Wednesday, June 5, 2013

An Unrelated Rant About Wastefulness!

I know this is far afield from the expected content on a beauty blog, but I really felt the need to communicate the extent to which I hate wastefulness. As you can clearly see, this stack of Restoration Hardware catalogues measures in at nearly 2 inches high. A staggering number of pieces of paper were used, and this was all mailed to me at the same time in a plastic sleeve. Here's the thing, I have not shopped at Restoration Hardware in years, nor has my sister, nor has a friend, and nor has his mother. Our four households received this mailer, and in all cases these were immediately tossed into the recycle bin. Without exception, all of us were deeply disturbed by the sheer environmental irresponsibility and wastefulness. There are so many other ways to encourage people into your store, but why at the expense of so many trees being needlessly sacrificed! End of rant.

Did they send these to you? Does this bother you?

21 comments:

  1. It truly bothers me and I agree with you completely. I get nearly every day some unrequested catalogue with many pages of waste. Only yesterday I got 4 magazines (who knows how they got my address) which I threw away immediately bothered both by their impertinence and by their unmeasured used of resources!

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    1. I agree- it really bothers me as well. I get them all of the time as well- I rally dislike the fact that our addresses get sold and distributed- that is to say nothing about the sheer waste involved in sending all of that junk mail. Such an unnecessary waste of valuable resources!

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  2. Oh, we got the same Restoration Hardware encyclopedias sent to us! So, horribly wasteful! At least they will be recycled.

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    1. Encyclopedias is right!! It is horribly wasteful! Agreed, at least they will be recycled- but it's a pity that they were made- let alone sent out at all! :-(

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  3. You said it. I've had the misfortune of buying a sofa from them 10 years ago and I'm stuck on their list. I also feel bad for the mail carriers having to lug all these around.

    It's such a disgusting waste of resource.

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    1. Come to think of it- it was about 10 years ago that we got a table and chairs from them, and I guess they kept our contact information! I agree-- it is a horrifying waste of resources. you are so right about the poor mail carriers that have to lug those around!

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  4. I haven't shopped there but wow, that is so wasteful, especially if the people receiving them don't want them. Reminds me how this one food company keeps sending me recipe magazines (not small booklets, actual full length magazines). They used to be part of a package deal with a beauty magazine; they discontinued the beauty one and seem to have doubled the number of culinary ones. I've contacted them twice to ask them to stop sending them to me but they keep on doing so. :/

    I can't bear to recycle them unread, so they've been kept and add to the clutter in my home.

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    1. It really is just so wasteful!! Since yours are actually magazines- maybe you could donate them to the waiting room of a local hospital- at least there is a chance that they will get good use if you aren't likely to use them. It really is just so disconcerting that we all receive so much unwanted junk mail!! :/

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  5. There's a partial solution to this: catalogchoice.org will help you unsubscribe from catalogs you don't want, for free. It doesn't stop the companies from making these monstrosities but at least you won't get them anymore!

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  6. Hi Helen :)
    I agree with you about this waste. I got this same exact set of catalogs a couple of weeks ago and wonder why the heck I was even sent this?!?! I've never set foot in this store, never heard of this store and was stunned to see that a company would do this in this day and age!!! It went straight to the recycling bin, but like you said it's a shame that they went through the process to be made and sent! Yeesh, why not just send an email :/
    Okay I've cooled off...lol
    Xoxox Naomi

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    1. Hi Naomi :D

      It really is so terrible that they are sending so many out to so many people that don't even shop there! I agree- an email would be preferable! At least you can unsubscribe or delete it! It bugs me how much junk mail that I have to waste time removing my address from and recycling! SUCH A WASTE!!!

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    2. I've cooled off too! xoxox, Helen

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  7. Waste not, want not. There was a time I received loads and loads of magazines from the mail I didn't even order, just like you. I hate excessive papers. It's a fire hazard, geez! if only these people know!

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    1. I agree, Kath! I feel the same way about excessive papers- they really to present a fire hazard- plus they just create such unpleasant clutter! :-)

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  8. Hi I live in Europe. We stick a sticker on our post box that states: no ads or catalogues please. That helps, we never get any promo material. The other thing i do if i receive unwanted things is i write down: undeliverable-return to sender and put it in the post box. That way they get their catalogues back and hopefully learn something from it. It must be so annoying though to get these....

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    1. Excellent points!!! I have done this before, but unfortunately my husband removed this bundle from the plastic sleeve and tossed out the sleeve before I had the opportunity to return to sender! I agree-- it really is annoying to receive these unwanted catalogues!

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  9. OMG Helen that's so funny that you posted about this--I received the same ginormous stack of catalogs and I was so surprised when I saw them. They were SO thick! And each one was printed on thick paper with lots of glossy pages. I kept thinking "how on earth can they afford the just send all this to people out of nowhere?!" I almost wanted to keep them because I felt so bad about immediately tossing them in the recycling. Definitely bothered me a great deal :/

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    1. Hi Becca! It bugged me so much that I couldn't help myself! So you got it too?! It seems that there are a great many of us who received these pretty randomly! I know what you mean about feeling badly about tossing them into the recycling. I felt so badly, in fact, that I let them sit on my kitchen island for a week or two before I could toss them out. Honestly, I don't know why I felt some sort of weird moral obligation to keep them for an adequate time before recycling them, but I did! So ridiculously wasteful! :-(

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    2. I guess that was the point? To make us feel bad for tossing them out so we had a greater chance of at least glancing through it before doing so? (I know I did! :P) Those sneaky bastards! hahah

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    3. That definitely makes sense, but wow-- that is a really wasteful tactic!! Especially so, since we ended up recycling without shopping! You are so right-- they used thick glosy paper-- it must have cost a FORTUNE to produce and distribute! :/

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