The online retailer Zalando wants to make the shipping of its packages more sustainable. The company says it wants to become the leading platform for sustainable fashion in Europe, with a focus on packaging, given that sustainability is increasingly becoming a driver for purchasing decisions for European customers. 

Zalando is currently converting its “Beauty Bags” from plastic to paper. “When a customer currently orders lipstick and mascara, we pack these two products in a padded plastic bag and put them in our Zalando box. Cosmetic products, for example, need an extra cover to protect them, because they are fragile. Now, we’ve found an alternative for these ‘Beauty Bags’ made of paper, which we’re using with immediate effect,” explains Uwe Streiber, Head of Packaging Management at Zalando. Customers now get their cosmetic products in a small paper bag that is 100 per cent recycled and reusable for other purposes. At the same time, Zalando is introducing polybags – the thin protective sleeves around textiles – made of over 60 per cent recycled plastic.

Streiber explains that packaging is a strategic topic in e-commerce. “Packaging is one of our most important points of contact with customers. And as a factor for innovation in materials and logistics processes, the issue of sustainable packaging has potential for us for building brands. As a platform, we can influence the materials used and modify the processes to reduce material consumption.”