According to a survey commissioned by Amazon, the 64% of Italians are in favor of receiving online orders in their original packagingwithout extra packaging. Amazon offers the option to choose to receive your shipments without additional packaging: an interesting green choice, especially in view of the upcoming Prime Days.
Amazon and shipments without additional packaging
Eliminating extra packaging allows shipments to be lighter and take up less space in delivery vehicles. This helps reduce delivery-related emissions and reduces the amount of material for customers to recycle. Since 2015, Amazon has reduced the weight of packaging per shipment by an average of 38%. and eliminated over 1.5 million tons of packaging material.
Amazon also explains that the essential items, such as kitchen accessories, laundry detergent and diapers, which Italian customers will be able to receive from Amazon without extra packaging.
So many items for which people are more willing to receive only the original manufacturer packaging with a shipping label. As food for animals, toilet paper, household cleaners, canned foods, gardening products and do-it-yourself items.
However, there are products for which customers prefer to receive extra packaging. Such as condoms, hemorrhoid cream and groin wax strips. But also high-value items such as video game consoles and personal computers. These categories are already automatically excluded from Amazon’s Extra Packaging Reduction Program.
Justine Mahler, Director of Packaging Innovation per Amazon, explains: “Like us, our customers really care about reducing packaging. And, even if we have made many steps forward in this area over the years, we can only be satisfied when we manage to eliminate them completely. We are collaborating with manufacturers to design original packaging suitable for safe shipment to customers, without our needing to add paper bags, envelopes or boxes. We increased the number of orders shipped to our customers without additional packaging by 50% in Italy last year and we are working to ship more and more“.
How the Amazon initiative works
Customers can join without needing to select any options. During the checkout process, if the product is eligible, a message will appear stating that “The item will be shipped with packaging revealing its contents”.
“We know that in certain circumstances our customers prefer to have their orders hidden by the additional packaging, for example if the item is a gift for a family member. For this, in many cases, we offer customers the option to request that the shipment arrive with additional packaging, even when the item could safely be shipped without“, he adds Mahler.
Customers who wish to hide the contents of their orders can select the option “Hide contents, ship in Amazon packaging” available for eligible items.
A safe option
Amazon explains that all products and packaging selected for this program have passed stringent drop tests to ensure items reach customers safely in their original packaging. Important, given that 51% of respondents worry about possible damage.
Over 36% said the ability to get a refund or replacement makes all the difference. Amazon has long been a virtuous standard in this. Instead, Italians seem not to care about their nosy neighbors. 78% of respondents said they trust their neighbors to take care of deliveries when they are not present.
Amazon is collaborating closely with companies such as Procter & Gamble to design and test packaging for their products. Including brands like Pampers, Swiffer and Ariel. When packaging is needed, Amazon uses machine learning algorithms to select the most appropriate packaging.
Find more details here.