Amidst the historic COP26 Climate Change Summit 2021 where the conversation of sustainability is at an all-time high, one Dorset business has put a stake in the ground with their solution to tackling the world plastic waste problem.
This month sees the launch of Pack A Range, a new business providing a large collection of children’s toys for those parents wanting to avoid their use of plastic in the run-up to Christmas.
The company behind the idea, Mauveworx, was one of the UK’s largest manufacturers of PPE Face shields for the NHS during the Covid crisis, all produced from their factory in Ferndown.
Their Managing Director, James Martin, was to all too aware that the necessity to protect the nation quickly, and in large numbers, was resulting in an unfortunate rapid rise in single use plastic waste around the world. The saving of lives at this time became a priority, sadly to the detriment of the planet. This wasn’t sitting easy, and the father of 5 who, also frustrated with the amount of plastic toys building up around his home, decided to take matters into his own hand and create a solution to the problem.
Says James, “After observing our own consumption of plastic through toys I did a bit of research to understand the issue better. The toy market is $20bn a year industry, of which 90% contains plastic. Unlike single use plastics, such as drink bottles, the toy market is not geared towards recycling with most ending up in oceans or landfill. Also, a recent study of 2000 parents found that 25% admitted to throwing away plastic toys that were in perfect working order. These alarming figures compelled me to take urgent action, which would enable a way for playtime to not only be fun, but also eco-friendly”.
The Mauveworx Products division began a journey to create Pack A Range, toys to build, play and learn from. Not only have they designed products in-house such as Pack A Den and Pack A Desk, they have also built upon their collection of products from like-minded brands who share the same sustainable ethos.
“We were keen to provide a range of different products to appeal to different ages (3 to teens) and different budgets (£5.00 – £50.00), to allow plenty of choice. Whether you’d like a T Rex Mask, a DIY Wooden Model Musical Box, a den to play and colour in, or an educational 3D map of the universe, we offer a very diverse range of toys to suit many tastes” All striving to be plastic-free.
The world’s leaders, news reporters and the public are waking up to this large-scale problem we are all living in. There is sadly no quick fix, but innovators such as Pack A Range are making real efforts towards creating a greener planet.
Check out the range of products on www.packarange.co.uk, or follow on all social media @packarange
For more information, please contact amy.gray@mauveworx.com