40+ Suppliers, One Standard: How Freedom Brought Its Homewares Packaging Into Line
At a glance
Industry: Homewares and furniture retail
Deliverables: Supplier-wide sustainable packaging guidelines
Key tools: Packaging strategy. Supplier engagement. APCO alignment
The Challenge
Freedom was early in its sustainability journey, with packaging decisions made supplier-by-supplier across its homewares range rather than against one standard. That made it hard to show consistent progress against the National Packaging Targets, or to give suppliers clear, usable guidance on what “good” looked like.
The Solution
philo & co analysed existing packaging data to map Freedom's packaging system end to end, then surveyed suppliers and engaged internal stakeholders to understand current capability and gaps. From that, we developed Sustainable Packaging Guidelines for Homewares, built on APCO resources and aligned to the National Packaging Targets, with material guidance grounded in kerbside recycling systems, single-use plastic bans and Freedom's own packaging principles.
“We've developed Sustainable Packaging Guidelines for Homewares. These will revolutionise our packaging design. The impact of these changes is profound, aligning perfectly with our sustainable packaging goals and paving the way for significant environmental benefits.”
Zoe Hertelendi, Managing Director NZ, Freedom
The Impact
Portfolio coverage
Before:
Isolated SKU-specific initiatives
After:
10 product pillars, thousands of SKUs brought under one standard
Supplier reach
Before:
No single packaging standard across the range
After:
40+ suppliers onboarded to one guideline
Regulatory alignment
Before:
No product category-wide guidance for procurement and suppliers
After:
Guidelines built on APCO's National Packaging Targets, kerbside recycling systems and SUP bans
