Return of the Milkman: A Vintage Solution to a Modern Problem

The new startup Loop is transforming the way shoppers experience delivery and packaged goods with sustainability in mind.

While delivery is convenient it often generates a lot of waste, which not all shoppers appreciate. Loop is leaning into this shopper need and changing the game with a solution for sustainability-minded, delivery-loving shoppers. They are partnering with an array of CPGs to create sustainable packaging (made from steel, aluminum, or heavy-weight glass) that won’t just get delivered but also picked up for reuse—very much like the milkman did back in the day. Their mission is to pick up the empty product from the shopper’s home and return it to a processing center to be cleaned and refilled. 

Earlier this year, Loop partnered with Häagan-Dazs to offer home-delivery of its ice cream in special metal packaging. Nestlé’s R&D team developed this reusable steel packaging to not only help the environment, but also guarantee that when it is opened, the ice cream melts more at the top than the bottom. This is a significant improvement for consumers who often experience a soupy mess of ice cream at the bottom of a cardboard pint while binging TV. So in the end, it’s a win win for the environment and the consumer experience. 

Other brands are also enveloping themselves in the “Loop family” including Tide, Gillette, PepsiCo, Unilever and Procter & Gamble. These products will come in reusable and returnable packaging containers that can be reused a minimum of 100 times

Now being environmentally friendly is convenient and involves familiar, cherished brands. The only con here is the evidence of your ice-cream-binge-party-of-one is on display for the milkman to see. 

Contributed by: Karina Arnold, Account Planner, Integer Denver

Image Source: Unsplash