The new Free Store is up and running and so far it is turning out to be a great success. Every day we bring another 10 boxes or so to the store and they are gone before the store closes. Funny thing though, no matter how much stuff we bring, there is always a hundred times more stuff waiting for us in our storage rooms.
Sometimes it feels like a battle that can't be won. When you are trying to reduce the amount of things people consume, there is a tidal wave of entrenched conditioning to overcome. Think about it; every commercial is designed to get you to want something new. The first day of school means you need a new outfit. Going to a wedding means buying a new outfit. Want to take up yoga? New outfit. Want to turn over a new leaf.... new stuff is needed for that too.
It seems that every time you want to do something new or different, or if want to mark an occasion or celebrate something, there is an understanding that a purchase is in order. And in case you aren't completely sold on this concept, next time you celebrate the holidays or go to a friend's birthday party, imagine the shock on people's faces if you gave them some old or used gift.
With this in mind, the Office of Campus Sustainability thought it would be a good time to evoke the old adage, "If you can't beat them, join them". Rather than taking the long road of deprogramming and raising awareness (whih we will also do), we decided to substitute the desire for new products with a desire for used products. "Use your enemies greatest strength against them"... and all that jazz.
Just in case you haven't been keeping up with the latest trends, multi-channel marketing is the way things are done now. Spread your message over various channels... website, social media, emails, catalogs... everything. In this way you can stay present in people's minds and make sure they see all the offers you have for them.
We decided that if the Free Store wants to compete with this level of sophisticated marketing, we too need to evolve.
And there you have it, the reason why we decided to take the Free Store on the road. You see a few years ago we acquired a couple of library carts. They have been sitting in storage ever since collecting dust. It wasn't until recently, when we opened the new Free Store space, that we realized that the opportunity to move to broader audience was right there in front of us. Rather than stick to the old way we did things, it was time to multi-channel.
Let's pivot for a moment and take a look at the interesting thing that has happened in the world of online news. It used to be that when you wanted to learn about what was happening in the world, you would go buy a newspaper. With the introduction of the internet, websites slowly replaced newsprint but the basic premise of seeking out news remained. However, with the complete domination of social media, you don't have to find news anymore, the news finds you.
Increasingly, that is what people are coming to expect, especially Gen Zers. If a news story is important enough, you'll see it in your feed. Ads even come to you now. Online cookies track your preferences and if a company wants you to buy their product, they will give you an online site that delivers the final product right to your door. And let's face it, as cool as the Free Store is, sometimes you have to bring the cool to the people. Our new mobile Free Store initiative is nestled in this philosophy.
This mobile option was really the only logical step for us since we are already maximizing our other channels. We have a brick and mortar store, social media channels (a Facebook page and an Instagram account), a web page, and from time to time we do pop-up free stores around campus (our last one being in September where we drew in 2,000 people). The obvious next move was to bring the Free Store to you.
Our office has been in contact with various building mangers to secure the rights to move our Mobile Free Store Carts to various buildings on campus. In our first run, we hope to start out with books and binders, then slowly work our way up to other items that we feel would be in high demand. The hope is that with this additional program, we can start getting making a dent in the real problem of over-consumption on campus. But most importantly, we are hoping that this new program will continue the tradition of making your life better through sustainability.
