My last post about the design week in Paris and Maison & Objet is about sustainability. Here you go.
I am not going to play a blame game, but when you search among the almost 2000 exhibitors at the fair, you get three (3) exhibitors that list themselves as sustainable. Maybe it’s a search word thing. Or maybe its a sign of the times. Regardless if there are three or more, there are fewer than usual. Just by looking at things, it seems like other issues are more important than promoting sustainable options.
The fair pushed the issue a bit but the discussion is not as strong as previously.
At the fair, some brands are promoting their things as being labeled in one way or another. Here talking about FSC wood.
And of course you get the pretty generic description of things.
“the products are responsable, durable and recycable”. Very generic descriptions in general.
Some brands pushed the limits. There are always players going an extra mile. I think the journey that Koziol is on, is very, very interestering. They are doing a total 180 degree switch. From being a classical plastic brand they are doing typical plastic products (picnic set, tumblers, storage…) but in sustainable materials.
It not only interesting from a design perspective but also communicative and business wise. Will they ever be able to be a fully “good” company?
New Italian brand making a new kind of sustainable plastics.
Danish Verti is trying to educate their buyers that their plastic looking material is made from potatoe peel.
Exhibitions at the fair? Well there we a super boring exhibition, basically hidden in a corner, talking about sustainable solutions. Super, super boring. And then Paola Navone made a restaurant that partly was made of reused products. No, not the chairs, not the wallpaper… But I guess it was supposed to be inspiring in a way.
Last thing from the fair. Previously I talked about a stand with Ukrainian exhibitors. But only one (!!!!) exhibitor took stand against the war in Ukraine. And it was really clever. A bed company talking about “sleep in peace”.
So, if the fair didn’t push the limits, it was interesting to see how many store approached sustainability in the city. I honestly think this says something about how fairs should act. Fairs MUST talk and inspire about sustainable solutions if they want to be relevant. The sustainable wave is here and if the fair is not on the topic, store owners will go elsewhere.
Well. First example. Department store Printemps have a whole floor on second hand, vintage and upcycling. They obviously have a repair section and even a bonus system. All in French so didn’t really understand but let’s say you get points every time you hand in a garment…
Not only fashion but also interior. And of course interesting collaboration with thrift shops.
Of course also at Merci Shop. They have been doing these things for a long time. But you need to ask yourselves – do you find these kind of objects at a fair or somewhere else??
Last example. The Hermes shop in Paris (at rue de Sevres) has an exclusive collection of adhesive tape. These are left overs from production and upcycled to new products. You can even use this to add some elegance to pieces you want to upcycle. Got an old wood stool that need some pampering? Use the adhesive tape. Premium and luxury becomes DIY. And that is where the future is.