If Santa doesn’t show up at your house Christmas Eve, look for him at the corner of 8th & Cypress in Vancouver, dangling above a rather creative display of recycled ornamentation in a Kitsilano traffic circle. At least that’s where I last saw the guy. Not so fat, definitely not jolly and looking, frankly, a little worse for wear. Not sure who he pissed off (Hell’s Angels? The RCMP?) but I hope they show some mercy by December 24th. Otherwise this whole town could be on the coal list. Not that the mining-happy BC Liberal Government would mind that at all.

Merry Christmas.

P.S. The guy who set up the display saw me taking this pic and asked me to donate to the Food Bank. So I did. You should too – come on, it’s a 5-minute online transaction. Maybe it will help save Santa.

This book answered many of the questions I have always had about plastic. Like where it comes from (waste products from oil production, plant sources, etc) what makes a plastic biodegradable (some petro plastics are, some bio plastics, not) and just how darn much of the stuff we produce (six hundred billion pounds a year!)
As the train ambled through the lush forests if Oregon, Freinkel took me through the history of plastic all the way to modern day developments in polymers generated by microorganisms. Along the way she examines the process and role of recycling, and even travels to the heart of a toy factory in rural China to look at working conditions there. The whole book begins with the author doing an audit of every piece of plastic she touches in a day. Try that yourself and you’ll soon see why this should be required reading for every modern consumer.
So now I am looking at the Amtrak ‘Greenware’ plant cup in a new way. At least the whiskey inside is completely biodegradable.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

I have begun working for a new client, London Drugs, in what can be called a new era of experential advertising.  Lorne, operator of unicycle creative and I, Andrew Capeau, president, tour guide, mechanic, web designer, accountant, general jack of all trades of a small yet proud company Victoria Pedicab Company, began the construction of an enormous styrofoam pile this past weekend.  The formula was simple: add 1 part pedicab and two parts stryofoam. Place styrofoamin the carriage normally reserved for sightseeing hungry visitors and you have one of the most curious looking vehicles rolling on this planet.  Lorne was inspired by a photo of a pedicab operator in China transporting an towering pile of styrofoam to be reused.  Thank God he wasn’t hauling super heavy lead batteries or who know where this would have led to.

Friday April 8 is launch day.  Lorne is touching up the 7 Ft high by 5 1/2 feet height creation.  Our prototype has already passed the wind laden test drive along Victoria’s breezy shores.  A couple bolts are tightened and some squeaky styro sheets are muffled and we are good to go.  The sun is shining and it is mild–somebody must have bought the weatherman a calendar–it’s not rainy, cold or super windy.  The videographer’s camera is rolling and so are we…

I must say that as a pedicab operator I am used to curious stares but what I saw this weekend was beyond my expectations.  Pedestrians, car, bus and truck drivers are gawking with jaws wide open.  I am seeing double takes, triple takes and even full on stops with fingers pointing.  People are not only noticing, they are loving it.  Skateboarders to baby stroller pushers are giving me the thumbs up.  I’m posing for pictures, high fives are exchanged…it’s a love in baby.  I’m starting to get the vibe and the pleasure power of this thing on three wheels.  I begin to search out big reaction site.  My first big hit is the Moxies restaurant.  The restaurant is lined with window view tables.  It’s not a matter of if I get noticed but how many diners I can stop in mid chew!  I know I got them when the forks are pointed in my direction.  I’d say a got at least 4/5′s of them on this pass.

Time to get to know London Drug customers.  I park the Styrocycle in the front next to the bike rack.  Interaction with customers is easy.  These downtown shoppers at LD on Yates are  recycling gurus.  Not just  blue boxers, these folks are composters and recyclers of all things.  LD has me promoting their environmental program “Take back the pack” and I am armed with small folded cards (I encourage folks to stick it on the fridge) to passers by.  Styrofoam is one recycling conundrum.  Nobody knows what to do with it.  The news that packaging purchased from LD can be returned is received very positively.  There is some disappointment expressed the LD isn’t taking all styrofoam.  I wonder if a garbage back load maximum could be instituted?  I can only say that styrofoam takes up a lot of space by nature and at this time LD does not have the area in each store to accommodate this.  The other news, returning old appliances and electronics is very well received.  A bit of a revelation and relief to some is the ability to recycle the compact fluorescent bulbs which are know to contain mercury.  A few are encouraged to bring in their dead batteries (AA, AAA, C and D’s, hearing aid, watch batteries and the like).  One elderly woman stated that she goes through two batteries a week for her hearing aid.  She plans to bring them in to the customer service desk in the future.  It is stories like these that make me easily motivated to work hard on this campaign.

Interested in a media vehicle of your own? Check out the Victoria Pedicab Company here.

I bought 5 tins from Bruce Devereux at the Vancouver Farmer’s Market. Bruce is the real deal – a fisherman selling fish. The price – $5 a can – is steep, compared to mass-produced fish. With such a staggering list of benefits, I believe that premium could be easily justified, but in a branded world, those advantages need to be front and centre.

While the Estevan Tuna Co. title perhaps has some local history and cachet for Vancouver Islanders, it says little about the product itself. The labels are somewhat busy, and make no mention of the numerous benefits. The website, bctuna.com, has the bulk of the best information, though it could be more tastily presented. Overall, the current name and packaging don’t do this amazing fish justice.

In fact, the whole product is so superior, why not re-brand it as – The Better Tuna™

Overly bold? Perhaps. But with a name like this, the first thing someone will ask is “Why is it better?” Then you have them. Whether that question is answered with a point-form benefits list on the can, with a visit to a freshly designed bettertuna.com website or through a face-to-face chat with Bruce Devereux at your local Farmer’s Market, the result will be more word-of-mouth marketing, more PR and more sales.

The Educated Green Consumer market is on the rise. The term ‘supply-chain’ is becoming mainstream. It is proven that people will pay more for ‘green’ products that are better for them and actually deliver on a performance promise.

So if you market a product that really is better, take a look at your category and see if you could be ‘The Better _____™’

In the meantime, if you want some better tuna, talk to Bruce.

Momentum is ‘North America’s Bike Lifestyle Magazine’. And they created a truly electric atmosphere, blocking off the whole street outside the bistro. A valet bike parking pen was bristling with two wheeled steeds of every pedigree. And after a few cool libations at Calabash, the crowd poured out into the street where models cruised up under Hollywood lights, showing off both bikes and wear. My little iPhone video hardly does it justice.

It was refreshing to see a fashion show where the models actually had something to DO besides look seriously over-serious. They zipped up on their bikes, propped them on kickstands, and even deftly demonstrated technical panniers and folding bike mechanisms. All while looking decidedly UN-GoreTex-ish.

So what was missing?
The mainstream. Yaletown yuppies who think they can’t look macho if they’re not idling in a Bimmer. Burrard street business babes who won’t leave the house without three-inch heels. (Yes, there were models in pumps on the pedals) This whole event was one great inside party, cheering on the announcement of new bike lanes, signing up members for the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition and geeking out over the latest in bike light design. A hip choir cheering the sermon from the two-wheeled pulpit.

The Green Briefs Two Bits: If we’re going to move cycling to the mainstream, maybe that’s where we have to bring these sorts of events. Perhaps with time we can take over Granville or Robson streets. Momentum Magazine’s  half price subscription offer ($10 including a free beer ticket) was a great deal. Picture partnering that with a coupon for a larger chain like Starbucks or Blenz. More on site branding for the event would also help.

But overall I was definitely more excited than bitter. Seeing the style, fun and sheer urban panache that cycling can have just fills me with visions of grandeur, I guess. But I definitely need to upgrade my ‘bikedrobe’ before crashing the next fashionista cycle happening. (See my dream jacket here)

So a tip of the helmet to Mia Kohout, the hard pedaling peeps from Momentum, the cheery crew at Calabash and everyone involved with Bikestyle. Let’s see an even bigger, better more mainstream event next year!

Anyone who thinks Vancouver is quite green enough thank you very much had better hang on. We ain’t seen the half of it. But that means more green jobs and a better economic outlook in the long term.

So says Sadhu Johnston, Vancouver’s Deputy City Manager, at a presentation put on by the Board of Change September 14th.

It was part of his launch of the city’s ‘Talk Green To Us’ campaign, which asks residents to submit suggestions for how Vancouver can meet its goal of being the ‘Greenest City In The World’ by 2020. By some standards we are already getting there, reports Johnston.

“As a city we have already reduced our C02 emissions to pre-1990 levels” he says, “while supporting an 18% increase in jobs.” This, Johnston claims, puts to rest the idea that we have to choose between jobs and the environment. He even went so far as to elaborate specifically on the groups and sectors where the city wants to support job creation. (For more on this, see the video clip above)

So what else is the city doing to reach our greenest goals? Focusing on cycling is one direction. “Cars are no longer the priority” Johnston states unequivocally. “We need to get the cyclists who are not comfortable in Spandex… The 66% who say they are interested but afraid.” To this end, Johnston supports the new separated bike lane on Hornby St, but knows it faces challenges. He made it a point to ask the crowd of businesspeople to show their support with letters and emails to City Hall.

The admittedly green crowd then peppered Johnston with challenges and opportunities in waste diversion, muni/provincial politics, and small business support.

For my part, I commented that their definition of ‘small & medium business’ as those with 500 or less employees, left something to be desired for the majority of city businesses who probably have less than 10 employees. (On a side note, Maureen Cureton from Vancity Community Investment later emailed me with some info on ClimateSmart programs for smaller businesses… but more on that later)

Johnston encouraged everyone to submit ideas to TalkGreenToUs.ca, and vote for those they feel most strongly about. For my part, I officially submitted my ‘Green Capitalist’ suggestion (Green Briefs Blog, Nov 6th) so feel free to vote early and vote often.

The Green Briefs 2 Bits:
Talk Green To Us is a good idea, with nice branding. It may be one too many brands for the public to absorb, however. What would have been wrong with extending the Green Capital brand for more consistency and participaton? ‘Green Capital Ideas’ for instance, would link the local initiatives with our global Vancouver brand.

The visual of the cement mixer spreading foliage is very well crafted and engaging, but may paint the real issues and challenges a bit lightly. Sadhu Johnston’s presentation style and personality are strong, and an asset to the city’s brand. I would like to have seen him on the video. Overall a good campaign IMHO. I look forward to seeing how they follow it up, especially with those of us who took the time to Talk Green To Them.

By the way, if you like this kind of Green Business Model thinking, you should consider joining the Board of Change. Their events are inspiring for greenies and capitalist weenies alike.

This year I attended the EPIC Vancouver Sustainable Living Show as an exhibitor (with two clients) as well as a blogger, shopper and beer sampler. There were brand and product concepts aplenty, offering a creative marketing boost as well as a feeling of genuine entrepreneurial optimism. Sure, the usual flock of ‘green’ graphics were on display, with their obligatory sans-serif typefaces and bamboo-wood backgrounds. And there were likely more overpriced niche products than rich hippies to buy them. But overall, the mainstreaming of sustainablity was evident, from the decidedly non-green-and-fuzzy crowd demographic to the inclusion of retailers like London Drugs in the exhibitor mix. I only had so much time to focus on a few interesting brands in my video highlight reel, but you can learn more on the EPIC Vancouver web site. Maybe we’ll see you there next year. Enjoy.

I recently completed a very fun project, the CD and package design for The Bent Nails, a band I have been involved with off and on for more years than I care to admit. I have always rather detested the classic ‘jewel case’, so I was eager to find a solution that was more compact and environmentally-friendly, but still provided room to feature the unique character of the band. In the age of downloads, the CD format itself may well be destined for the tar-pits (see comparison below) but it’s hard to sell downloads at a gig.

Working with Hemlock Printers, I found a cardboard sleeve that could be digitally printed on FSC-Certified 100% post-consumer-waste recycled stock and sealed with a small perforated transparent tab to avoid plastic shrink-wrapping (and the inevitable search for a machete to cut it open after five minutes of futile fingernail-fraying frustration)

Further discussions with the printer revealed that there was ample room on the press sheet for a few more items to be printed. In a fit of design efficiency I wedged in a postcard, a coaster and two business cards, all printed in full colour on both sides. I’m sure some cutter operator at Hemlock is still cursing my name.

The result is a coordinated package of material which, thanks to the photographic mastery of Clinton Hussey, captures the eclectic, rootsy blues feel of the band without toasting too many trees.

What about the carbon footprint of the whole CD and DVD process?

A recent whitepaper on the Environmental Leader website, sponsored by Microsoft and Intel, examined the carbon footprint of music delivery methods, all the way down to the final trip home in your car. They found that purchasing music digitally reduced CO2 emissions associated with delivering music to consumers by 40-80 percent, as compared to buying a CD at retail. Of course, as a study funded by two giants of the digital delivery industry, they probably measured against a Hummer driver cruising to a cross-town mall at rush hour, buying a double-plastic-wrapped anniversary edition of Devo’s Greatest Hits complete with commemorative plastic hat.

I like to think if you took the bus to the Bent Nails Gig at the Cottage Bistro (4468 Main Street, Vancouver) on October 17th and bought one of our 100% recycled-packaging  CD’s straight from the band, the carbon footprint would be almost equal.

Production Notes:

Design: Lorne Craig, Unicycle Creative
Producer: Shelley Stevens
Photography: Clinton Hussey
Printing: Hemlock Printers – Digital 4 Colour Process both sides.
Stock: 130lb Mohawk Options Cover PC White 100%PC FSC RECYCLED
Car: The Termite Taxi – Original 1947 Chrysler Town & Country, courtesy Tevie Smith

On a recent trip to the Okanagan, I discovered just such an opportunity. The Beaumont Family Estate winery has 36 acres of grapes under cultivation in a lush corner of Westbank, BC. I was pulled off the road by their sign:  ‘Wine shop open. 100% Organically Grown Grapes’, adorned with a well-rendered if somewhat mysterious treble clef symbol . As I am a sucker for all things organic, musical and wine-like, I turned in.

Entering the  tasting room, a bar in the corner of their production area, the first thing I noticed was a keyboard, guitar, amps and PA set up in the corner. Owner Louise Lubchynski explained the set-up as she set up their range of wines for tasting. She said they often have musicians playing in their winery, and locals frequently drop by to jam. That’s when I noticed the phrase ‘Wine is friendship set to music’, featured on some of their marketing materials. This thought swirled in my head as we tasted our way through their offerings: Gewurztraminer, Gamay Rose, Pinot Gris, Gamay Noir, Pinot Noir and Heritage (a delightful blend of Gamay Noir and Pinot Noir)

Certainly the quality of their product is competitive. My favourites were the Gamay Rose, the Pinot Noir and the Heritage, and we took home a selection.  The organic heritage of the winery itself is also strong, having sold grapes to other organic wineries for years before opening their own label just this May. And, as an operation who started organic farming because of their children, the Lubchynskis have a strong family background story to tell. (Their daughter is now the winemaker) But for me, as a big brand idea, the musical overtones of this winery kept calling. So how can this young performer break through without spending barrels of marketing cash?

Green Briefs Marketing Recommendation

First of all, the musical angle should become the main marketing focus for the Beaumont brand. It’s a natural. Wherever musicians, organics and wines intersect, Beaumont should be there. Louise told me their wines have a strong fan base in the Kootenays. This would be a good place to start to generate some word-of-mouth with social media and some targeted sampling. Local festivals such as the Shambhala Music Festival, the Kaslo Jazz Etc Summer Music Festival and the Island Music Fest in Comox/Courtenay, just to name a few, would be excellent venues.

The Beaumont website could also benefit from some musical presence, as well as telling the excellent family story of Beaumont. Why not make it a place where local musicians can feature their music and downloads right next to the wines and the organic story?

Last, but not least, the packaging and identity could do much more to establish this brand as the musical friendship wine of choice. Certainly it is clean and functional, but when every bottle gets into the hands of a customer, it’s a shame not to have each one tell more of a story. I would even go so far as to rename their line, along musical themes, which would virtually guarantee more sales among  musicians and their fans alike.

After all, stories (and songs) are one of marketing’s most powerful tools.

As an example, Louise told me of one taxi driver who brought a tourist to their winery and stopped short when he saw their musical stage. He ran back to his cab, returning with a flute he had been carrying in his trunk.

“It has always been my dream to play in  a winery!” He exclaimed. “Then live your dream!” replied Louise. And the cabbie did, joining the musical jam.

Likewise, I hope Beaumont lives its dream. As should any brand with a unique niche. If you’ve got one, play it loud.