Your investment journey in Canada starts with Immediate Core

Fourteen years ago, the ground-breaking “I Am Not A Plastic Bag” campaign* (first launched in Sainsbury’s stores) raised awareness of the global issue of single-use plastic bags. Since then, use of single-use plastic bags has reduced dramatically, with sales falling 95% in the main supermarkets between 2015 and 2020, after the UK government introduced legislation to address the issue. Whilst this is fantastic progress, nearly half a billion single-use plastic bags were still sold between 2020 and 2021 according to recent government data [1].

Anya Hindmarch, in collaboration with supermarkets UK-wide, is launching a new initiative designed to inspire further change in consumer behaviour, providing a new shopping bag solution and encouraging a greater reuse mindset. The ambition being to create a reusable shopping bag that tackles a range of sustainability challenges in combination:

In an industry first, the project is defined by Eco not Ego, with Sainsbury’s and Waitrose coming together and collaborating with Anya Hindmarch and Solent Group to create a new generation shopping bag.

  • The project, open to all supermarkets globally, will allow each partner to customise their own exclusive version of The Universal Bag in keeping with their own brand.
  • Sainsbury’s and Waitrose, the pioneering partners in this project, are the first supermarkets to launch their own exclusive edition of The Universal Bag. The Sainsbury’s edition will launch on 2nd December 2021 across 334 stores (RRP £10), with the Waitrose edition available on 26th January 2022 in over 90 stores initially (RRP £10).
  • The bag is made from 100% recycled plastic and each step and material used in making the bag has been fully certified under the Global Recycling Scheme (GRS), making this a truly 100% recycled product.
  • Each Universal Bag is guaranteed to last ten years having been extensively tested for durability.
  • The Universal Bag features an innovative, convenient freepost returns pouch built into a pocket inside the bag. You simply turn the bag into its built-in pocket which acts as a pre addressed envelope, and then post it through a letter box. It is then 100% recycled locally.
  • In addition to being practical and durable, the Universal Bag is also designed to be desirable. By creating a bag that customers feel excited to be seen with and are motivated to take care of, reuse is expected to increase, tackling one of the major issues still surrounding the shopping bag.
  • In line with the collaborative philosophy of this project, Anya Hindmarch and its production partner Solent Group, have committed to share the learnings from this project with all global retailers on request, with the ambition to advance progress in the use, reuse and recycling of shopping bags around the world.

Anya Hindmarch, Founder and Creative Director commented: “Everyone needs a bag to move things around. The Universal Bag is designed to offer an alternative solution that saves plastic from landfill, is simple to recycle 100%, is guaranteed for 10 years, and is hopefully special enough to inspire people to use it.
When you throw something away, there is no “away”. By collaborating on this project supermarkets are showing their continued commitment to reducing the amount of plastic on our planet.”

Mark Given, Chief Marketing Officer, Sainsbury’s commented: “We are serious about reducing plastic and we know it’s an issue our customers and colleagues are passionate about too. It’s why we set an ambitious target to reduce our use of plastic packaging by 50% by 2025 and committed to making it easier for our customers to recycle while offering them more reusable options when they shop with us. It’s for this reason that fourteen years after we first partnered with Anya Hindmarch on the ground-breaking ‘I Am Not A Plastic Bag’ we’re delighted to join forces with her again on a brilliant new initiative, The Universal Bag. Reducing plastic and tackling the climate crisis can’t be solved in isolation, it requires collaboration and we’re proud to represent that message and inspire change as part of Anya’s new campaign.”

James Bailey, Executive Director, Waitrose commented: “We recently took the decision to remove our bags for life as our research showed that they were increasingly being treated as a single use item, and this is part of our commitment to only use plastic where it can be recycled, reused or home composted by 2023. Plastic will continue to have its uses but we must not create any more of it unnecessarily. Instead, we must repurpose, reuse and make existing plastic materials circular – this is why we’re excited to be an early adopter of Anya Hindmarch’s new Universal Bag as it is a great example of circularity at work.”

Ashley Symonds, CEO Solent commented: 
“Both Anya and Solent have a shared heritage in creating and producing market disrupting initiatives that help customers to lead healthier and more sustainable lives. We are delighted to have partnered with Anya and her team on the Universal Bag which further supports the reduction and need for single use plastics. The Universal Bag is a beautiful and high performing product that encourages customers to buy into reusability and sustainability; it’s not a bag you’d ever feel comfortable throwing in the bin. Given the durability of the bag, ideally, it will never need to be recycled but, if it does, we have made it easy for the customer to get it back into the recycling stream – a process that has never been done before. The Universal Bag is a true market first and another step change in our mission to end single use plastic bag usage once and for all.”

The bag is available in the below Sainsbury’s stores from 2nd December:

Alperton
Alphington Rd
Alton
Altrincham
Amblecote
Apsley Mills
Archer Rd
Arnold
Ashton Moss
Badger Farm
Bagshot Rd
Balham
Bamber Bridge
Banbury
Barnstaple
Barnwood
Bath
Beaconsfield
Beckton
Beeston
Berryden Rd
Bicester
Biggleswade
Bishop Auckland
Bishops Stortford
Blackhall
Blackheath
Blackpole
Blackpool
Bognor Regis
Bolton
Bradford
Braehead
Bramingham Park
Brentwood
Bretton
Bridgemead
Bridgend
Bridgwater
Brighton
Broadcut
Bromley
Brookwood
Burnley
Burpham
Bury St Edmunds
Bybrook
Calcot
Cameron Toll
Canley
Cannock
Canterbury
Carlisle
Castle Boulevard
Castle Court
Castle Vale
Castlepoint
Chaddesden
Chafford Hundred
Chapelford
Charlton Riverside
Cheadle
Chester
Chesterfield
Chichester
Chippenham
Chiswick
Christchurch
Clapham Common
Clifton Down
Cobham
Coreys Mill
Cramlington
Crayford
Crystal Peaks
Cwmbran
Darlington
Darnley
Dartford
Deal
Denton
Dewsbury
Didcot
Dome Roundabout
Dulwich
Dundee
Dunstable
Durham
East Filton
East Grinstead
East Kilbride
East Mayne
East Prescot Rd
Edenthorpe
Edgware
Edinburgh Longstone
Ellesmere Port
Ely
Emersons Grn
Enfield
Fairfield Park
Fallowfield
Farlington
Farnborough
Ferndown
Fosse Park
Frome
Fulham Wharf
Garthdee
Glen Rd
Gloucester Quays
Godalming
Grantham
Great Yarmouth
Grimsby
Hadleigh Rd
Halifax
Hamilton
Hampden Park
Hankridge Farm
Harlow
Harringay
Harrogate
Haverhill
Hayes
Haywards Heath
Hazel Grove
Heaton Newcastle
Heaton Park
Hedge End
Helston
Hendon
Hereford
Herne Bay
Hertford
Heyford Hill
High Wycombe
Hinckley
Hoddesdon
Hornchurch
Huddersfield
Hull
Huntingdon
Hythe
Ilford
Isle Of Wight
Keighley
Kelso
Kempshott
Kempston
Kendal
Kenton
Kettering
Kidderminster
Kidlington
Kiln Lane
Kimberley
Kings Lynn Hardwick
Kingsway
Kirkcaldy
Kirkintilloch
Ladbroke Grove
Lancaster
Larkfield
Leamington
Lee Grn
Leek
Leicester North
Leigh
Letchworth
Lincoln
Locksbottom
London Colney
Longbridge
Longwater
Lords Hill
Loughborough
Low Hall
Lyons Farm
Lytham St Annes
Macclesfield
Maidenhead
Maidstone
Mansfield
Marshall Lake
Matlock
Maypole
Meadowbank
Melksham
Melton Mowbray
Mere Grn
Merton
Middlesbrough
Milton Keynes
Monks Cross
Moortown
Murrayfield
Nairn
Nantwich
New Barnet
Newbury
Newbury Park
Newcastle U Lyme
Newhaven Harbour
Newport
Newton Abbot
Nine Elms
North Cheam
North Walsham
Northfield
Northwich
Nuneaton
Oakley
Oldbury
Oldham
Osmaston Park
Oswestry
Otley
Penrith
Penzance
Pepper Hill
Perton
Peterborough
Pinhoe Rd
Plymouth
Pontllanfraith
Pontypridd
Poole
Pound Lane
Preston
Prestwick
Purley Way
Queens Rd
Rayleigh Weir
Red Bank Rd
Redditch
Redhill
Rhyl
Rice Lane
Richmond
Ripley
Romford
Rugby
Rustington
Sale
Salford
Salisbury
Scarborough
Scunthorpe
Sedgefield
Sedlescombe Rd
Selly Oak Boulevard
Sevenoaks
Shirley
Shorehead
Shrewsbury
Sittingbourne
Slough Uxbridge Rd
South Ruislip
South Woodham Ferres
Southend
Southmpton Portswood
Spalding
Springfield
St Albans
St Clares
Staines
Stamford
Stanway
Stevenage
Stirling
Stoke On Trent
Straiton
Stratton
Streatham Common
Street
Stroud
Sudbury
Sunderland
Sunderland North
Sury Basin
Sutton
Swadlincote
Swansea
Sydenham
Tadley
Talbot Heath
Taplow
Taunton
Team Valley
Telford
Tewkesbury Rd
Thanet Wt Wood Cross
Thetford
Thornhill
Torquay
Tottenham
Tunbridge Wells
Upton
Urmston
Wakefield Ingsrd
Wakefield Marsh Way
Walton On Thames
Wandsworth
Warren Heath
Warrington
Warwick
Washington
Watchmoor Park
Waterlooville
Wednesfield
Weedon Rd
Wellingborough
West Grn
West Hove
West Park Farm
Westhoughton
Weymouth
Whitby
White Rose
Whitechapel
Whitehouse Farm
Whitley Bay
Whitstable
Wilmslow
Winchmore Hill
Winnersh
Winterstoke Rd
Witney
Wombourne
Worksop
Worle
Wrexham
W’ton St Marks

Comments are closed.


Agreement

To use this website, you must be aged 18 years or over

This will close in 0 seconds