Opening Lines
Ready, Set...Green!
t may not be easy, but you have to do it. You have to design personal care packaging to sustain a healthier environment.
Those of you already doing this need not read on, but I hope you will. Because I'm not going to make the arguments you're expecting. I'm not going to argue that overflowing landfills and greenhouse gas emissions and a disintegrating ozone layer are why you should create ecofriendly packages. If these realities haven't yet persuaded you, my words will surely fail as well. Having said that, I urge you to design responsibly for one reason: Your consumers expect it.
They flatten cereal boxes in their homes and carry them to the recycling bin. They shop for greeting cards made of 100% recycled paper. And they listen when President George W. Bush says, "[In 2000], more than 3 million people in all 50 states and two U.S. territories committed to reduce, reuse, and recycle more and to buy recycled products."
Reduce, reuse, recycle. It was a catchphrase long before Bush said it last year, in a proclamation naming November 15, 2001, America Recycles Day. Call it a plea for the environment, call it the smart way to go. I won't argue with either. But I'll also call it something else.
It's a trend.
Your consumers question whether or not that deodorant stick needs a secondary package. They may even think twice about purchasing a gift set if the setup box isn't a keepsake.
Odds are that companies designing with such concerns in mind will attract today's environmentally conscious consumer. Take Estée Lauder's Aveda (Minneapolis), for instance. The Estée Lauder company is well known for its environmental leadership. So, it's no surprise that trend-savvy shoppers are flocking to Aveda retail stores around the globe.
Aveda's plant-derived wellness products are offered in sensible packaging for the sensible shopper. "The company has incorporated reduce, reuse, and recycle initiatives into its manufacturing processes," according to the Web site http://www.aveda.com. Reducing product packaging and printing collateral on recycled paper using soy inks are among Aveda's design practices.
Perhaps you're thinking that corporate giants like Aveda have cornered the market on "green" design. I'm confident that isn't so. A number of other companies big and small are doing what they can to save the world, and there's room for more to try. What's needed are designers who can see ways of defining companies as environmentally friendly in their own right.
Need some ideas? You might consider consulting Thinking Green: Packaging Prototypes 3, by Edward Denison and Guang Yu Ren (RotoVision, November 2001). The book features designs that have reduced environmental impact. Packages of such companies as Aveda, The Body Shop, and Yves Rocher are profiled. Check out http://www.rotovision.com for a synopsis.
This industry is nothing if not the best at keeping abreast of trends. So get started if you haven't already, because a cleaner environment never goes out of style. That is, of course, unless we allow it to.
Lori Bryan
Editor