In grocery stores around the world—including Krogers in the United States, Carrefour locations in France, Tesco stores in the United Kingdom, Aeons in Japan, and Loblaws in Canada—shoppers may soon find dedicated corners offering a unique value proposition. These corners will house Loop stations, the name used to refer to a package recycling and reuse innovation by a company called TerraCycle.

At these Loop stations, consumers will be able to return cartons and containers that previously held food and consumer goods items that they have bought and consumed. When they purchase the products, such as ice cream, deodorant, or detergent, they receive them in a metal container. Rather than throwing the packaging in the garbage when they are done, they bring it back to the store. The container itself gets cleaned and processed for reuse; the consumer grabs a new package from the shelf. The system requires a deposit, to encourage consumers to return the metal containers, but once they return the packaging, that deposit would be refunded, or simply rolled over to their next purchase. In some ways, it is a little like an old-fashioned milk delivery model, just in stores instead of at people’s doorsteps.

To encourage consumers to shift their behaviors and embrace the reusable model, Loop and the partnering retail stores are designing the Loop corners carefully. The corners will be distinct from the rest of the store, signaling a novel retail experience. The open designs aim to prompt people to pick up the containers, which themselves are designed to be aesthetically and intuitively appealing. Most stores will likely have an employee on hand, to answer questions and explain the process. Furthermore, though the products will feature their parent brand, such as Haagen-Dazs and 7th Generation, the packaging and displays also will clearly label the items as related to Loop.

Another in-store design consideration involves the logistics for receiving used containers. One proposed design relies on a smart bin, which can automatically scan returned items and refund deposits automatically. The other instead uses a less technology-oriented, passive bin, such that employees would collect and scan the containers at regular intervals and refund deposits only later. Although not currently available, in the future, TerraCycle hopes that centralized operations would allow a shopper to scoop up a carton of ice cream at one grocery store, such as while out on a bike ride, then return it to another store, perhaps the one near their house.

These novel experiences and operations will require buy-in from various actors, but TerraCycle is confident it can achieve it. Already the company has partnered with or received investments from Kroger and Proctor & Gamble, meaning that it has both manufacturing and retail connections. The key remaining question is whether it can get consumers, who likely do not remember milk delivery but might embrace the sustainability promise of reusable containers, to accept the new retail experience.

Discussion Questions:

1. Will customers be willing to pay deposits, buy products in reusable containers, and return them for reuse?
2. How are retailers planning to create shopping experiences around these products?

Source: Katie Deighton, “Retailers Design the In-Store Experience for Reusable Packaging,” The Wall Street Journal, August 17, 2020