Looking to the future

S18 Micro puff HP

The environment of retail.

Selling goods has become a real conundrum for us at Coastal Sports, as the world struggles under the weight of commerce, plastics, sustainability and just generally looking after our one planet, we have to look harder at what impact even little Coastal Sports has on everything. It’s no doubt to me the retail sector has a major role in what consumers waste and what ends up in the landfill. Brands like Patagonia and Icebreaker from their source to their end product have made an impact in sustainability from using natural fibers to recycling plastics into high-performance garments. As consumers we can look to products that last longer and come from environmentally conscious companies, as a seller of goods, we recycle all our plastics, paper and cardboard, we’ll only sell products we believe in. We still offer paper bags in the store, but encourage people to go bagless, people are loving no plastic bags in shops, but we all have to remember that any unneeded single-use bag or goods are wrong.

One thing we’re asked for often in store is a throwaway tent or sleeping bag, because the customer is only in the country for weeks and doens’t want to take it home. I’m always taken back by this, for me, a tent or sleeping bag is an investment in adventures, something I’ll have with me for 10 years plus, let alone the environmental impact of the nylons and plastics used in these products to just throw away. We don’t offer this type of product. It makes we wonder how some big box retailers justify themselves selling this type of environmental rubbish.

Read more about Icebreaker Here

Read more about Patagonia Here

Cool stuff that could be the future

 

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