Commentary

Schin Water's Wearable Recycling Results

Schin Water in Brazil puts plastic bottles into countless hands.

Since many people don't recycle, the brand wanted to raise awareness about the importance of recycling by using unconventional means.

Lew'Lara/TBWA created a project for Schin Water that began with plastic 300-ml water bottles. Schin Water collected the empty bottles and transported them to a company that transforms the plastic, though a process called polymerization, into polyester fibers that are then used to make T-shirts. It takes ten 300-ml bottles to create enough fibers for one shirt.

Brazilian artist Alexandre Sesper created exclusive drawings to be placed on the shirts, which are sold at Billabongs throughout Brazil. One shirt features a trio of trees sprouting from a city of tall buildings. "Why waste a cool planet," asks the shirt.

This campaign is touted as the first time that Brazil has produced polyester fibers through polymerization to create clothes.

The Water Schin logo is printed on the inside of the eco-friendly shirts, alongside Sesper's name and Billabong's logo.

When the T-shirt launch took place at Billabong's main store in Brazil, the bottoms of the store windows were decorated with piles of Schin Water bottles, with recycled shirts hanging prominently above them. Store windows will remain decorated with Schin Water bottles throughout the year.

Post-launch store traffic increased 90% and a second eco-friendly collection is in the works. And keep in mind the campaign's initial message that can sometimes get lost in the process: recycle, recycle, recycle!

1 comment about "Schin Water's Wearable Recycling Results ".
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  1. Warren Lee from WHL Consulting, March 30, 2009 at 5:30 p.m.

    I just think that this idea is fantastic on a number of different levels. LewLara/TBWA, what a creative concept. Since plastic has been singled out by several prominent ecologists as the main cause of ocean depredation, I applaud their creative effort.

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