Changing the world starts between the sheets

By creating products with end-of-life design at the core, Marcus Nelson of Loop Home hopes to provide an alternative to traditional bedding. His products are reversible, resulting in “a product twice as versatile”.

“You absolutely have to start in the design phase with the end-of-life in mind.”

“That means we’ve, in theory, halved the replacement cycle of that product because we can give people two completely different looks,” he says. “My question would be: why don’t more brands do that?”

For Loop Home, which launched in March 2022, environmental awareness starts with using organic cotton, as it’s gentler on the earth during both creation and disposal. Nelson also hopes to open a warehouse facility for its Re-Loop program, which will collect used products (he expects them to last 6-7 years), shred them to their original fibre components to create new products.

Like Ettitude, Loop Home will increase the range with downgrade products, such as rugs and throws, made from recycled fabrics from other manufacturers. His goal is to have a fully closed-loop product stewardship with an infinite cycle of fibre reuse.

“It’s [about] being transparent around the cost of the supply chain,” he says. “Consumers can then hopefully ask more of the people they deal with, which forces companies to lift their game.”

Major brands have started to do their part too. Australia’s Sheridan launched a textile collection program in 2019 and has collected 100,000 kilograms of used linen to turn into new products.

“Number one: keep the stuff out of landfill. [Consumers] drive change.”

“The brand regularly receives feedback from customers that they are still using sheets they first purchased 20 years ago,” says Sheridan’s marketing general manager Renee Awadalla. “We are consistently challenging every part of what we do.”

A 2022 IBM Balancing Sustainability consumer report found that 77 per cent of consumers want to make more sustainable choices at home. A common obstacle is the higher prices of eco-conscious businesses.

“People need to think through a price-per-usage lens,” says Ettitude’s Yu. “There’s a lot of hidden costs in [the cheaper option] eventually. The environment is paying.”

Tracey Pryor, lifecycle innovation manager of the Australian Bedding Stewardship Council, urges Australians to buy less and – when you buy – buy quality products that last longer, reduce consumption and reuse or repair existing products.

“Number one: keep the stuff out of landfill,” Pryor says. “[Consumers] drive change. If they make the right decisions and they choose brands and retailers that are trying to do their best to do the right things, you drive change,” Pryor says.

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