Small steps, big change
“How can this decision serve a more sustainable future?”
That’s the question I try to ask each day in service of customers, users, colleagues, communities, and the business. So when it was time to reorder shopping bags at Macy’s, I initiated a collaboration to deliver a more sustainable, cost-effective bag program, and with it, a refresh of Macy’s brand identity.
Palette inspiration: bronze details on the 34th Street flagship store
Natural wood fixtures in small format stores
Supergraphics in the San Francisco tech office
Substrate considerations led us to reevaluate the brand palette, which had not been considered for many years. Reflecting the brand’s warm and inclusive tone and the practical expression in physical stores, we expanded the palette to include warm, rich colors. This made unbleached kraft paper a natural choice for the shopping bags.
Part of the paper inventory was replaced with a new reusable bag made of “ocean-bound” plastics collected seaside before salt water has a chance to diminish their suitability for recycling. (Shoutout to the partnership with OceanCycle, Bunzl and Macy’s Procurement team!)
The impact
The program reduced production of single-use poly bags by 12%, utilized higher recycled content, and saved $1.4M in expense. At launch Macy’s became the world’s largest user of ocean-bound plastics, supporting economies of global seaside communities and protecting oceans worldwide. Small steps, big change.