Stockholm-based sustainable tights brand Swedish Stockings partnered with designer Gustaf Westman to turn unwanted stockings into a range of tables. Each piece in the limited-edition range is made from between 80 to 350 pairs of tights received through Swedish Stockings’ Recycling Club – an initiative that encourages customers to donate used tights from any brand to be recycled into commercial water filtration systems. The tables, which have a marble-like finish and were released this quarter, come in five different variations with prices starting at EUR 490.
Tights into tables? Even if this seems a bit...random, perhaps, don’t dismiss it! It signals a consumer expectation that’s quickly setting into stone. Essentially, you’re not just responsible for your product when you manufacture it, sell it, and help customers use it. To sustainability-minded consumers, you’re also responsible for what happens when your products are discarded. Swedish Stockings, part of the growing cohort of brands churning out creative recycling plans, only reinforces this. That tights were able to be repurposed also shows that no product is too niche for an eco-cycling scheme. Some other examples? We’ve seen a contact lens brand transform those plastic things your contacts come in into new products, and even a subscription service for composting soiled diapers (yes, you read that right).
Bring this expectation into your next innovation session. While you’re at the drawing board, leave some room for your product’s afterlife! What could your product become once your customers are done using it? If a diaper company can figure this out...you can, too!
Stay healthy,
The TrendWatching content team
