Interview
Sustainable packaging: NOISSUE
If you’re one of our clients, you already know that all our custom-made clothes arrive in recycled paper box and wrapped in beautiful branded tissue.
We’ve been looking for sustainable packaging company for some time. Luckily, we came across noissue, company that is behind our customised Dressarte tissues.
Today we talk to Beth Owens, Content Marketing Strategist and resident unboxing expert at noissue, to learn more about the company and how everything started.
What led you to start noissue?
We started noissue to make sustainable packaging small businesses friendly. We left the corporate world to start our own business focused on producing eyewear from waste materials. As small business owners, we couldn’t find anything on the market that allowed us to customize our packaging at a low minimum order quantity (MOQ). We ended up sourcing the packaging ourselves, and quickly discovered that our stockists and other vendors were equally interested in our packaging as well as our product! That’s pretty much how the idea for noissue was born. Now, with over 25,000 customers, we love making a difference by helping businesses of any size provide a sustainable way to package their products.
What’s the mission of noissue?
Noissue was founded to provide makers, brands, and businesses of all sizes access to custom, sustainable packaging. Every one of our products is responsibly sourced, acid-free and certified sustainable, so that brands can have complete confidence in a premium packaging solution that doesn’t break the bank. We believe that eco-friendliness should be accessible to every budget, hence why our MOQs are among the lowest on the market!
What do you think about custom-made clothes?
Fast fashion is easily one of the biggest pollutants in the world today. Most conventional garments are trend-based, so they simply aren’t designed to last the distance. This has created a culture where fashion is widely regarded as disposable. Today, around 85% of discarded clothes end up in the landfill!
This clearly isn’t a sustainable business model, so we need to start thinking about better ways to make clothing. Custom-made fashion radically reduces waste in production, and has a much greater focus on timeless designs that are to be treasured long-term. Plus, so-called ‘standard sizing’ really doesn’t work for a lot of people!
It’s a solution that, as well as being more sustainable, encourages consumers to think more carefully about how they purchase fashion.
What challenges do you face and what your plans for noissue in the future?
Our range is curated to ensure we’re always offering a sustainable packaging solution, and it’s something we don’t compromise on. Every product we offer goes through an extensive vetting and testing process, so we offer our customers a product that is sustainable and high quality. This means that it’s often a long process for our customers to see a new product added to the range. That being said, our customer base is sustainably-minded and appreciate how seriously we take this commitment.
We hope that businesses and consumers will continue to become more conscious of reducing the use of plastics and choosing more sustainable alternatives. The recent climate strikes and documentaries like David Attenborough’s Our Planet have given environmentalism a new place in our consciousness. We only have one planet, so we all need to take steps to protect it!
The most recent addition to our product range is noissue water-activated tape (which is both customizable and 100% compostable!) It was a highly requested product by our customers, as it’s an easy and low-cost introduction to branded packaging.
What is a podcast you have recommended to your friends recently and why?
There’s a really fantastic podcast that I am hooked on right now called 99% Invisible. It looks at how technology, design, and architecture influence our daily life. I personally know very little about architecture, so it’s fascinating to learn about how it shapes our world in ways we rarely think about!
What is your best tip for people who wants to be more sustainable ?
Sustainability can definitely be overwhelming. Sometimes, it’s hard to feel as though you can actually make a difference as an individual. That’s why it’s so important to start off small. Try using only reusable bags when you go shopping, or making the effort to walk or bike to places in your area rather than driving. I’m personally making an effort to take my reusable coffee cup with me whenever I go out so that I don’t end up using disposable cups, which aren’t recyclable. It’s those everyday habits that contribute to lowering your carbon footprint!
Starting small can also apply to your business, start by looking at how you package now, see what layers of packaging you can switch out for more alternative options, or how you can reduce any overpackaging.