Tuesday, November 24, 2015

1 MONTH TO GO

Not much more than a reminder that The Big Red Guy is burning the midnight oil getting ready for his once only annual show.

He's got everyone working overtime to make sure everything is sorted.

ARE YOU SORTED YET?


Thursday, November 19, 2015

UK Bag Tax - still confused

Start - 5th October, 2015.  5p charge for a single-use carrier bag in the UK.

If you're still confused, here the break down directly from the Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs :: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/single-use-plastic-carrier-bags-why-were-introducing-the-charge/carrier-bags-why-theres-a-5p-charge

Which shops charge for single-use plastic bags?
Large retailers with 250+ employees. The employee limit applies to the whole company not just an individual branch.

Can I avoid the Bag Tax?
Yes - bring your own bag.

What bags are exempt from the Bag Tax?
 - paper bags
 - shops in airports, or on board trains, aeroplanes or ships
 - bags for certain items (unwrapped food, raw meat and fish), prescription medicines, uncovered blades, seeds, bulbs and flowers, or live fish

Are biodegradable bags exempt?
No - but this is under continual review.


Friday, November 13, 2015

Ethical Sourcing - Walk the Talk

So - tell me about the working conditions of the factory your last bag order was made in.

Fire Exits?
Toilet facilities?
Heating / cooling?
Lighting?  Is it adequate for the task of cutting & sewing
Ventilation?

If your supplier cannot answer these questions & show you photographs of your bags being printed/sewn/packed then there's a few questions YOU need to ask.

Our Product Manager will make "surprise inspections" to all our facilities & manufacturing partners.  Turning up - unannounced - & demanding to personally QC the production of Job XYZ.

It's amazing how some producers react & how they need to "scramble" to get to the actual job in production.

We have immediately stopped working with certain partners due to the working conditions they provide.

Whilst we know it's a drop-in-the-ocean.  We cannot sit idly by & see it happening within factories we're working with.

Sure, there are additional cost but it's certainly worthwhile to know you're making a positive impact rather than perpetuating the troubles.

What do you think?  Let us know on our Facebook Page.


Friday, November 6, 2015

The Value of Quality

In almost all marketing surveys, the average person believes that PRICE is greatest determiner of QUALITY.

Think about your own experiences, when offered seemingly identical products - what 'usually' drives your purchasing decision.

First, it will be delivering on your basic physiological needs of "how does it make you feel?", but running a very close second as the price of the item & where it sits in your perception of quality.

An example that recently came to my attention is a pair of Giuseppe Zanotti shorts, available from Saks Fifth Avenue for AUD $3897.67.

For some, this represents value; however, for most of us I would not estimate that this pair of shorts is over 30 times better quality that a pair you can get for AUD $129.00.

The same can be said for bags.

Yes - there are the really cheap & nasty ones that are no better than single-use plastic; certainly beware of a bag you can get printed & delivered for 35p / 85c each.

You do need to lift your sights a little higher than that, but not too far.

You can get an extraordinary bag with an excellent print for not much more than 80p / $1.80 or so.

Contact Bag People to see what we can do for you.