Products of Change: Member News

Change makers

LSB takes a look at some of the latest sustainability developments from across the industry, including from some members of Products of Change.

Pure Table Top targets Net Zero in first Impact Report

Underpinning what it has billed as its ‘Year of Information’, the table and glassware specialist Pure Table Top has released its first Impact Report documenting the company’s journey with sustainability to date and outlining its key milestones for the future. Pure Table Top is chiefly in pursuit of halving its Greenhouse Gas emissions by 2030 and achieving Net Zero by 2025. The business has already implemented numerous measures that has put it well on the way to a verified B Corp status, a milestone it is expecting to see accredited by 2023. “Sustainability is too often a missing piece for companies operating in the homewares sector. We want to demonstrate that businesses can grow commercially while caring for the environment and the communities within it,” commented Tanith Sellicks, the founder of Pure Table Top. Tanith and her growing team have since labelled 2022 as the ‘Year of Information’ for the company which now offers ‘complete visibility of its processes from initial design to production, delivery, and finance.’ Pioneering systems now in place at Pure Table Top include a supplier sustainability scoring project the team has developed in partnership with academics from De Montfort University.

Piping Hot makes global waves with accessible sustainability

The international apparel and beachwear specialist, Piping Hot has been named among the inaugural Sustainability Leaders list for 2022 by the Australian Financial Review in recognition of the major waves the company is making in accessible sustainability. Piping Hot kickstarted an overhaul of its business model in 2018 with the transition to more sustainable materials in the production of its swimwear collections. The team was quick to set an ambitious target to reduce the environmental impact of all products by July 2021. In doing so, Piping Hot has now diverted more than 15.5 million PET plastic bottles from landfill and the ocean and has saved more than 170 million litres of water through its energy and water saving processes.

Most recently, the team has been exploring new material innovation looking towards developments in seaweed, while its Heroes for the Ocean x Marvel licensed collection has caught the attention of global retailers.

Inset: Extreme E has been brought to a new audience thanks to the partnership.

Extreme E revs up first official gaming partner in Forza Horizon 5

Extreme E has signed its first official gaming partner in a move putting the sport for purpose squarely in the licensing space through the Forza franchise.

The electric off-road racing championship has teamed with Xbox Games Studios’ Turn 10 Studios to bring its Extreme E ODYSSEY 21 eSUV as well as its full teams’ liveries from Extreme E season 2 to Forza Horizon 5. “This partnership between Extreme E and the Forza franchise has brought the Championship to a new platform and audience,” said Ali Russell, chief marketing officer at Extreme E.

“We are excited for more people to see what electric vehicles are capable of. We are excited to collaborate with such a forward-thinking group and look forward to seeing the uplifting impact on both our communities.”

RSPB preens its brand look

‘Nature is in crisis. Together we can save it.’ That’s the core message consumers will be getting from RSPB this season and beyond thanks to a full-scale re-branding that will now adorn all consumer product activity from the UK wildlife charity.

The RSPB’s mission to protect and restore habitats, save species, help end the nature and climate emergency, and inspire others to do the same will now be at the very forefront of its activity and conveyed through a new logo and look applied to all its licensed products.

There’s been a flurry of new product developments across the RSPB portfolio in recent weeks, including the launch of new ceramics from Moorcroft inspired by the charity’s flagship reserve, Minsmere, and a collection inspired by its coastal Bempton Cliffs site.

Meanwhile, development of the team’s spring/summer 2023 homewares collection is now fully underway which includes the expansion of its Free As a Bird range from Half Moon Bay. It’s a range that features rPET fabric items and items promoting reuse among consumers such as travel drinkware and storage.

The RSPB has also recently signed a new sustainable childrenswear partner creating apparel from recycled materials of which the team will share more soon.

All will now feature the new-look RSPB logo underpinning the organisation’s main objective of ‘protecting and conserving nature.’

Louisa Skevington, product licensing manager at RSPB, said: “Our licensing programme is a fantastic way of driving awareness of the RSPB’s work as well as generating revenue to help fund our mission for nature. It’s fantastic when our partners can make their most sustainable collections with our encouragement and support.”

Chief among a swathe of partner updates is the latest collection from the sustainable apparel specialist, Teemill. The range features five designs inspired by the homes and ‘family groups’ of UK birds.

The RSPB’s new branding will be on full display at Brand Licensing Europe (stand A271).

Below: The new Teemill range features five designs.

Dennis, Gnasher and the Beano go wild at Eden Project in Cornwall

Dennis, Gnasher, Minnie and the extended cast of the iconic British comic book IP, Beano hit the Biomes this summer holiday to take up residence at the Eden Project in Cornwall to deliver

a six-week educational

programme for visiting kids and families. From 23 July to 4 September, families were tasked with defeating the dreaded CO2-Zilla, save the planet, and rebel against climate change in an interactive journey around Eden Project in Cornwall, led by the popular Beano characters. A bespoke comic strip taking families through various missions along the way was created to guide visitors on their wild journey to save planet earth. Visitors were tasked with tracing the mega-villain CO2-Zilla to discover its weaknesses and learn ways to reduce

Above: Beano took up residence at Eden Project for six weeks through the summer. carbon dioxide and bring CO2 down. Another activity taught families the benefits of growing plans for bees and bugs, including saving pollinators and boosting biodiversity. Workshops also taught guests how to reduce their impact by reusing and repairing well-loved items like clothing. The summer holiday partnership was brokered by Beano’s licensing agent and Products of

Change member, Rocket Licensing.

Barbie welcomes Dr Jane Goodall to its Inspiring Women Series

Mattel has partnered with the Jane Goodall Institute to launch the latest in its Inspiring Women series of Barbie dolls: a certified carbon-neutral Dr Jane Goodall doll made from ocean-bound plastic. The new doll is joined by the introduction of the 2022 Barbie Career of the Year Eco-Leadership Team, which includes a Chief Sustainability Officer, Conservation Scientist, Renewable Energy Engineer, and Environmental Advocate. The Dr Jane Goodall doll comes with its own chimp accessory modelled on David Greybeard, the chimpanzee subject of the pioneering scientist’s ground-breaking research into emotion and communication in animals. “Kids need more role models like Dr Jane Goodall because imagining they can be anything is just the beginning – seeing it makes all the difference,” said

Lisa McKnight, EVP and global head of Barbie and

Dolls at Mattel. “We know that sustainability is a top concern for future generations and we are proud to unveil our first sustainable Barbie Inspiring Women and Career of the Year Eco-Leadership Team dolls.”

Above: The new launch was revealed ahead of World Chimpanzee Day in July.