The plastic shopping bag gets upgraded

Back in the late 1970s, the late Gordon Dancy “invented a high-density plastic bag and a dispensing rack.” His daughter – Kristen Brown – helped him market this invention. Their goal was “to save trees at a time when plastic was considered the future.” It was not an easy sell. “No one wanted them,” says Kristen.

The success came once Gordon integrated a dispensing rack which made the bags simple to manage and easy to handle. Now 40 years later this brilliant solution is now a big problem. Our landfills are over flowing with plastic and plastic bags. The EPA states that the amount of bags being thrown away has jumped by more then 3 times since 1980s and that plastic bags are the 2nd most common form of marine litter after cigarette butts – as per Ocean Conservatory group.

 How can a plastic bag be revived from such issues – Kristen literally had a dream with the solution. It’s called “My Eco Bag”.

My Eco Bag is a combination of four color coded bags in one. “The smallest (black) bag holds glass bottles and jars, while the medium (blue) one has an insulated liner for chilled and frozen goods. The large (green) bag holds produce; the extra large (brown) handles other groceries.” The bags are made “from the same polypropylene or plastic that’s used for … yogurt containers.” Kristen says she designed the bags, which sell for $24.95, to “hold $300 worth of groceries and fit like a jigsaw puzzle into a shopping cart.” She’s certain her dad would be proud: “He believed in change and making things better,” she says.

In your marketing research do your shoppers insights talk about recycling and reusing plastic bags? Although the price point of a set of reusable bags has a 24.95 MSRP would your shoppers spend on such a purchase?