One Bag Habit - A sustainable habit raising more than two million kronor for important causes

One Bag Habit aims to encourage greater use of fewer bags. This industry initiative has resulted in an impressive 70 per cent reduction in bag consumption in KappAhl stores in the first 15 months. Moreover, bag sales this year have generated profits of more than SEK 2.1 million which will now be donated to support important sustainable development.
      “70 per cent of the customers in our stores are now saying No to bags. Together we are creating a new, sustainable habit!” says Fredrika Klarén, KappAhl’s Head of Sustainability. “We are very pleased and heartened to see how engaged our customers and employees have become in One Bag Habit.”

The One Bag Habit is an industry initiative launched in Sweden to reduce the number of bags being consumed and to encourage repeat use. In short: new, more sustainable bag habits. The results have not been long in coming. Since the initiative began in June 2017, consumption of bags in KappAhl’s stores has fallen by no less than 70 per cent.

Moreover, KappAhl donates the profits from the sale of bags to organisations whose mission is to promote sustainable development. The profits generated in the financial year starting 1 September 2017 and ending 31 August 2018 totalled SEK 2,081,373. This is being donated to organisations that work to reduce littering of the countryside and communities in countries where KappAhl stores are located:

• In Sweden: The Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation / www.hsr.se
• In Norway: The Norwegian Retailers Environment Fund / www.handelensmiljofond.no/en
• In Finland: The Keep the Archipelago Tidy Association / www.hallskargardenren.fi/se
• In Poland: Our Earth Foundation / www.naszaziemia.pl/english/

     “First and foremost, I would like to say a huge thank-you to KappAhl and all their customers. Congratulations on adopting more sustainable habits! It is new habits like this one that will enable real change to occur. The money raised by One Bag Habit will contribute greatly to our work of spreading good environmental habits to all children in Sweden. We believe that ongoing dialogue in early childhood is important for establishing good habits and behaviour. It will help improve the prospects for a secure and sustainable future on this planet. Together we are making a difference!” says Johanna Ragnartz, CEO of the Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation

About One Bag Habit. One Bag Habit is an industry initiative that was launched on 1 June 2017 by KappAhl, Lindex and H&M. It currently has twenty or so participating companies from the apparel and footwear industry. The aim of the initiative is to actively reduce the use of all kinds of bags and to raise awareness of their negative impacts on the environment.  Why? Because globally, bag consumption is way too high. In Sweden alone we use two hundred plastic bags per person per year on average, and each bag is used for only about half an hour. All bags, even those like KappAhl’s that are made of recycled and renewable materials, take considerable energy to produce, transport and recycle.

Its members pledge to

• Change consumer behavior by charging for all bags.
• Inform customers of the environmental impact bags have, the advantages of reducing bag consumption, and how they as customers can help to use bags more sustainably.
• Offer recyclable bags that are made of more sustainable materials.
• Donate all profits from bag sales to causes that promote sustainable development in environmental or social issues.

In April 2018, One Bag Habit received the Sustainable Brand Index award for the Sustainable Brand Building Initiative of the Year. The One Bag Habit initiative met the criteria of trying something new, placing a clear focus on the company’s sustainability practices, getting the consumers involved and making them change their behaviour, and creating potential, lasting change for the company and the consumers.

About the Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation. The Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation works to prevent and discourage littering. It serves as a source of information, shapes public opinion and produces practical tools and ways to eliminate waste. The Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation is an independent, not-for-profit organisation. Its activities are supported by grants and project funding from companies and authorities, as well as donations from the public. The Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation is a member of the Swedish Fund-raising Council (FRII) and the Swedish Fund-raising Control association.

For more information, please contact
Fredrika Klarén, Head of Sustainability at KappAhl. Tel. +46 704 71 55 58, fredrika.klaren@kappahl.com
Johanna Ragnartz, CEO of the Keep Sweden Tidy Foundation. Tel. +46 769 41 01 89, johanna.ragnartz@hsr.se.
Charlotte Högberg, Head of Communications, KappAhl. Tel. +46 704 71 56 31, charlotte.hogberg@kappahl.com. 

KappAhl was founded in Gothenburg in 1953 and is a leading fashion chain in the Nordic region with 370 KappAhl and Newbie stores, including Shop Online, in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland and Great Britain. Our business idea is to offer value-for-money fashion of our own design to the many people. Sustainability-labeled fashion accounts for 57 per cent of the range. Sales for 2017/2018 totaled SEK 4.8 billion and the company has approx. 4,000 employees in ten countries. KappAhl is quoted on Nasdaq Stockholm. More information at www.kappahl.com

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