Packaging often disappears within minutes of an order being opened, but by then it has already traveled as far as the product itself. Its purpose is essential: to protect each bag from the manufacturing facility until it reaches the person who will use it.
Our approach is to provide that protection with fewer materials, less handling and as little air freight as possible.
What Our Packaging Is Made From
The type of packaging we use depends on the product. Some products are packed in FSC-certified paper bags, while others are protected by polybags made from recycled plastic. These are different packaging formats for different products, not layers used together.
Each format serves a practical purpose. Paper bags provide a paper-based solution, while polybags protect products that require greater protection from moisture, dust and damage during transport and storage. FSC-certified paper swing tickets carry the essential product information and are made from FSC Mix paper.
We choose the packaging according to what each product needs, without adding unnecessary material. FSC certification applies to the responsible sourcing of the paper used for our packaging bags and swing tickets, while our protective polybags are made from recycled plastic.
Packed Once, Not Repacked Along the Way
One of the simplest ways to reduce packaging is to avoid replacing it at every stage of the journey.
Our products are placed in their protective packaging directly at the manufacturing facility. That same packaging stays with them as they travel to our European warehouse and, in most cases, until they reach the customer.
This means products do not normally need to be unpacked and repacked before an online order is fulfilled. It reduces unnecessary handling and avoids introducing another layer of product packaging at the warehouse.
Outer transport packaging is still needed to consolidate products during freight and protect individual orders during delivery. But the product itself is packed once.
Giving Packaging a Second Journey
Whenever possible, customers can use the original packaging when returning a product. This gives the packaging a second purpose and avoids the need for another mailer or box.
If the original packaging is no longer usable, we ask customers to choose something secure and appropriately sized rather than sending the product in an unnecessarily large parcel.
Less Than 1% Travels by Air
The largest journey in our production supply chain is from our manufacturing partners in Asia to our European warehouse. For these shipments, sea freight is our standard choice.
Air freight is reserved for samples and exceptional situations. It accounts for less than 1% of the products we transport annually. Keeping that figure below 1% requires planning. Production schedules need to leave enough time for products to travel by sea, while shipments need to be consolidated instead of being divided into several smaller deliveries.
This is one of the most important parts of our approach. The best way to reduce the impact of air freight is to avoid needing it in the first place.
Addressing the Remaining Journey
Once products arrive in Europe, parcel delivery becomes the final part of their journey. Our shipping services include DHL GoGreen Plus and the UPS Carbon Neutral option.
DHL GoGreen Plus supports the use of sustainable aviation fuel within DHL’s transport network. The resulting emissions reductions are allocated through a book-and-claim system and documented in an independently verified annual certificate.
For participating UPS shipments, we purchase carbon credits through the program marketed by UPS as “Carbon Neutral”. These credits support third-party projects; they do not eliminate the emissions generated by the individual delivery.
We see these services as an additional step after the more fundamental decisions have already been made: avoiding unnecessary packaging, preventing repacking and keeping air freight to an absolute minimum.
“Our principle is simple: use less, handle less and fly less. Then take responsibility for what cannot yet be avoided.” - Martin Fussenegger, Co-founder of Ucon Acrobatics