DISCUSSION
Brands take recycling and their businesses to the next level
Written by RetailWire Staff
Source: Nespresso
Going green can be beneficial for businesses and cost-effective for their customers. Retailers and consumer brands can draw inspiration from companies such as Nespresso, Brita and Amazon.com, which have developed innovative recycling programs aimed at making the world — and our environment — a better place.
Nespresso
Nespresso’s capsule recycling program makes it easy for customers to cut down on waste in three easy steps.
First, the customer collects used capsules in a Nespresso-approved recyclable bag. Second, they return the coffee capsules to Nespresso at designated collection points or via UPS with Nespresso’s mail back program. Back at the processing plant, Nespresso’s recycling partner separates the coffee from the aluminum capsules. The aluminum is melted down and recycled into other aluminum products while the coffee grounds are composted into high-quality soil.
Brita
Brita products already make for an eco-friendly alternative to plastic water bottles. Believe it or not, one Brita filter can replace 300 standard water bottles.
But when it comes to sustainability, Brita doesn’t stop there. Its recycling partner, TerraCycle, repurposes used filters, pitchers and bottles. Here’s how it works: after customers have collected at least five pounds of used Brita products to recycle, they are instructed to wrap them in a garbage liner or bag and pack into a shipping box. Then they can print out a free shipping label from the Brita website and mail the used goods back to Terracycle. The recycled products are incorporated into outdoor furniture, bike racks and park benches.
Amazon
Amazon has worked to make it easier for customers to trade in or dispose of unwanted electronics and accessories. If a device still works, customers can send it back to Amazon for a gift card. If the product is broken, customers can work with Amazon’s recycling partner, Re-Tek, to dispose of it.
On Re-Teck’s site, customers choose the device(s) they want to recycle from a drop-down menu. A UPS shipping label is then generated, which the customer can print out and attach to a mailing box. All that’s left is to drop off the package at the nearest UPS location, and Amazon takes it from there.
With something as simple as incorporating recycled packaging into your repertoire or forging recycling partnerships of your own, going green as a business has never been easier — or more important.