Waitrose has answered people’s calls for plastic- and packaging-free shopping aisles. Its new scheme, which just launched in Oxford, nixes plastic and encourages people to bring their own containers, tapping into shoppers' desire to consume more consciously.We explore the insights behind this and how it taps into peoples eco-conscious desires.
Waitrose has launched a packaging-free scheme whereby customers bring their own containers to refill on 30 everyday essentials like pasta, grains, lentils, rice, wine, beer, and cleaning products. It is being trialled this week in Oxford with a further choice of 160 loose fruits and vegetables. Waitrose has also introduced a ‘borrow a box’ scheme; customers pay a £5 deposit which is refundable when the container is returned. “This test has the potential to shape how people might shop with us in the future so it will be fascinating to see which concepts our customers have an appetite for,” says Tor Harris, Waitrose's Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, Health, and Agriculture.
People have been demanding packaging and plastic-free goods that reflect their growing eco-conscious sentiments. Big brand names, like Waitrose and Morrisons, turning these demands into positive action will set a precedent for other major supermarkets to follow. It’s bound to be successful given that 91% of UK shoppers want to see an entirely plastic-free shopping aisle. While the UK produced 2.26 million tonnes of plastic waste in 2017, there’s a hunger for companies and brands to help people consume more responsibly, already demonstrated by the likes of New York’s Package Free Shop, Charlotte’s Cupboard in the UK, and Dutch store Ekoplaza’s plastic-free aisle.
The UK’s plastic pact aims to drastically reduce plastic waste by 2025 – and with major supermarkets like Aldi, Asda and Marks & Spencers already signed up – the incentive looks promising. But although 92% of Britons say minimising human impact on the environment is important, a 2018 YouGov survey shows that only a third of them are likely to make future lifestyle changes to protect the environment. So the challenge will be in how to introduce conscious plastic consumption without impacting people's lifestyles. With this in mind, Waitrose does well to offer seamless convenience.
Sophie Robinson is a Junior Behavioural Analyst at Canvas8. She has a degree in Social Anthropology from the University of Manchester and always tries to deconstruct stereotypes of normality. She loves delving into both the niche and mass of culture and when she’s not watching a short film she’s trying her hand at screenwriting.
