Michelle Ivankovic is a designer and lives in the Netherlands. Together with Deb Singer and Karin Heck from BRINGiT in the US she developed a sustainable and reusable shopping bag concept based on the innovative, wood-based fibers from LENZING AG in Austria.

• How did that come about and what pushed you initially towards the topic of sustainable packaging in general?

„The BRINGiT team are pioneers in the movement for replacing single use products with reusable options. Over the years, we’ve worked together on multiple projects to end single use plastics and now we’ve launched our biggest initiative – the iT Kit reusable shopping system. An all in one solution that includes a spare shopper bag, produce bags and bulk bags.“

• How did you find VPZ and what was it that convinced you to initiate a cooperation with our company?

“I came across VPZ at a trade fair for new materials.  The feel of the fabric is so soft, with a functional stretchiness. When designing the bags we thought – we can ask people to support environmental initiatives, but at the end of the day we also have to provide a better design and function to really have a winning solution.  The VPZ fabrics checked all these boxes, so it was an easy decision!“

• How do you like the collaboration so far?

“We really love the “can do” attitude of the VPZ team and feel fully supported in our mission.  Feels like the beginning of a successful long term partnership.“

• Where does the topic of “sustainable packaging” stand in the US at the moment (also in comparison to Europe)? What moves Americans especially with regards to environmental topics? Are there problems with plastic waste for example on beaches and in the soil? Is there movement to rethink this topic?

“Many Americans are very concerned about the environment and what this means for our present surroundings and the future.  Studies show that coastal populations in the US are more likely to take action on plastic pollution, possibly because it is a more visible problem when you live by the ocean.  Big businesses and legislation in the US are not taking as much action as many parts of Europe.  Overall the US is still very dependent on convenience lifestyles that rely on SUPPs.  Changing this is going to require pressure from consumers for big businesses to implement new systems.“

Photo: BRINGiT