To encourage retailers to distribute less stuff that ends up as garbage, you bring empty bottles for shower gel, shampoo or cleaning or washing liquids back to the supermarket and shelve it there where you found a similar new one.
Not to annoy other customers you put it behind the full bottles.
If you shop online, you put the empty bottles in the deposit crate you get from them, together with the deposit bottles (at least that's how it works in .nl/+31).
This also makes a practical shopping list. You just throw all the empty bottles in a bag you bring to the supermarket and you come back with new ones.
In the case of internet shopping your delivery guy takes will regard it as an order.
Once many people do this on a massive scale the retail industry will respond with some thing to make money from this. Like offering refills as a new service.-- rrr, Apr 26 2007 Shampoo refill station Shampoo_20refill_20stationThe idea that gave birth to this one [rrr, Apr 26 2007] crate with groceries http://www.albert.nl/picture of the crate as mentioned in the idea [rrr, Apr 26 2007] // Not to annoy other customers you put it behind the full bottles.
So you'll annoy other customers ... later, when the shelve is filled with empty bottles and have not been restocked, because the sales clerks couldn't tell they needed restocking?
// Once many people do this on a massive scale
A lot of things would work if people did them on a massive scale. Simply asking for refill support or recycling - by sending a letter, or asking for legislation, or through consumer groups, or by buying from companies that do some part of what you want - would change things, if it were done on a massive scale.
I do think that some form of this is actually quite effective even on a smaller scale - it might at least get recycling bins set up, and that might lead the way to more reuse.-- jutta, Apr 26 2007 Those who worked in a supermarket as a teenager know the 'first in-first out' or fifo-system. When restocking you have to bring the old products to the front and add the new ones behind. And the 'mirroring' of course. Align the first row of products with the shelf...
When doing this, the shop assistants will find the light, empty bottles and throw it in their cart to bring to the storage room. That is where the manager will ask where it came from.
With empty shampoo bottles it is not so likely the manager thinks his employee drank the contents on the job than it would be with soda drinks.-- rrr, Apr 26 2007 //A lot of things would work if people did them on a massive scale//
Perhaps I should rephrase this as 'tactile shopping list'. There is a practical reason for people to act like this. They make a shopping list like this and they will not forget their shopping list. It is staring at them in the trunk of their car, reminding them to go the supermarket to get these items. Handy for the illiterate also (14% of US population according to Wikipedia).-- rrr, Apr 26 2007 In our present society where we are offered up seemingly endless choices for personal grooming products, to use your example, the idea of a fully stocked refill service would become rather untenable. Can you imagine how difficult it would be for your neighbourhood drug store to keep and manage dispenser drums of each and every brand and formula of hair care product for you to get topped-up with your favourite shampoo?
Of course, the smart manager would have one drum with dozens of differently-labelled spigots. <aside- Ooh, this new fomula Splurf shampoo is MUCH better than my old Krelb! >
Even though the altruistic nature of this idea would give you a little more peace of mind, you have to realize the retailers are going to just dump the empties into the trash compactor behind the store rather than deal with the hassle and mess. Same amount fo trash, just in a different location (NIMBY).-- Canuck, Apr 27 2007 I've got stop surfing so late - that read "rectal refill geurillas" at first glance-- BunsenHoneydew, May 02 2007 With friends like that...-- egbert, May 03 2007 random, halfbakery