As online retail booms, the use of packaging is also increasing. Swiss Post has set itself ambitious sustainability targets, and wants to do its bit to promote sustainable packaging solutions. It acquired St Gallen-based company Kickbag, a small, innovative business which offers reusable packaging, on 16 December 2022. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price or conditions of the acquisition.
Online retail is booming. People in Switzerland are ordering more and more of their shopping online, which they have delivered conveniently to their homes. However, with convenience comes more packaging, in other words cardboard, paper and plastic that either ends up at recycling stations or in the bin. Studies show that people who order goods online are becoming increasingly convinced that shipping should be sustainable. More and more, customers are calling for eco-friendlier packaging and emission-free shipping. For a lot of consumers, sustainability has become an important purchase criterion in many instances. As a logistics company, Swiss Post can help online retailers with sustainable packaging solutions.
Swiss Post wants to contribute towards more sustainable packaging solutions. Various projects looking at reusable packaging are already underway, all with the aim of promoting the circular economy. And it is precisely this area where St Gallen-based company Kickbag offers a smart solution, as it has done together with Swiss Post since it was founded in 2020.
The “Kickbag” is a reusable packaging solution for online retail. It is a sealable bag made of recycled PET or plastic. What makes the shipping bag so unique is the fact it can be reused up to 30 times. This means that it can be either used to return the product, or it can sent back to the retailer free of charge using one of Swiss Post’s letter boxes. Swiss Post has been the logistics partner of Kickbag ever since the latter was founded. With this reusable bag, Swiss Post wants to help online retailers provide more sustainable shipping. For this reason, the company has decided to continue promoting this smart Kickbag solution, and to integrate it into its own structures. This prompted Swiss Post to take over the company on 16 December 2022.
