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Reuse of Packaging

Written by YOKO

Released January 2020

From the very beginning of creating YOKO we had an opportunity to consider the way we wanted the brand to grow.  Yes, we love well designed packaging and often collect it in a cupboard somewhere, but at some point this will be simply taking up space and will be thrown away.

 

This notion from a consumer point of view made us conscious about using packaging that could be reused.

 

Inevitably there will be times when products are recycled as they come to the end of their natural cycle.  However, a sheet of paper decomposing naturally into compost is substantially different to a sheet of plastic sitting in a mound of rubbish never to degrade.  We are at an essential point in time where a consciousness to packaging is of paramount importance.

 

We appreciate the tactile nature of packaging, the excited feeling of its touch and the experience of opening to reveal the latest purchase.  We can positively embed this experience into memory without the need for consumerist guilt.  If products have the capacity to last, be reused or recycled then we positively embraced this.

 

Our approach is to make sure that we protect our products, deliver in timeless design, and to reduce the need for superfluous packaging.  We are always open to bettering ourselves, but for now we are at a point that we are proud of.

 

Take our products for example.  The latest Essential Gift Set comes in a bespoke grey presentation box.  At some point in its lifetime it can be recycled.  But we revel in the notion that this box can be reused over and over again, if not for your dog products, then some paperwork, or stationary.  I have one sat on my desk with business cards in and I still get a good feeling opening the box – it brings me right back to the first time I opened the product.

 

The dehydrated biscuits are wrapped by hand in a brown paper bag.  This is nothing special, but an off the shelf everyday item, merely presented in a considered way.  The bag can be reused over and over to keep treats in, or simply other household items.  We often reuse the bag for putting fruit in or offcuts of bread.  Or it can simply be put on a compost heap to decompose.  This cycle of impermanence is one to remember.  A Japanese mentality that symbolises the cycle of all things.  The bag will decompose and go back into the land.  The nutrients will allow new things to grow and the cycle of new life will begin again.

 

Our fascination with timeless classic design helped us to develop the second treat tin, a 100ml brass tin with lid; a product to last.  If looked after, this tin will last a lifetime.  The scratches or dents that build up over time will only add to its story.

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