Andrew Thornton’s Budgens supermarket in Belsize Park attracted the attention of the country’s media last year when he stripped plastic from hundreds of products and created plastic-free zones across the store. The move was far more than a publicity stunt and went on to improve weekly sales by 4%.
This week the independent retailer went a step further in its quest to rid customers’ baskets of single-use plastic with the help of campaign group, A Plastic Planet.
The North London store has completely redesigned and reconfigured the back of its store to accommodate 200 more unpackaged lines, bringing the total to 2,602 plastic-free items at the latest count.
The Grocer went to explore the store’s new look.
Features of the initiative
The store feels every bit as high-end as the upmarket high street upon which it’s located.
With fresh sushi made to order, a large deli-style concession by East London retailer and eatery Eat 17 and frozen ready meals by Cook, even these ‘extras’ package their goods responsibly in line with this store’s vision.
Beyond the designer tomato display welcome and Instagramable fruit & veg aisle full of loose produce in wooden crates, lies a multitude of firsts.
Customers will now be able to dispense still and sparkling mineral water for 50p and 60p per 500ml respectively, in a move the owner believes is a first for a UK supermarket. The machine is big, taking up valuable floor space - the decision to stock it can’t have been taken lightly.
To add to the list of pioneering ideas is fresh milk on tap, priced at 99p a litre - another first, Thornton claims.
Peanut butter on tap
While there may be an argument that grinding peanuts is not directly contributing to ridding the planet of single-use plastic, an in-store grinder adds theatre and novelty, giving shoppers the satisfaction of shovelling in nuts and seeing them transformed into a gooey butter that fills up a glass jar - which happen to be available in the vicinity.
Thornton’s outside-the-box approach has also seen an alternative approach to cleaning products. Along with the widely recognisable Ecover products sits a relatively new brand, OceanSaver Pods.
This is the first store to stock the previously online-only brand, which produces cleaning pods. When added to water the pods dissolve to create glass, bathroom, kitchen, floor and multi-surface cleaners.
As Thornton points out: “Most of the products we sell are predominantly made up of water, which is heavy to carry. This brand addresses that.”
Getting the message
Catchy signage reading: ‘Cut plastic out’ and ‘Help us on our journey’ hangs above sections of shelving, alerting customers to products in recyclable or compostable packaging. Thornton’s message is clear. He is seeking a collaborative approach and hopes to inspire the mults to follow his lead: “We need the big guys to copy us,” he says. “We can’t save the planet on our own.”
Thornton remains steadfast in his commitment to continuing to push for a plastic-free shopping experience, but adds: “We can only go so far, we are largely dependent on the big manufacturers to help us.”
Verdict
The level of thought and attention to detail crammed into this high street supermarket is nothing short of remarkable.
The move to launch this new unpackaged look comes just a few months after adding some 800 vegan lines as part of its wider sustainability drive.
It is clear this isn’t the last time Thornton and his team cook up an innovative approach to creating a more planet-friendly store.
“That’s how we can make a change in this world, by inspiring people.”
Thornton is certainly doing that.
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