The story behind the shelves: How P&G’s sustainable in-store display came to be

Around 80% of P&G’s in-store display shelves have been replaced by collapsible, reusable, and paper-based displays called Flexi-POSMs.

The increasing consumer awareness about sustainability and corporations' role in protecting our planet have compelled the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry to shift towards sustainable product packaging.

For trusted consumer goods company Procter & Gamble (P&G) Philippines, they are also doing sustainable solutions in other parts of their business operations.

Project LESS is a P&G initiative that aims to create better and more sustainable alternatives to other significant but often overlooked materials. Since its launch in 2021, P&G’s Project LESS has customized its product bundling packaging by converting single-use laminate-based bellybands and stickers to 100% FSC-certified papers, introduced flexible and reusable point-of-sale materials (POSMs) and recycled P&G cartons into honeycomb-like wrappers for last mile packaging in e-commerce deliveries.

Among these, replacing old, single-use in-store displays with a more sustainable alternative called flexi-POSMs, is one of the biggest projects P&G has taken on through Project LESS.

“At P&G, sustainability is an integral part of our operation. Our flexi-POSM initiative is part of our continuing commitment to do what’s good for our consumers, and what’s good for business,” says Anna Legarda, Communications Director of P&G Philippines.

What are flexi-POSMs?

Product in-store displays commonly seen in grocery stores and supermarkets. They are branded, usually made of plastic, and often single-use.

P&G began shifting to flexi-POSMs, which are collapsible, reusable, and paper-based to operate more sustainably with partners and consumers.

The easy-to-revisual structure also allows P&G brands to reuse the flexi-POSMs, prolonging their life cycle. This reusability has also allowed the company to successfully reduce approximately 20,000 kg of virgin material use. The flexi-POSMs are also collapsible and lightweight, making it possible to transport twice as much in one trip, enabling lessening of P&G’s carbon footprint from transportation, as well.

Since its launch in 2021, the company has converted more than 80% of its traditional floor displays into flexible POSMs in various retail stores in the Philippines.

These efforts, along with the rest of P&G’s sustainability endeavors in its operations earned the company the Sustainability Company of The Year’s Circle of Excellence Award at the recent 2022 CEO Asia Awards.