![]()
- Maine Caucuses a Chance to Right the Romney Ship
- Greek Debt Saga Back on Center Stage for Markets
- Greece Now Struggles to Overcome Mistrust
- Obama Budget Bets Other Concerns Will Trump the Deficit
- China President-in-Waiting to Sample Slices of America
- MF Global Trustee Sees Shortfall of $1.6 Billion
- Iran to Announce 'Very Important' Nuclear Progress
- Traveling Light in a Time of Digital Thievery
- UK Police Arrest Five at Murdoch's Sun Newspaper
- In Search of America's ‘Hottest Forecasters’
- Dow vs. S&P 500: Which is a Better Investment?
- Mick Fleetwood on the MP3 ‘Dumbing Down’ of Music
- Avis on the Road to Strong Growth: Analyst
- Private Homebuilders: Dead Men Walking
- LinkedIn’s Growth Is Already Priced In: Analyst
- The Real Reason Behind Bank of America’s Rally
- 5 Hedge Funds’ Top Stocks Soar After 2011 Rout
- This Valentine’s Day Love Is Served on a Silver Platter
MOST SHARED
- UK's Cameron Calls for Truce on Bonuses
- Greek Debt Saga Back on Center Stage for Markets
- For China's Xi, Near-Summit Treatment and 'Iowa Nice'
- Greece Warns Bailout Rebels of Unknown, Dangerous Path
- Obama Likely to Call for Cutting Top Corporate Tax Rate
- Get Ready for $5 Gas This Year: Ex-Shell CEO
- How Rescuing Greece Could Destroy the World
- Greek Police Union Wants to Arrest EU, IMF Officials
- Warren Buffett's 5-Minute Plan to Fix the Deficit
- Dividend Payout Could Hit Record Amount This Year
MOST POPULAR
HOT ON FACEBOOK
Retailers Paying Customers to Bring Their Own Bags
CNBC News Associate
Retailers are finding that the best way to get consumers to ditch plastic bags and go green is to give them money back.
![]() |
CVS After buying this Green Bag Tag, CVS customers can earn money back by bringing in their own reusable bag. |
Although smaller retailers have offered incentives in the past, CVS/pharmacy (with about 7,000 stores) and Target (about 1,700 stores) are the largest to do so.
“The general public wouldn’t think of them as green companies,” said Dr. Scott Testa, a business professor at Cabrini College in Philadelphia. “If CVS can differentiate itself and be looked at as the ‘green’ drug store then conceivably they’ll gain more customers.”
In order to participate, CVS/pharmacy customers will have to buy a tag (which costs 99 cents) to attach to their reusable bag and swipe it every time they bring it in. The tag is connected to the company's ExtraCare Rewards program. On every fourth visit, customers will earn a $1 Extra Care Buck that will print on their receipt and they can redeem for future purchases.
At Target, customers will get 5 cents off their bill for every reusable bag they use when they visit. The retailer piloted the program in 100 stores and counted a 58 percent increase in reusable bag use. The program officially begins in stores on November 1, 2009.
![]() |
“The savings is about the same amount as what we're rewarding our guests for the program,” said Target spokesperson Amy Reilly.
Tackling plastic bag use is a smart move for retailers, experts say, as disposable plastic bags have been a target of environmentalists and lawmakers for years. They say the bags take up too much space in landfills and pollute waterways.
San Francisco was the first city in the United States to ban plastic bags two years ago. Other cities have tried, but so far Los Angeles is the only other major cities to ban plastic bag waste. The ban goes into effect in the middle of next year. Washington D.C. will tax the bags next year in an attempt to reduce use.
Just this week, San Francisco Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi—who played a major part in getting plastic bags banned—introduced a new plan that would make it mandatory for supermarkets and pharmacies to give customers a 10-cent discount every time they use a reusable bag.
While Target and CVS are the latest retailers to introduce bag benefits, smaller retailers have already offered the same types of incentives.
Regional supermarket Stop & Shop gives customers 5 cents off their total bill for any shopping bag they bring from home.
For over a year, Whole Foods Market [WFMI Loading... ()] has been giving customers up to a 10-cent discount for bringing in a reusable bag. The company banned plastic bags from its store checkouts in favor of paper bags in 2008.
The company announced in April of this year that since the ban, 150 million bags were kept out of landfills and reusable bag use had tripled, and continues to grow.
“Consumers are sensitive to being taken advantage of,” said Kristin Heist, a senior strategist at Continuum, a global innovation consultancy.
"With an incentive," she added, "consumers feel like they’re winning—they're helping the environment and saving money at the same time.”
- Marketing clichés aside, sometimes diamonds are for investing.
- The ‘Fast Money’ traders weigh in on fashion related stocks from apparel to footwear.
- This list of the 10 most active cities for speed traps was compiled by Trapster.com. See if your town is there.
- This Valentine’s Day should prove a love fest for restaurants, as many couples will be dining out.
- Here’s a look at Westminster Kennel Club’s most successful breeds—and how much they cost.
- What kind of homes do celebrity couples share? Here’s our updated list. Take a look.













