Reposit, in partnership with City to Sea, Marks & Spencer and Ecover, have today announced the launch of a “game changing” reuse project. The new project will demonstrate a commercially, operationally and environmentally scalable reuse platform to help accelerate the transition from single-use packaging to reuse. The project is supported by UK Research & Innovation’s (UKRI) Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Fund.
The new buy anywhere, return anywhere, full reuse platform works across brands, categories and retailers and will include testing prefilled products in returnable packaging on a commercial scale. The system has been produced by Reposit and is backed by behaviour change insight and research from campaigners and consultants at City to Sea. The project aims to scale, with approximately 100 products across various product categories on sale in 200 stores in leased standardised reusable containers that the consumer can return to stores or via free home collection.
This new system is hailed as a “game-changing” moment in our efforts to tackle single-use packaging. M&S have already piloted the system in 6 stores with 8 homecare products with the rate of sale and return rates exceeding targets. In some cases, sales of products in pre-filled returnable packaging have exceeded that of the single-use equivalent product. The scheme will be rolled to Ecover and Beauty Kitchen products sold through a range of high-street and online retailers.
The consortium is calling for additional brands and retailers interested in being part of the project to register their interest by October 30th 2023 to ensure all launches are in market by June 30th 2024.
Stuart Chidley, founder and director of Reposit, said: “A transition to reuse requires stakeholder collaboration and a prioritisation of actionable innovation that removes the barriers to creating a commercially, operationally and environmentally scalable reuse platform. We are calling on brands and retailers to get involved now so that we can collectively make the progress that consumers and the planet demand”
Supermarkets alone are estimated to use around 114 billion pieces yearly. The initiative is crucial in providing customers with alternatives to single-use plastic, and for brands and retailers to providing a circular packaging solution which will help to meet the requirements of Extended Producer Responsibility regulation (EPR) in the coming years.
This project aims to demonstrate that the barriers to consumers, brands and retailers to mainstreaming reuse models can be removed with scale and appropriate behaviour change support. Collaboration between brands and retailers is key to be able to scale up reuse solutions and help them avoid the growing financial and environmental impact of excess packaging. City to Sea’s research shows latent consumer demand, and behaviour change is necessary to reduce plastic waste. Their recent survey demonstrated that 69% of respondents indicated they are likely or very likely to try products in returnable packaging if they are available where they shop.
Jane Martin, Head of Development at City to Sea, said, “This is a game-changing moment in our collective battle against plastic pollution from packaging. Today we’re launching with our friends at Reposit, M&S, and Ecover a buy anywhere, return anywhere full reuse system cross brands and retailers. This means that customers will be able to easily and accessibly pick up their favourite products in packaging that has already been refilled safe in the knowledge that it will be used again and again driving a circular economy.”
Lucinda Langton – Head of Sustainability, M&S Food – Marks & Spencer said: “Our customers are always pushing us to lead on issues they care about including reducing single-use plastic. The M&S Refilled Pilot has had a strong presence from customers since launch last year, and we’re excited to join this UKRI-backed partnership to expand this reuse option further.”
Ecover said: “Sustainability is in our DNA. Ecover was founded with a clear mission to fight pollution and lead a clean world revolution. We have been offering our wonderful customers refills since 1993, when we began our “Refill not Landfill” campaign. We are so proud of be part of this team to accelerate the industry towards a scalable, mainstream system of reuse.”
