Target Just Joined a Groundbreaking New Partnership that Aims to Reinvent the Plastic Retail Bag

Target recently announced its membership in the Consortium to Reinvent the Retail Bag, a groundbreaking new partnership with Closed Loop Partners’ Center for the Circular Economy (an innovation center for collaboration and research to advance circularity) alongside other industry leaders including founding partners CVS Health and Walmart in addition to Walgreens and Kroger.

The new group has one goal and it’s big: to identify, pilot and implement innovative alternative designs for the single-use retail bag. According to Target, it is looking for solutions that still deliver the convenience consumers love but with much less impact on the environment. Consortium members will collectively invest more than $15 million to fund the multiyear effort.

“We believe in serving our guests and communities with actions that reduce our footprint on the plant,” said Amanda Nusz, VP of Corporate Responsibility, Target. “We’re proud to partner with Closed Loop Partners and other leading retailers to take on a challenging facing the entire industry, and we welcome others to join us in this collective effort as we aim to design a better solution.”

Making real, measurable progress will require collaboration and creative ideas from all corners of the globe. With that in mind, the Consortium is kicking off this worldwide search for designs with a challenge.

Beginning in August, the Consortium will invite all innovators to submit their designs for a new retail bag that’s easy to use and environmentally friendly. The winning ideas will then go through testing and potential piloting.