Going Around in Circles - How to make Circular Design creative

Louisa O’Connor, Client Services Director, Seen Displays

Sustainable and Circular Design has always been a focus for us at Seen Displays and we have tried to adopt a sustainable design approach whether it formed part of the original brief or not. However, Covid-19 seems to have put a spotlight on what people deem as important and has made them even more aware of their environment, their health and their relationships. This shift in priorities is feeding directly into retail brand design and in turn how brands are approaching their campaigns and installations to speak to this re-evaluation of priorities. Sustainable design and manufacture obviously plays a huge part of this focus but brands often don’t know how to approach this in an authentic, creative and engaging way. Circular Design does not have to be expensive. It does not have to be brown. It does not have to be boring and it does not have to be “oh we can’t do this, we’re not big enough”. Here’s how…

What do Consumers actually want?

In these difficult times, we are seeing that if consumers are going to spend their hard earned money, they now either want to do it by a) giving back to their local community and market place – “shop local” is no longer just a buzz-word but a thing people are actually doing, or b) by using a brand who is actually making a positive difference to their immediate and wider world.

Kaan from our Gen Z Collective, a 22-year-old Fashion Designer, states – “I think that the way brands were previously set up was purely for the aesthetic and purely for the design concept. But a lot of brands are realising that it’s important to stay sustainable… so I think a lot of brands are seeing that and changing their perspective on how they begin making and designing.”

The definition of what is essential purchase is now being blurred and this is even stretching into the world of luxury fashion. Previously, it may have been considered as a triumph if you were seen to represent excess and frivolity. However, we have seen many examples of luxury fashion brands championing re-use and recycling and even using these methods within their designs to create truly ground-breaking collections. A recent example is Gucci’s “Off The Grid” collection which exclusively uses ecologically sustainable raw materials, production processes and even a responsible marketing campaign. Creative Director Alessandro Michele, alongside using 100% recycled nylon, metal free tanned leather and ECOLYL fabric in the garments, directed the photoshoot for the campaign himself in a park local to him in LA, which in turn reduced the environmental transport and equipment impact usually associated to high-fashion shoots.

Image: Harmony Korine, Courtesy of Gucci

It doesn't have to feel overwhelming…

Knowing that all levels of consumers, from essential to luxury, are craving more sustainable attitudes when it comes to retail means adopting Circular Design should be considered by all retail brands. However, there is still a stigma around Circular Design which can make it feel either expensive or just too much like hard work for some brands. The first point is yes, some sustainable materials can be either be expensive to purchase or expensive to make but conversely, we have seen consumers willing to spend more if they know the item they are buying is more sustainable. However, Circular Design isn’t just about using fancy sustainable materials (although we will come on to how that can be fun) and sustainable design can be achieved in a much simpler and cost-effective way. Re-use is a major part of the cycle – avoiding making or using materials from scratch and re-using and re-modelling something that already exists can be a really innovative way to create unusual and unique designs.

Balenciaga is king of this, using old Las Vegas casino hall carpet pieces to create their flooring in their Milan flagship store as well as collaborating with Crosby Studios to create a transparent sofa stuffed with old and worn pieces of clothing from their past campaigns. You can also make simpler materials and designs work harder for you. When we worked with Alexander McQueen on their material and asset palette, we created a series of accessories and shoe tables using a layered and stacked design so that they could be constantly re-formatted to create new looks and sizes without the need for a rebuilding new items.

Image: Sofa by Harry Nuriev of Crosby Studios courtesy of Balenciaga

Circular Design can even feed through to your packaging. We have worked on previous Nike campaigns where if packaging could not be avoided, we made it work harder – for example using product bags made from flower seed paper which could be later planted, or gift bags made with longevity in mind for re-use and re-purpose. Another innovative example comes from Samsung and their campaign which used their empty packaging to create useful pieces of small furniture to use around the house – the waste became the opposite of waste, it became something useful and beautiful.

Image - Samsung

Innovative materials

Beyond being clever with designs with re-use at their heart, the really innovative work comes with material choices – and these choices are very rarely brown or boring contrary to popular belief! Circular Design gives us two main options when it comes to materials – biological and technical. Biological material choices focus on materials which can biodegrade more easily when “trashed” – this can include inexpensive and quick choices such as cork board or more ground-breaking materials such as Mycelium which uses fungus fibres to create rigid sheets or packaging. Stella McCartney has championed such methods through her store designs using mannequins made of sugar cane and waste-paper pulp from their head office to create wall panelling.

Image - Stella McCartney Old Bond Street London

The technical side uses man made products which have been recycled to create new products. We have worked with the wonderful Charlotte Kidger a few times to use her colourful and unique products (made from acrylic dust waste from Perspex CNC machines) to create bespoke product risers for clients such as Converse. Ace and Tate also recently opened their new flagship in Antwerp which is a wall to wall extravaganza of Plasticiet – a product using waste plastic packaging to create colourful solid panelling. This is a great example of how research and collaboration can really pay off in a) championing a little-known sustainable product b) in turn creating a totally unique and bespoke store design c) which then engages and attracts new consumers through the innovative project and its core values.

Image - Ace and Tate Amsterdam

What’s next?

Aside from the physical, digital is playing a major role in this sustainable shift. Online to Offline activations are a topic within themselves, but we have seen great examples of brands using the power of social media and digital to further their Circular story. Going back to Gucci, as part of their “Off The Grid” campaign, consumers could also follow the brand story online via the Gucci app where they could build their own virtual tree house like the one featured in the product photography. Online shopping and engagement has seen a huge increase since lockdown and is set to stay. Digital activations have very obvious positive environmental implications and we think considering them in line with any future campaigns will keep brands relevant and consumers engaged for longer.

In summary, Circular Design considerations don’t have to feel overwhelming or unachievable or boring. Even small changes can make a huge difference. We would love to be part of your sustainable journey so please get in touch to discuss any questions or how you can incorporate the process into your future projects.

contactLDN@seendisplays.com