Washtag
Sixfifty Trading Cooperation
TBWA\SMP
The Challenge
Hang tags may seem like harmless pieces of paper and plastic, but they contribute to the huge amount of waste created annually by the fashion industry.
Despite their impact on the environment, paper and plastic hang tags are still used by most local and global retail brands.
Dr. E Laundry Doctor, a purveyor of detergent sheets, believes in creating sustainable alternatives to laundry and fashion. In fact, their detergent sheets are more eco-friendly than detergent bottles and pods that use plastic.
The brand wanted to create a completely sustainable loop for a consumer’s journey, while pushing new use for its products.
The Solution
The Washtag is a complete hangtag replacement that can wash 0.6kg of clothes, for use during the first wash.
The innovation is made with a detergent sheet that is more sustainable than traditional laundry detergents—foregoing plastic packaging like bottles and pods. Each tag is printed with retail codes using non-staining ink, laminated with a water-soluble film, and tied with a dissolving string.
The Washtag was made accessible to all brands around the world through an open-source website (washtag.ph), where they can create their own.
Bench Better Made, the country’s biggest lifestyle brand made from recycled plastics, initially produced the technology, saving 12,000 hangtags in its initial run.
Global fashion brands such as Guess are now in talks to shift to Washtags.
The Results
The Washtag garnered an outpouring of support from the public, with 47.1 million reach and 5.8 million total engagement — and media coverage including Business World, Manila Bulletin and Rank, with P 237.7 million estimated media values, and 5669% ROI. The campaign reached hundreds of local and global influencers who showed their appreciation for the innovation.
In the Philippines alone, the Washtag can potentially save up to 275 million hang tags produced in a year. But if companies across the world shift to Washtag, we can potentially save 100 billion tags annually.
The Washtag project is an open call to every fashion brand across the world, to sign up for the cause and help create a sustainable future.
