Earlier in 2020, our venture Koinpack kicked off its pilot by implementing its reuse solution in two warungs in West Jakarta, where the venture has been providing customers with a sustainable alternative to currently used single-use plastic sachets, which are virtually impossible to recycle. Koinpack’s solution comes in the form of reusable bottles that can be refilled multiple times with the same fast-moving consumer goods typically served in single-use sachets.
Since its launch in March, Koinpack’s reuse solution has received a warm welcome from both the warung owners and their customers. Seeking to scale its impact, the venture has partnered with two waste banks in West Jakarta. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, waste banks — or “bank sampah” as they’re known in Indonesian — are community-based waste management initiatives that encourage local households to divert their waste from landfills by segregating it and exchanging it for currency at designated sites in their neighborhoods — that is, the waste banks.
As you can probably imagine, most of the community members who participate in these grassroots waste management initiatives come from eco-friendly households that are aware of the problem of mismanaged waste – especially when it comes to plastic. This eco-consciousness is, of course, also shared by the waste bank managers behind these initiatives. That’s why the managers of both waste banks were delighted to team up with Koinpack and support their communities in eliminating plastic waste at the source.
To learn more about how Koinpack’s reusables have been received by the waste bank community, we sat down with one of the managers who has implemented koinpack’s solution at her waste-bank.
“We know that single-use plastic is one of the biggest contributors to pollution in our seas. Koinpack is a revolutionary solution to single-use plastic pollution, especially when it comes to disrupting multilayer packaging. And, it also comes with an easy-to-use application to guide their partners, it’s all brilliant!”, said Annisa Joenoes, a manager at the Waste Bank Bumi Daya Bersih, Depok City, West Java Province.
Annisa joined the waste bank one year ago, seeking to contribute in a meaningful way to her community. “My role at this waste bank involves learning about how to manage waste in a good way and transfer that knowledge to other members of the community so they can live more sustainably. Waste banks are one of the key stakeholders tackling the waste problem in Indonesia. We partner with the local government to help them handle the waste at the source.” And this is exactly what Koinpack’s solution aims to achieve through its reusable bottle system.
“Koinpack and the waste bank have the same mission to make the environment cleaner. So we were happy to bring Koinpack’s solution to our waste bank community.” What both Anissa and the waste bank’s customers appreciate about the venture’s reusables is that it enables users to skip unnecessary plastic waste in a convenient way: “Koinpack’s system is easy to use. We just need to scan the barcode, input the customer’s name or phone number, and viola, all the transaction is recorded in the system, together with the sales, stock, cashback and customers data.”
So far, the waste bank customers have been delighted by the partnership, with much positive feedback from the local community. As a result, Koinpack is now looking to offer a wider variety of products in its reusable bottles so it can help its customers avoid even more unnecessary plastic waste.
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