfect example of the work being undertaken across the industry to avoid the use of virgin plastics and create end markets for recycled materials.”
Via REDcycle, a Melbourne-based consulting and recycling organisation who has developed and implemented a recovery initiative for post-consumer soft plastic, THE ICONIC will minimise its environmental impact.
“It’s a bold move, but it’s a testament to our sustainability commitments. In the same way, because we are committed to avoiding unnecessary waste, our transition from our former black packaging to new white packaging will take a few months,” the company said in an online statement.
“This is a huge milestone for us on our journey towards meeting our 2022 Sustainable Packaging Targets.”
THE ICONIC set five sustainable packaging targets to meet by 2022, including 100 per cent of THE ICONIC’s shipping packaging made of recycled content and it private label paper and cardboard packaging will have on-package communication about their sustainability or recyclability.
THE ICONIC said that every item on its website, whether it’s an item of clothing, a pair of shoes or accessory – requires natural resources to produce it. For example, the energy used for manufacturing, water used to dye, or fuel for transportation.
When these products are in transit, or even at its warehouse, they are at risk of getting dusty, wet, or damaged.
“That’s why packaging plays an essential product-protection role in ensuring that your item arrives in pristine condition,” THE ICONIC states to customers on its website.
“The cost of not protecting these items can be more detrimental than if they weren’t packaged sufficiently.”
During THE ICONIC’s search for a more sustainable alternative, its Sustainability team and Packaging Working Group investigated multiple materials and even tested a home-compostable satchel.
“Despite being one of our best performers, most customers in Australia and New Zealand don’t have access to composting at home nor access to commercial compost services,” THE ICONIC stated.
“It means packaging would likely end up in landfill or in the soft plastics recycling stream, compromising its potential for recycling. That’s why we landed on our 100% recycled post-consumer plastic satchels.”
THE ICONIC stated its working on its packaging sustainability holistically, by developing a dedicated packaging strategy, reviewing over 80 per cent of the packaging it is directly responsible for, and developed THE ICONIC Supplier Sustainable Packaging Guidelines and Private Label Sustainable Packaging Requirements to “tackle our non-customer facing packaging strategy”.