One person’s ban is another person’s bonanza

Posted by AFN Staff Writers on 16th July 2018

THE move away from plastic shopping bags has created demand for alternatives, including a return of the string bag.

It was announced last month that Victoria will ban lightweight plastic bags by the end of 2019.

Plastic bags used by shops, takeaway outlets and small supermarkets will be targeted by legislation to be introduced by the state government next year.

It leaves NSW as the only state to move similarly on plastic bags, while the major supermarkets make headlines ditching single-use plastic bags at check-outs.

EString Bags is typical of those bag makers finding new sales with its reusable cotton string shopping bags.

The bags are an alternative to the typical ‘green bag’ available in supermarkets and boast the benefits of being completely washable, and 100 per cent biodegradable.

Mike Shakespeare the sole owner and employee of EString Bags told SmartCompany his sales volumes over the past 12 months have “literally gone berserk”, with the move away from plastic bags fuelling a desire for trendy, sustainable alternatives.

“It started, believe it or not, nearly one year ago to the day when the local governments and retailers said they were going to ban plastic bags. From that moment, I had a very sharp incline in sales,” Shakespeare says.

In the last two months, Shakespeare says he’s done more sales than he had in the entire previous financial year, and his year-on-year sales are up a total of 260%. He doesn’t think it’s going to slow down anytime soon, SmartCompany reports.