These bags are rubbish
PRESS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - 30 October 2007
These bags are rubbish
Here’s a conundrum: Would you rather bury perfectly good materials in the ground to pollute the earth for all eternity or recycle them into devilishly stylish bags to carry your stuff around in? Hmmmmmm……what to do?
Auckland , New
Zealand– October 30, 2007- When it comes to sustainable
business practices, producing huge canvas billboard skins,
sticking them to a wall for a week or two and then burying
them in a landfill is not one of them. But a West
Aucklandbusiness is attempting to redress the balance by
reincarnating the skins into a range of satchels, bags and
clutches.
``I had a piece of a billboard skin
tucked away in my house for years, certain that there was a
better use for it,'' says Glenda Keegan, owner of WAS, the
company producing the range. ``It had a great design on it,
was waterproof and extremely tough and hard wearing. It just
didn't make sense that all this stuff was being thrown
away.''
In 2004 WAS - as in `was something else' - came into being when Glenda used her mother's old Singer sewing machine to cobble together the first bag. ``It wasn't pretty, but we could see the potential,'' she says. Since then the techniques for sewing the bags (``It's tricky material to deal with'') and the materials used other than the billboard skins - including seatbelt straps - have all been refined to a popular range of products that combine fashion with extreme durability and, above all, functionality.
The latest to realise the
ingenuity of the WAS range have been a number of corporate
clients, who have asked WAS to produce bags from their own
advertising billboards, or simply placed orders for their
own staff, and more recently, as carbon-free gifts to
clients.
``The business world is embracing sustainable
practices at an ever-increasing rate, and it's pressure from
consumers which is driving the changes. I made a conscious
decision to be sustainable by using recycled materials to
produce my range, and it's encouraging to see people make
that same decision, based on the same values, by buying
them,'' says Glenda.
Newest in the WAS range is
the `Baby Bag', although family bag may be more apt. It's
large, although not cumbersome, and well designed; there are
pockets and zips - and a change mat - for every eventuality.
The beauty of this bag is that it still has its uses when
baby is out of nappies - with it's waterproof, wipeable
interior makes it the perfect beach bag or sports
bag.
Then there is the laptop bag. You can sure no one
else has got one like it. In a recent review in the NetGuide
Magazine, it was awarded four and a half stars out of five.
The only imperfection the review could find was the lack of
side protection in the foam inner, an issue that had already
been realised and rectified by Glenda by the time the review
went to print.
One of the most popular is the satchel,
and more recently, it’s smaller cousin, the mini-satchel.
Both are the ultimate street bag, combining chic urban
fashion with great functionality.
Finally there is the
clutch, a cute and funky purse with a thin leather strap
that makes a funky streetwear accessory.
Coming soon for Christmas…
Almost ready to go at WAS is the
‘Tote Bag’, loosely inspired by the green bags found for
sale at your supermarket. Similar in shape and volume
capacity, that’s where the resemblance ends. This is a
designer bag designed for carrying bigger loads and is the
perfect shopping bag for around town. As durable as the
rest of the products, the new tote bag will give years of
stylish service.
To be among the first to know about the
release of the tote bags, visit the WAS website at
www.was.co.nz and sign up to ‘WAS Updates’ to receive
email notifications of new product added to the shop.
WAS has stockists in NZ in Auckland, Mt Maunganui, Hawkes Bay, Waitomo, New Plymouth, Wellington, Dunedin and Queenstown, or you can purchase bags internationally from our online shop at www.was.co.nz/shop/shopping.asp.
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