Whole Foods Market
Project: Better Bag Program — Earth Month Rollout Campaign
Before there was Singer Sustainability, Deb Singer was at the forefront of a huge shift in consumer behavior when she developed and launched WFM’s Better Bag and helped inspire a revolution.
Leading the charge for the chain to ban plastic shopping bags in 2007, Deb simultaneously launched Whole Foods’ recycled PET “Better Bag,” the first reusable bag made from used plastic bottles, and was involved in all aspects of product development, marketing, program design, testing and national rollout.
Marketed with the tagline: “I used to be a plastic bottle,” the Better Bag was successfully tested in late 2007 in Whole Foods’ Toronto and Austin locations. WFM then committed to national rollout of the bags as of Earth Day, April 22, 2008. Deb worked closely with the Global marketing team at Whole Foods throughout this process, launching the program as part of an integrated campaign. In-store Earth Month brochures announced the Bag’s launch, explained its impact, and educated customers about related zero waste and eco-friendly products for every room in the home.
The result:
WFM’s 2008 Earth Month campaign marked the official rollout of The Better Bag across the entire chain and disposable plastic grocery bags were eliminated at the company’s more than 270 stores in the US, Canada and UK. Between Earth Month and the end of that year, The Better Bag program kept an estimated 100 million disposable plastic bags off the planet.
Then, as now, Whole Foods’ commitment to great product, properly merchandised, is inspiring shoppers to change behavior – to bring their own bags, every time they shop. Walk into a Whole Foods Market today and you’ll see a wide array of reusable bags – with a range of price points, design and functionality. Building on the foundation Deb established for WFM with the Better Bag, the company’s current reusable bag programs include working with carefully selected sustainable manufacturing and fair trade partners and ensuring a low price point for maximum adoptability and value.
Recognizing that reusable bags are not a one-size-fits-all solution and must be responsive to consumers’ needs, which vary across demographics, psychographics, geography and lifestyle, the menu of bags for Whole Foods includes produce and bulk bags, cooler and insulated bags, eco chic and jute bags, and a shopper trolley. The chain has committed to ensuring that every shopper can find the right bag to meet their needs. In most Whole Foods, the bags are displayed prominently, right in the front of the store, so shoppers can’t miss them. Commitment to sustainability and the right product is creating a real change in customer behavior, and an important positive impact for our planet.