It looks like the retail industry is paying some much needed attention to the recycling, or should I say re-bagging habits of many of its consumers these days. No, this isn’t another case of an industry/company going green, although this would fit the description in more ways than one. Instead, retailers are beginning to put a little extra effort into the design of their shopping bags, as they look to gain a bit of free advertising from consumers that have a tendency to reuse some of the more attractive, high end bags for their own daily purposes (i.e. transporting lunch, gym clothes, etc).

Once a flimsy afterthought in American retailing — used to lug a purchase home from the store, then tossed into the trash — the lowly, free store bag is undergoing a luxurious makeover.

From upscale emporiums to midprice chains, retailers are engaged in a heated competition to make the most durable, fashionable shopping bags. They are investing millions of dollars in new flourishes like plastic-coated paper (Macy’s and Juicy Couture) and heavy fabric cord handles (Abercrombie & Fitch and Scoop).

Behind the battle of the bags is a significant shift in behavior that has turned consumers into walking billboards for stores. In cities like New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, customers have begun treating shopping bags as disposable purses that can be reused for weeks, if not months, to carry laundry to the cleaners, books to the beach or lunch to the office. Peep:

But only the best bags make the cut. So stores, sensing a marketing opportunity, are racing to transform bare-bones bags into lavish, thick ones that will become free advertising.

(via NYT)