Circularity
Circularity can be approached in a number of ways. As a reusable brand, since our inception we’ve been focusing on longevity and reusability. Our ambition is to push this further.
Chilly’s aim is to create a circular system for its products to be used in. The products should be designed so that they, and resources used to make them, can be used, repaired, returned and then reused again and again.
But what is circularity?
The circular economy is a systemic change to move from a linear (take-make-waste) to a circular system where resources, once used, go back into the system again and again, keeping their value.
According to Ellen MacArthur Foundation, one of the leading voices in this space, there are three principles the circular economy is based on:
1. Eliminate waste and pollution
Through designing out the negative impacts of activity, including releasing hazardous substances and air pollution, and harmful wastewater use.
2. Circulate products and materials
Focusing on how we can use design to keep materials circulating in the economy. Through design, we can create products and components which are made for durability, reuse, remaking/remanufacturing, and recycling.
3. Regenerate nature
A circular economy can not just look at how it operates in isolation, but needs to consider its impact on the environment and finite resources. Within a circular economy, the use of renewable resources, including materials and energy, are prioritised and the use of non-renewables are eliminated.
To find out more about circularity and the circular economy, we’d recommend taking a look at the Ellen MacArthur foundation, here.
How is Chilly’s approaching this?
You can not create a circular product and have a truly positive impact if you do not also develop a circular system for it to work within. This is why, at Chilly’s we are looking at this from both a product and systems point of view: how we make our products and what happens to them during their use and at the end of their life.
As circularity is such a big topic, we are focusing on the following key areas at the moment, with the ambition to build on this in future.
Products that last
Creating products made from quality materials that last the test of time is central to Chilly’s approach. We’re continuing to develop on this with the ambition of keeping products in use and loved for as long as possible. This not only relates to the overall products’ durability, but also how they are repaired to keep them in use for longer.
Many of Chilly’s products have already been designed for reparability. New parts, such as lids and O-Rings can be bought from Chillys.com. Our ambition is to continue to build on this, so that if components break, you are able to repair or replace them in order to lengthen the life of a product.
Our commitments:
• Design all new products for circularity and to work without the system Chilly’s has created - end of 2025
• Formally add durability and repairability considerations into the design process for new products - end of 2024
Take back what we make
Our ambition is to take back all we make by 2025 so that we can dispose of them responsibly. This means that we need to create products that can be disassembled and recycled or reused. Since 2020, we’ve taken back old Chilly’s bottles to recycle them through our refreshed scheme. In June 2023, we ran a trial to push this even further by taking back any reusable bottle from any brand. We collected unused or damaged bottles so we could recycle them to get their valuable materials back into circulation.We look forward to sharing our findings with you. Find out more about our scheme here.
Our commitments:
• Take back all we make - by 2025
• As we explore this area further, we are embedding circular design considerations into the development of new products. We’ll keep you updated.