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they take a cue from the customer. “For some, that’s enough information,” he says. “Only about 30 percent of our customers are interested in hearing the whole story behind the goods.” While an intriguing anecdote can help move the merchandise, vendors and


shop owners agree that a deluge of information can sometimes sink rather than seal a sale. That’s especially true if shoppers have negative opinions about recycled and repurposed goods already. To avoid dampening sales, brands often take a restrained approach to touting their sustainable properties. “Some people are more hardcore and make their decisions based on


english RetReADs


whether the product is recycled but I think they’re in the minority,” English says, explaining why she let’s the product speak for itself. “For most, the fact that it’s recycled is a bonus.” At Europe 2 You, which uses beams from turn-of-the-century European


buildings to make reproductions of Old-World items like trivets, cheese and pizza boards, hangtags identify each item as recycled and note a circa date for the materials. The Atlanta-based company also provides additional information to retailers like the significance of the colorful stripes on the grain sacks it uses for totes, aprons and pillows. “The story is intriguing and makes your purchase special,” owner Stacy Borocz reasons. For those who might appreciate the story behind her products, Lindsay Jo


K. C. PeCK


Next, It’s a Wrap will add denim items made from used jeans. Through it’s Pants for the Planet promotion, the company will enlist shoppers to drop off their old jeans at It’s a Wrap retailers. Jay Gurewitsch, owner of Arcadia, a sustainable and fair trade gift store in New York, credits an avalanche of consumer marketing with educating the masses on this and other ethical product sectors. For example, he says Starbucks’ messaging about fair trade coffee provided him with a way to shine a ray of light on a widely unknown subject. “Customers are sophisticated now, but when I opened my store 11 years ago, no one really knew what fair trade meant,” he says. “So I used to say ‘like Starbucks’ and a little light bulb would go off in their heads.”


Curtailing the marketing bluster Even though shoppers at Gurewitsch’s store are typically more seasoned these days, he still avoids showering them with an overtly green message. “I don’t want shopping to be like medicine,” he says. “We don’t take a holier-than-thou approach. Some stores wrap themselves in a green banner. I want people to want the stuff first, and then find out how cool it is.” Once it’s clear that the aesthetics of the


goods have intrigued shoppers, Gurewitsch and his staff will offer a nugget of information about the products’ unique attributes. From there,


136 Winter 2012 n GREENRetailer


Holmes owner of MapleXO, also uses hangtags to explain that her jewelry and housewares line is made from skateboards. Each tag identifies the board the item came from, where it was sourced and includes the signature of the artisan who made it. “I believe that people these days more than ever are yearning for a connection to the things they buy. They want the story behind it and to know that it’s bigger than they are,” Holmes says. “On the other hand, the words ‘recycled’ and ‘handmade’ can have negative connotations because it makes people think it’s cheap or cheesy.” Consumers’ clouded perceptions of recycled or repurposed products might


be a holdover from the dawn of this market segment when goods were less refined, but Shaw of NYIGF says the items have matured as awareness has increased. “The product quality absolutely is improving,” she says. “It’s not just crafty items. We’re seeing better designed products—manufactured and industrial designed with contemporary styling, which we weren’t seeing before.”


Lifting the Haze


Even as gifts made from rescued materials become more popular, confusion still remains on what the terminology means. Here, a primer to help you


inform your customers:


Reclaimed—salvaged refuse or waste that is returned to a suitable condition for use


Repurposed—unwanted items that are used in new ways


Recycled—waste that is reprocessed and remanufactured


into more of the same material GREENRetailerMag.com gReen 3


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