Grifal’s tour of best practices for packaging products of any type, shape, weight or size in an effective and environmentally sustainable way continues. Success stories that highlight how so many companies operate that, every day, protect their products through transportation and delivery systems with an eye toward protecting the environment.
Off-Market is a recent case of all-Italian success, a brand designed by Grada Srl dedicated to the distribution of big-name clothing through outlets and e-commerce. The network of outlets in the territory already includes Lombardy, Veneto and Friuli, and new openings are also planned in central Italy in 2023.
To learn more about Off-Market and their journey along the road to sustainability, we interview Cristiano Botturi, the Logistics Manager of this fast-rising company.
What market segments are you targeting and what are your main findings to date?
“Our customers want access to promotions, exclusive products and great prices on clothing, shoes and accessories, so they refer to us for their shopping. Although we are a brand-new company, in 2022 we reported total sales of about 2 million, shipped 4,300 products purchased online by our customers and delivered to them within 24-48 hours.
We see Grifal as a correct partner as it supports us with the most suitable packaging solutions for our market, thinking about the crucial moment of delivery to our customers as well as the crucial stages of storage and transportation of our items.”
We hear more and more about “plastic sickness,” and we know that you have taken a strong position on this issue. What does this mean for Off-Market?
“We decided to choose environmentally sustainable packaging, respecting responsibly managed raw materials. Boxes and other products must come from recycled materials and themselves be 100 percent recyclable.
It is our contribution to environmental protection: we use corrugated cardboard packaging, paper shopping bags, e-commerce envelopes and paper tape. We don’t want to leave anything to chance.”
…also because the packaging, when it enters the final customer’s home, becomes a formidable business card of the company…
“Absolutely. Until recently, sustainability was seen as an option, a choice. At Off-Market we want everyone to see it in the dual light of opportunity and necessity, because it is true that everyone in their own small way can do something.”
Thanks to the vision of companies such as Off-Market, which assess the environmental impact of packaging from a whole product life-cycle perspective, it is possible to actively contribute to reducing the use of plastic and consequently the CO2 released into the atmosphere, without sacrificing aesthetics, lightness or functionality of packaging.