I recently presented at Green Biz’s second annual Greener by Design Conference in San Francisco. One of the major discussion topics was the impact of green innovation on product design and packaging. There were a lot of interesting perspectives shared from speakers like Adam Lowry at Method, and companies such as Wal-Mart, Microsoft, and Terracycle.
I had the pleasure of presenting on the green aspects of the Voodoo Envy 133 packaging. You may have read snippets in press coverage from Reuters, TreeHugger.com and Triplepundit.com. If you didn’t, I think it’s worth sharing and opening a discussion on.
We never intended the Voodoo Envy 133 packaging to “scream “green.” We wanted it to compliment the product and brand experience, while still addressing the three Rs - reduce, reuse, and recycle – in a subtle yet relevant way.
First, we tried hard to reduce the size of the box and eliminate any throw away materials that weren’t needed. For example, instead of coating the system in protective plastic sheets and including a cleaning cloth, we opted for shipping the unit in a micro-fiber sleeve. The sleeve protected the unit during shipping and served double duty as a cleaning cloth once unpackaged.
We also wanted the package to have some long-term usefulness. I collect a lot of really nice packaging for inspiration, but most of it ends up doing nothing more than collecting dust and taking up a ton of space in my garage. We wanted the Voodoo Envy 133 box to look good enough to keep and be functional enough to put to use. To that end, the box has a classic rectangular form, neutral colors and a subtle embossed Voodoo logo in the corner. This simple aesthetic, intentionally void of loud images, marketing materials or retail info, allows it to fit naturally into any setting. We also constructed the box so the inner trays can be removed, making it perfect for storing small collectibles or family photos and heirlooms.
Even though recycling is the lesser of the 3R’s and definitely not as important to us as the first two in this case, we made the packaging out of 100 percent recyclable materials for those who must discard.
So there you have it – all three Rs in a sweet little package. What say ye? Are any of you re-using the box? Any good examples? Suggestions? Give me a shout over at the forums.
