Green Shirt Packaging (recycle, plastic, buy, cost) - Green Living -Sustainable living, ecology, conservation, local agriculture - City-Data Forum

UpperPeninsulaRon · 09-29-2008, 01:48 PM

Here is my problem with shirt packaging. You buy a shirt which is wrapped in plastic. You come home and rip the plastic off and then throw it in the trash. Then you are faced with pins - lots of them. Why are they there? You get the pin at the collar, then the pins in the sleeves, then there are pins in funny places. Who put the pins in? What did it cost to put them there? And I must throw them away after having no good use. Then there is cardboard wedged at the top of the shirt. You must play with the cardboard, rip it, then throw it out.

Then all the buttons are buttoned! Why? I must waste my time unbuttoning them all so I can wash the darn thing. I guess I paid for someone to button them all up. What a waste of packaging material that serve no purpose.

When I asked the store person why they are packaged that way, she said "because it makes them look good". What a stupid, wasteful reason. Just hang up the wrinkled shirt on a recycleable hanger and save me and the environment the grief.

SubaruFiend · 09-29-2008, 06:07 PM

amen!

Ohiogirl81 · 09-30-2008, 08:56 AM

99 out of 100 people are not going to buy a wrinkled shirt. The stores wouldn't go to the trouble if it didn't mean increased sales.

ellie · 10-01-2008, 05:32 PM

Of course, you could shop at the thrift store and you'd be solving all of your issues.

riveree · 10-01-2008, 07:43 PM

It's a good point, UpperPen.

A lot of our packaging is habit. The packaging of your shirt is done this way because it's *always* been done this way and it's recognizable in this packaging - looks quality, looks pristine, looks "untouched", right?

But if the shirt manufacturers knew people would still buy their shirts even if they were just on a hanger, maybe they'd reconsider.

Did you drop them an email? Tell them you love their product and you'd be even happier with it if they could find a way to offer it without all the unnecessary packaging. You never know, you might get them thinking a new way

.

UpperPeninsulaRon · 10-02-2008, 06:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by riveree

Did you drop them an email? Tell them you love their product and you'd be even happier with it if they could find a way to offer it without all the unnecessary packaging. You never know, you might get them thinking a new way

.

Good point. I'll write to several of them and see if I get a response.