UK consumer champion Which? is known for its expert reviews of a wide range of products and services to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions. It conducts rigorous, independent testing of products ranging from technology gadgets to home appliances, cars, and financial services. As a registered charity (also known as the Consumers’ Association), Which? also engages in advocacy work to protect consumer rights and to lobby for higher standards for consumers.
As part of its work, Which? advertises at relevant locations such as train stations for ticket refund advice, and other awareness campaigns that feature across traditional and social media.
With limited alterations to their brand identity, since they started, this year it was time for a change and changes to branding means any promotional items with the old logo on are no longer needed. Reflecting their responsible ethos, Which? contacted Event Cycle to make sure the old branding collateral went to better homes, rather than in the bin.
From the Which? London storage, Event Cycle distributed 25 mugs and 9000 tote bags and from their Cardiff storage, mugs, clothing, more toast bags, water carafes, ice scrapers, lanyards and air fresheners. A total of 1189 items in Wales alone!
Event Cycle got to work and managed to provide much needed materials to 12 different organisations across the two locations.
For the Cardiff donations, the entire lot except for the lanyards, went to a volunteer-led charity focused on supporting communities with social isolation, food poverty and insecurity. RCV UK.
The clothing will be used by their volunteers who are out in all weathers collecting food from doorsteps for their ‘Tin On A Wall’ collections. These require volunteers to become street champions and leaflet homes in their street to request that food donations for food banks and Pantries be left on a doorstep for collection.
The cups and mugs will be used for people who join the charity’s coffee morning (free drinks and snacks and multi-agency support opportunities), breakfast club (free breakfast and chat), Friday Friendly (free hot meal and games/company), youth club, Chatter and Natter, Craft club and many more social inclusion activities that are vital for reducing isolation and supporting people.
All of the different types of bags on offer are perfect for sharing food from their community Pantry. Here they redistribute perfectly good food destined for landfill and rescue over 2.4 tonnes of food each month to make available to the community.
And the ice scrapers and air fresheners will be given to their volunteers who travel miles to support people dropping off food parcels and collecting people to bring them to social inclusion activities to reduce isolation.
As for the 9000 tote bags in London…
From educational organisations to homeless charities, ex-offender programmes to wildlife conservation, the tote bags donated went on to help 11 organisations across the city. Food banks will be using them to encourage reuse when collecting food for a food growing project will use them for their nature-based art projects in Rotherhithe and a charity teaching sewing and design will be using them for an applique project.
Where the tote bags went: Little Hands; Trinity Homeless Projects; StandOut Programmes; Lewisham Donation Hub; NDCASSOCIATION CIC; Bassuah Legacy Foundation; Change Grow Live, Camden Routes off The Streets; London Wildlife Trust; Edible Rotherhithe; New Horizon; Family Empowerment Network International (FENINT)
Lanyards
Last but not least we have the lanyards. These can be recycled if sent through the correct route and TerraCycle provides the responsible route for this. We sent the lanyards to TerraCycle to make sure they didn’t end up in landfill.