Coke's eco-friendly merchandise wins coveted licensing award
Posted June 18, 2008
The Coca-Cola Company recently was named "Best Corporate Brand License of the Year" by the international Licensing Industry Merchandisers' Association (LIMA) for innovative merchandise made from "reclaimed, recycled and repurposed" materials.
In 2006, TCCC set out to develop a line of licensed products to demonstrate our commitment to environmental stewardship by converting waste that would normally end up in a landfill into an eye-catching array of apparel and fashion accessories. The program aims to change consumers' perception of packaging from waste to value and drive awareness on the importance of recycling.
"We have literally turned trash into treasure," said Cindy Birdsong, vice president, Worldwide Licensing and Retail Operations. "We are diverting items that would normally be waste and end up in a landfill and using them to make products consumers can enjoy for many years."
The Worldwide Licensing and Retail Operations team designed, commercialized and marketed a product range that includes tote bags made from reclaimed Coke billboards, coin purses made from misprinted bottle labels, bracelets and rings made from aluminum cans and pull tabs, necklaces and earrings made from previously enjoyed glass Coke bottles, and t-shirts, hats and loungewear made from recycled PET (rPET) bottles.
"The vision was to develop a line of environmentally friendly products, ones that inspire consumers to see normally discarded objects as new, beautiful, usable everyday things," said Kelli Sogar, commercialization manager. "Partnering with more than six visionary companies allowed Coke's global scale to truly impact upcycling in a meaningful,
holistic way."
The program, which also was named a finalist in LIMA's "Overall Best Licensed Program of the Year" category alongside Andy Warhol, ESPN and High School Musical 2, launched in 2007 in the United States at Coca-Cola stores (including the new World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta) and online at Coca-ColaStore.com.
The rPET line debuted at mainstream retailers such as Fred Segal Melrose and Santa Monica and was featured earlier this year as part of Wal-Mart's Earth Month campaign. Meanwhile, the repurposed and reclaimed merchandise lines are available in Uncommon Goods stores, art galleries, boutiques and specialty stores across the U.S.
Trash to Treasure
Hang tags and POS materials tell the story of how the reclaimed and repurposed products were made, and two-sided labels on the rPET items share the "bottle bio" of a package's lifecycle and reveal how many bottles were used to produce the garment.
"It is important to educate consumers about the difference they are making in the world by choosing to buy products made from reclaimed materials," said Danielle Jarlock, global strategy manager. "We are taking traditional categories of merchandising to a new level by inspiring consumers to think about trash or debris in a new way and make an impact on the environment through our brands."
The Worldwide Licensing and Retail Operations group worked with the Environment and Water Resources team to connect manufacturing plants and suppliers who have excess waste with licensees around the world who make Coke-branded products.
Every product is validated and tested to ensure compliance with TCCC's Supplier Guiding Principles. For example, skilled artisans in Peru turn misprinted bottle labels into coin purses under International Fair Trade Practice, and a Brazilian craft cooperative creates handbags using 100% recycled aluminum can pull tabs.
In 2007, the initial launch year, the merchandise generated close to $500,000 in retail sales. Birdsong said the team is currently expanding the line to Canada, Mexico and parts of Asia
and Europe.
"Before this program, there were not many commercially viable ways to turn recycled PET into marketable merchandise," Birdsong said. "We've come a long way during the past few years in terms of elevating the quality and design of these items, and our focus on innovation continues."