Anya Hindmarch battles single-use plastic with ‘I Am a Plastic Bag’ project

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Feb 18, 2020

Thirteen years after her ‘I’m Not a Plastic Bag’ phenomenon, Anya Hindmarch has created a tote that takes her brand in a new direction. 

‘I Am a Plastic Bag’ is the name of the British designer’s latest project, born out of her determination to address the growing problem of plastic waste.

Hindmarch spent two years researching and developing a new fabric, spun from recycled plastic bottles and coated with recycled plastic windshields, to create a range of handbags that would incorporate plastic but have a luxe feel. 

Made to last and with a cotton canvas texture, the range is the evolution of her signature ‘I’m Not a Plastic Bag’, which got shoppers around the world queueing for a plastic-free handbag in 2007.

Hindmarch said 32 plastic bottles are used to produce each bag from the new range.

“Despite the impact of our 2007 I’m Not A Plastic Bag project, the problem of single-use plastic is far from solved. The mission has changed however, from ‘awareness’ of the problem to ‘circularity’ of materials, something we’ve spent the last two years working on with the I Am A Plastic Bag project,” said Hindmarch

The project shines a light on the need to move towards a more circular economy, while a decision to close all the London stores during London Fashion Week aimed to draw attention to the issue of single-use plastic waste.

Anya Hindmarch closed the doors of the stores on Bond Street, Sloane Street, Notting Hill and Belgravia and filled them with over 90,000 plastic bottles, collected by her staff from their local communities, to show how many single-use plastics go to landfill every 8.5 minutes.

Additionally, the brand partnered with EcoAct, a global climate change consultancy, to measure the emissions associated with the I Am a Plastic Bag project, making this a carbon-neutral initiative.