Whether you're a Gen X, Millenial or Gen Z, you're a man that cares about the Earth. We all know about the environmental impact of consumerism and applaud you for making conscious decisions. At HERCK, we respect the Earth, and you, by ensuring the way we do business considers your and our carbon footprints.

That's why we made sure we're doing our part and are involved in some Earth-conscious initiatives. 

Solving Ocean Plastic 

Discarded plastics making it through our waterways and into the Ocean has become an 8-million-tonne-a-year problem. While larger plastics can cause fatal problems for marine life, of significant concern is that many of these plastics will not decompose. Instead, they break up into tiny pieces over time that fish and sea mammals could ingest and can make their way into our food sources. Many of these plastics are toxic and can contribute to health problems.

Even with massive international initiatives to reduce plastic use (yes, we banned the free supermarket plastic bag in Australia already) and soft plastic recycling services like RedCycle, plastic is still piling up in the Ocean.

We felt we needed to help and that you'd be honoured to help too. To help, we've partnered with Verdn, who are leaders in assisting everyday heroes like you to make a difference. With every order of HERCK, you're funding removing 2kg of plastic from the Ocean. And, because we want you to know that you're an #everydayhero, you can track your impact through our website, literally seeing when and where you made your impact.

Shipping With Sendle  

Fast, global shipping is a neat thing, but carbon-neutral logistics are Earth-inspiring.

Fossil fuels power our modern world, and it's no secret that this is terrible news for the Earth. As an eCommerce business, we rely on shipping, so HOW we get your HERCK orders to you matters immensely.

Did you realise that over 10% of global CO2e emissions are from transport and logistics?

We chose to ship with Sendle, who boast 100% carbon-neutral, fast, global shipping. We're inspired by the way they're reinventing global postal logistics that are not only cost-effective but are Earth-friendly too. They achieve this through a powerful partnership with South Pole.

While electric trucks and bio-fuel aeroplanes are something we humans haven't developed viable technology for, Sendle works with the South Pole to direct a considerable chunk of dosh into projects that improve the environment. This partnership provides funding for regeneration, reforestation and conservation projects to buffer against climate change while completely offsetting Sendle's CO2e emissions.

 

HERCK Refill Exchange Program

With all of these inspiring initiatives already mentioned, we felt it wasn't just enough to support something and throw money at a situation that needed action. We thought we'd do something instead and thought carefully about how to package HERCK.

The HERCK pocket palette is made from steel and is easily recycled and reused. We want you to WANT to take it with you everywhere and refill it as many times as possible. So, while the hexagonal disk is reuseable and recyclable at a metal recycling facility, we needed a solution for the many refills you're going to put through it.

If you end up throwing your empty refills away in the trash, they would eventually oxidise and break down, providing a much better option than plastic. However, we had a much better idea and introduced a refill exchange program from the outset.

For every refill you send back to us, you get $4 AU credit. That would be $12 AU credit if you sent a 3-pack back.

To claim your credit, all you need to do is post your empty refill disks back to use. A regular envelope with a little cardboard insert and standard shipping is sufficient. Make sure you add your name and email address onto the back of the envelope, so we know which account to credit and post your empties to us at:

 

Once we receive your returned refills, we'll issue you with credit that you can use on your next order.

Recycling HERCK Packaging

How beaut did your HERCK order look when you received it? Hopefully, you're saying neat things right now! Here's what you need to know about each component of your order.

Reuseable & 100% Compostable Shipping Satchel

Did you notice the recommended cut line when you opened your order of HERCK? If you did, you would have seen there's a second seal strip allowing you to reuse the shipping satchel. Clever, huh?

The most impressive feature is that the black HEROBUBBLE satchel, including the paper shipping label, can actually be composted at home! Seriously, if you're greening-out with a worm farm or home compost heap, you chuck the shipping satchel in there with your vegetable scraps and have it break down within 150 days.

Our mates make these clever satchels over at HEROPackaging, and although they feel like plastic, they're actually 70%-80% PBAT—a biodegradable co-polymer and 20%-30% PLA—biodegradable refined cornstarch. This blend has passed Australia's stringent AS5810 certified home compostable requirements. However, in a bubble-pack form the layers are a little thick, so we recommended shredding them first to aid composting.

Not into home composting? The shipping satchel can go into your green waste bin or into your general waste, where it will break down naturally.

Recyclable Components

1. Cardboard box

Recyclable in your recycling bin; just pop the foam-insert out first as this needs to be processed separately. However, these boxes make sorting your socks, belts, ties and other accessories easier in your drawers, so why not reuse them for a while first?

2. Cellophane refill bag

Recyclable through your local RedCycle soft plastics initiative. We did think a lot about alternatives to soft plastic here, but we did need something that kept your refills free of contaminants without using a lot of packaging, and these little slips came out trumps.

3. Velvet drawstring bag

Reuse these little bags at Christmas, on birthdays or Valentines Day. The recipient will swoon over whatever you put inside! Otherwise, your local charity shop will make use of these, offering them to customers that buy second-hand jewellery. Whatever you do, it's best not just to trash them.

4. Foam box insert

It's a Polyurethane product and can't be recycled through normal channels as they require a specialised process to repurpose it into products like carpet underlay. If you're unable to find a facility that recycles polyurethanes, we suggest burning it instead of leaving it to go into landfill. While we know this isn't the best packaging to use, we're working with our suppliers to find an alternative. You can read more about the advances in polyurethane recycling and alternative products here.

Our Commitment To The Future

While we're proud to consider and tackle all of these environmental issues from the beginning, we know there is always more that can be done and more that should be done.

Our goals include improving the environmental impact and sustainability of our packaging. We also aspire to support remote work in all roles possible and expand our warehouses to other continents to minimise carbon emissions.

Because we know that stamps-of-approval matter, we'll be seeking a measurement of our carbon footprint to ensure we're zero and adjusting (if required) to gain a zero-rating and NoCO2 Certification with the Carbon Reduction Institute of Australia. If you're keen to know when we achieve this, make sure you're signed up to our mailing list below.