LONDON — Tin Man has developed its first out-of-home campaign as part of a fully-integrated programme to position circular economy platform Gumtree as a champion of re-commerce and sustainable shopping.

The campaign, entitled Consumption Rebellion, has launched to coincide with World Earth Day 2023 on 22 April, and aims to encourage consumers to think about the environmental impact of buying new "fast homewares" such as cushions, rugs, lamps, mirrors and vases.

Tin Man, which won the Gumtree account last year, devised the campaign based on research it commissioned for the client from Censuswide, which showed although 66% of UK consumers recognise the impact fast fashion has on the environment, only 47% understand the negative impact of fast homeware.

Soft furnishings such as cushions are some of the biggest contributors to carbon consumption because they cost less, and the research showed people tend to buy these items more frequently and impulsively, often driven by interiors trends. More than a third of Brits, however, are already embracing pre-loved homeware, fashion and lifestyle products as a means of reducing carbon emissions.

The OOH element of the campaign comprises “fly posters” designed and copywritten by Tin Man’s in-house art department Tin Studio. The posters will be displayed around London ahead of the Extinction Rebellion march starting on the 21 April to illustrate the role shopping second hand can have in fighting climate change.

Earned media activity looking at the carbon cost of new versus second-hand homeware purchases will run alongside an influencer programme. The integrated campaign also includes internal communications.

The campaign follows thought leadership produced by Tin Man and the in-house team, including Gumtree’s first Circular Economy Report. Gumtree chief marketing officer Hannah Rouch said: “We've been passionate about the circular economy for 23 years and while we’ve always spoken about how we can help people shop locally and sustainably, as the climate crisis deepens, we’ve taken a more direct approach with our comms.

“We’re no longer shying away from the role we can have in cutting carbon emissions and encouraging long term behaviour change amongst consumers – and Tin Man is the perfect partner to help bring our mission to life.”

Tin Man founder and CEO Mandy Sharp added: “We’re extremely proud of Tin Studio’s first OOH campaign as devising and executing campaigns that encourage us to protect our planet is very important to us as an agency. We hope the campaign encourages the nation to ditch overconsumption and helps curb our carbon emissions through simple, circular swaps and community driven purchases.”