The Question That Launched the Change

One day, all companies ask themselves a soul-searching question: what is our contribution to the problem we claim to solve? For Revolve Green, this moment came a few years ago, when we stared into the vastness of statistics from our packaging audit reports. These reports calculated the number of packing means, containers, wraps, or pouches we used for shipments per month: thousands of kilograms of various plastics utilized for our Packaging Solutions.

We were good in terms of the industry regulations and did the right thing by the book. Yet, the feeling of accomplishing nothing remained as the realization of what we actually did with these materials set in. The Bioplastics we used for years could potentially spend centuries in a landfill or ocean, well after their content had been deemed useless by our customers. We could not control our clients, who might even sell our products after we deemed them unfit for further use. But we could make our contribution to closing this loop by taking sustainable packaging as seriously as we took our products: with the time and effort required by this task.

Where Were the Changes Needed?

Revolve Green, like many other companies, did not set the plastic packaging waste crisis as a priority before the change came. When our company was young, we focused on other problems to solve to become sustainable and reliable in the eyes of our customers. Thus, we did not think about what to do with our packaging materials for the last three or four years, until the shift became absolutely necessary.

For a midsize company such as ourselves, changing the packaging implies negotiating with every single supplier we had to find a substitute for, looking for the companies that actually needed these materials, changing our business processes and, most importantly, investing much more money before seeing any measurable results. We could not continue to ignore the problem, pretending it was better than nothing just because it was not ours. We started responding to the increasing number of customers who expressed their concerns about environmentally damaging packaging. We began changing our vision and practices to create the sustainable future for our brand, our customers, and ourselves.

Revolving the Change: Discovery and Implementation

While searching for the material that would replace the usual pack made of non-degradable plastics, we became acquainted with the term of bioplastics. Although we were not entirely sure what type of packaging this implied, we knew it differed in two major aspects: whether the material is made from renewable sources and whether it is degradable or not.

The search process took us several months, and we met a number of fascinating people from the bioplastics manufacturers and researchers' networks. But the search for 'the best' packaging material for our company was by no means easy due to multiple reasons.

From the manufacturers, we learned how to choose from the hundreds of bioplastics offered by our suppliers. Since many of these materials were known to have a poor set of properties that made conventional plastics popular among the packaging companies for decades, they could not be considered even if they had passed all the other requirements. Our list consisted primarily of materials that were biodegradable and made primarily from plant products. We chose to work with an option made mainly from starch as it offered the most substantial set of necessary properties. Our selection criteria also included the material's ability to meet our expectations about the service life of the packaging means.

Since the product required years of hard work, it was necessary to make sure that our changes would be meaningful enough, and a small step forward would not make us look hypocritical in front of our clients. We knew this change would reshape the company, our relationships with our partners, the way we worked with materials, and the overall message of the brand. Thus, we did not give up at the first hurdle and continued testing the materials that would later support our choice. We had several successful samples, and now we knew how our customers lived and what Revolve Green stood for.

The Roadblocks on the Way to the Cleaner Future

In order to get where we wanted to go, the company had to overcome several significant obstacles. The new material that we chose did not have the necessary characteristics to replace polyolefins or other materials of this kind. It was challenging to select other options that would meet our expectations. It took us a lot of efforts to develop the samples of this type of packaging made from materials like bioplastics. We invested much effort and money into this decision, and if we tried to change it now, we would nullify all past achievements. We also made every attempt to keep costs down to maintain our high-quality standards while using this resource.

In addition, we faced the complex process of finding new partners to supply us with the materials needed to ensure the implementation of all changes, which in no way benefited our suppliers and, as a consequence, us. We faced many difficulties in adapting all our production processes to the necessary requirements. It is challenging enough to meet all standards, and each step towards becoming an environmentally responsible organization requires us to consider numerous factors.

Despite the setbacks that we experienced due to changing the material during the transition to a cleaner future, we learned a lot about new ways of being sustainable. We became aware that we needed not only a good product, but a product that also cared about the environment.

Why We Did It: An Honest Response

If the answer were only in marketing tools to promote the eco-friendliness of our brand, it would be entirely logical to end our decision-making there and declare a complete transition to a new type of material ready for implementation. But there was no reason to invest time, effort, and money if the company did not truly believe in this process. It would also be disrespectful to the thousands of our customers to say that we were seeking nothing more than marketing positions for changing our packaging.

Although, in most cases, it is the consumer who decides what changes the company should make to be more eco-friendly, at the same time, there are many things for the company to consider without taking the customer as a decisive factor. Biodegradable plastics are useful in situations where, instead of recycling or throwing products away after use, these items break down to become part of the surrounding environment over a period of months. There is no absolute safety, and bioplastics also have some shortcomings, but today there are no completely sustainable materials in the world, and so it is worth drawing attention to what biodegradable means.

Biodegradable bioplastics are primarily used for industrial packaging. They are completely degradable within a specified time frame. As a rule, these materials begin to decompose in about 2-3 months.

While conventional plastics currently remain the most popular materials in the entire world for industrial processes and everyday use, bioplastics and the biodegradable products from these materials are the best option for both the modern and future environments.

Why the Change Makes Us Grow Closer to the Customers

It is vital to recognize the importance of making this change not only for the customers but for the entire business eco-system in order to become even closer to them and create positive and enduring relationships that consider not the transaction one makes but what one cares about.

We are incredibly proud of the changes in the company that led us to the point where we could be truly honest with our customers about the materials we used; where we did not have to disguise the harmful effects of plastic as green marketing; and what truly matters, where we are genuinely invested in what we do, and this feeling extends to our clients, too.

Biodegradable bioplastics are an attempt to change the company for the better. We began to think not about what to minimize or disguise but rather about those positive aspects that could be maximized. We began to care about something more important than the benefits we gained right after launching the product: long-term effects with our customers. We realized that we would not make everyone happy and that there are things we had decided to leave as they were for the sake of sustainability. Our customers knew what to expect from the materials we used and what we expected from them, which in turn made our relationship even stronger. We started to treat every buyer as equal, and that is what we appreciate most about our progress.

We strive to continue improving the processes concerning sustainable practices without losing the long-term goal in sight. We also strive to become transparent to our clients and let them know what exactly the companies use to pack their products, what changes are taking place, and to whom they are accountable.

How Far Are We Prepared to Go towards the Cleaner Future?

Changing from conventional plastics to biodegradable bioplastics is definitely a meaningful goal that we have reached. But Revolve Green does not stand still and intends to move even further in the chosen direction. There are many ways that we believe could improve the process: working on making the material we use more functional and cost-efficient, and determining what else we can do to ensure sustainability while improving our processes.

The more we invest in the development of this area, the more opportunities we have to benefit from the results of our efforts. We are also exploring how our actions affect other spheres of the company: what steps can we take to make sure the farmers we work with are following the principles of sustainability while growing the plants we use for bioplastics.

We understand that sustainable practices require reconsidering the processes of doing business rather than changing random pieces of equipment because they seem convenient. We had many difficulties when taking this step, and it took us a while to figure out how to manage it properly. Although we have done something that makes us closer to a cleaner future, we understand that it will never be enough, and that is what encourages us to constantly find new ways to care for the environment without losing the quality of what we do.

We are proud that the long-awaited change for the better had happened and are eager to see how far we will go in this extraordinary journey that is beneficial for everyone.

We have come a long way since we first realized that the way we do business had to change for the better. We know that the road ahead will not be easy. But we believe that in this path, we are honest and persistent in promoting sustainable practices. We care about our environment while providing the high quality that has long been the trademark of our company. We are willing to work with all our partners and employees for a common goal: to help the environment and the communities in which we operate thrive.