zerobaggage

Update and zerobaggage symbol

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 16:04:00 +0000

On March 26th Catharine MacIntosh will be giving a presentation on zerobaggage to the second year MBA's at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. We will post her presentation ( if it can successfully be recorded). Stay tuned.

Also the zerobaggage symbol - which is a simple horizontal line with a circle through it - was beautifully captured by Toronto Artist Colin Stark in this photo of man-made nature. We thought it fitting as one the best forms of zerobaggage transportation IS the bicycle!

Reforma Newpaper Article - Mexico City (text below)

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 03:53:00 +0000

This article came from a request from Sergio Zepeda de Alba, of Reforma Newspaper in Mexico City. We had a lovely telephone conversation and this article is the result.

Adiós a los kilos extras
Renta ropa a través de la red y recíbela en tu hotel para cargar con casi nada
Sergio Zepeda de Alba
Voló entre Canadá y Holanda na- da más con su equipaje de mano. Cuando Catharine MacIntosh se preparaba para abandonar Ho- landa, en el 2007, los elementos de seguridad del aeropuerto la re- tuvieron por 20 minutos: no po- dían creer que hubiera pasado 10 días sólo con una maletita.
En esa ocasión, una amiga holandesa le había prestado la mayoría de su ropa, y mientras estaba detenida Catharine pensó que sería perfecto si todos pudie- ran viajar con poco equipaje.
“Vi a todos esperar en la fila, registrar sus maletas y recogerlas después... Nadie estaba pensando en otra posibilidad”, relata la dise- ñadora residente de Toronto.
Luego de barajar ideas du- rante unos días, creó Zerobagga-
ge, un portal en internet que en noviembre de 2010 permitirá a los viajeros rentar y comprar ropa en distintas ciudades por sólo una fracción del costo original.
Los usuarios se registrarán gratis en el sitio y buscarán en una tienda virtual la ropa, nueva o usa- da, que se ajuste a sus necesidades.
Una vez que lleguen a la ciu- dad, podrán pasar por ella a la tienda o los encargados de la pá- gina la entregarán en el hotel.
Para quienes crean que su ar- mario no basta, zerobagge.com también será un clóset virtual.
“Si viajas frecuentemente a ciertas ciudades, guarda algunas cosas en nuestro casillero, avísa- nos cuándo arribarás y nos ase- guraremos de que tus artículos estén limpios y listos en tu habi- tación”, se lee en el portal.
Catharine compara su idea con aplicaciones como Zimride, que se usa para compartir autos, y con redes sociales como Facebook.
“Mi visión es que los viajeros y mochileros que están a gusto con este modelo de préstamo tam- bién puedan conectarse con otros perfiles de Zerobaggage. Si voy a Ámsterdam y ahí hay dos muje- res que son de mi tamaño y pe- so aproximado, podré compartir con ellas”, ejemplifica.
Además, dos personas en la misma ciudad podrían ponerse
d Lleva lo menos posible, y ahorra tiempo, dinero y esfuerzo.
de acuerdo para tener un vestua- rio mucho más completo.
Pero no se trata de vivir de pres- tado. Los viajeros también podrán estrenar guardarropa cada que vayan a un destino Zerobaggage.
Un vestido de 600 dólares, por ejemplo, podría adquirirse por sólo 150, con la ventaja de que no hay que regresar con el bul- to de regreso. Cuando los viaje- ros lleguen al hotel, la ropa esta- rá en su habitación y cuando par- tan, el personal de Zerobaggage la recogerá.
Al devolver las prendas recién estrenadas, otros podrán hacer uso de ellas por un costo mucho menor. Catharine argumenta que si el tiempo de vida de una pren- da es mayor, su costo disminuirá.
“Antes, o podías comprar un traje nuevo de mil 200 dólares o no podías. Con Zerobaggage pue- des pedir artículos ‘prestados’ por una tarifa mucho menor y no tie- nes que ser dueño de ellas: esto te permite ser más, con menos”, ex- plica en su portal.
Aunque Catharine ha plan- teado su página para funcionar en dos ciudades: Toronto (Canadá) y Gold Coast (Australia) la idea es sumar el mayor número de des- tinos posible, desde Dublín (Irlan- da) hasta Dubai (Emiratos Árabes).

Pack Lighter and Save Money by Renting

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 22:07:00 +0000

Pack Lighter and Save Money by Renting

January 15, 2010 12:08 pm by Kate Sitarz

Only go hiking once a year? Think you won't need that expensive digital camera after your once-in-a-lifetime trip? Don't really want to invest in a snowsuit for your biannual ski trip? Instead of buying all the expensive equipment you need for a trip, rent it.

Over the past few weeks I've discovered you can rent nearly anything, from the obvious to the obscure. Renting is not only a good alternative to packing, it's also a great way to try the latest gear and gadgets before you buy them.

I've divided rentable items into categories, including entertainment, electronics, car items, camping and hiking equipment, clothing, baby items, bikes, pets, and places. However, this is just a sampling of what's available. Sites such as Rentoid, erento, and iLetYou all have slogans that center around a "rent anything" principle.

Entertainment

InMotion Entertainment has stores at major airports across the country, including Chicago, Dallas, New York, Los Angeles, and Tampa. You can rent portable DVD players and DVDs and then return them to any InMotion location, or ship them back in a prepaid envelope.

There's also Redbox, the large red boxes filled with DVDs available for rent. More and more are popping up at airports, but if you're heading away for a long period of time with no Redbox to return your movie to, you may end up paying more than you'd like.

Libraries provide a free source of entertainment, including books, CDs, DVDs, and magazines. Oftentimes, if you're not taking out newly released material, you can extend your due date and avoid any overdue fines. It's also handy to photocopy pages out of travel guides that may help you on your trip.

Electronics

You may not want to pay the monthly bill for an iPhone, but they're pretty darn handy to have while travelling. That's where iphoneTrip can help. This site allows you to rent an iPhone for your trip, so you have all those cool features like maps, translators, and flight trackers that can keep a vacation running smoothly.

RentCell offers phones, and also has GPS and laptop rentals. For video and digital camera rentals, erento has a variety of options, including accessories such as tripods and lenses.

Car Items

Car rental companies usually offer items such as ski racks, GPS devices, and car seats for children. Budget has a list of products that will help make your trip easier and offers items such as iPod car charges and MP3 accessories at no extra charge.

Camping and Hiking Equipment

REI, a national retailer of outdoor gear, has stores in 28 states. Each store offers equipment rentals, outfitting you with everything from tents, backpacks, and sleeping bags to skis, snowshoes, and paddling and mountaineering gear.

Lower Gear has similar rentals, but also rents navigational, cooking, and hydration gear, in addition to offering accessories such as lanterns, trekking poles, and multi-use pocket tools. Check with local shops to see if hiking shoes are available for rent.

Clothing

The concept of travelling light is nothing new to Catharine MacIntosh, founder of zerobaggage, who believes "lightness and ease of mobility are a traveler's best friend."

When zerobaggage services become available in Toronto this November, you'll be able to virtually select items to borrow, and find them waiting in your hotel room, essentially allowing you to travel sans luggage, or with the bare essentials. MacIntosh sees the service as being available to travelers on any budget, since users can select from both new and gently used clothing. And travelers can save not just space, but money too: "We also expect the cost to be less than or equal to the alternative of shipping one's own luggage, buying things new, or paying for checked luggage."

A number of companies offer cold-weather clothing at ski destinations. Goldsmith's Board House in Big Bear Lake, California; Gravity Jones Ski Werks in Vail and Beaver Creek, Colorado; Appalachian Ski Mountain in Blowing Rock, North Carolina; and Whistler Winter Wear in Whistler, Canada, all provide snow gear rentals if you're looking to go skiing, but don't want to bring a snowsuit home. Edge 2 Edge in the U.K. and France has similar services and offers free collection/drop-off at Gatwick or Heathrow airports in London.

Perform a quick Internet search to find shops at your destination that may offer winter clothing rentals. Even if you aren't skiing, you can always rent a winter coat to keep warm.

Beyond the benefit of not lugging a heavy bag through airports, MacIntosh notes borrowing clothing "stimulates the local economy and provides an opportunity for deeper, more meaningful social and cultural exchange" in addition to having a positive social and environmental impact. She describes it as a "shift to 'less is more.'"

Baby Items

Traveling with wee ones may not be the easiest thing to do, but the daunting list of necessary items you'll need shouldn't stop you from getting away. BabiesTravelLite features a list of baby equipment rentals by location, including both domestic and international destinations. In addition to its guide to traveling with youngsters, BabiesTravelLite delivers diapers, meals, toys, and other items to your home or destinations worldwide.

Other websites offer similar delivery services for lighter travel, including JetSetBabies, and BabyPlays, which offers toys for rent.

Bikes

Just because you can't pack one doesn't mean you won't enjoy a leisurely ride on your trip. Bikes are available for rent in tons of European cities through bike sharing programs, with cities in the U.S. slowly catching on to the trend. Renting a bicycle is an affordable way to see a city, and an easy way to reduce your carbon footprint. Clear Channel Outdoors manages several programs including SmartBike in Washington, D.C., as well as services in France, Spain, Italy, Sweden, and Norway.

The BIXI Public Bike System in Montreal is making its way to London and Boston, while European programs include Villo! in Brussels, Velib' (website in French with a downloadable informational file in English) in Paris, OYBike in the United Kingdom, Call a Bike in several German cities, City Bikes in Stockholm, bycyklen in Copenhagen, and BikeMi in Milan, among others.

Many programs have 24-hour, one week, one month, and one year rental fees, while some have by-the-hour options. Bikes in Copenhagen are free, requiring a coin deposit that you get back when you return the bike. Search for a local bicycle shop if the city you're visiting doesn't have a bike sharing program, or if the program is seasonal, as in Stockholm and Copenhagen.

Pets

Miss your furry companion? While you can stuff Fluffy into a cage and bring her on vacation, rules on where pets can and cannot go may limit your experience. Cat Cafe Calico (the official website is in Japanese) in Tokyo allows you to snuggle up to Mittens and Whiskers while sipping a latte for around $10.

Places

Okay, so a place isn't something you can pack, but it is possible to rent your own island. Private Islands Online features locations off the coasts of Maine, Tanzania, Australia, and everywhere in between, including a listing I found for $945 per week in the British Virgin Islands.

HouseCarers provides opportunities for house-sitting jobs, so you can truly get to know a place by living in it, while providing security and/or pet care for the home's owner. The catch with this website is you have to pay $45 per year to list your name on the site as a potential care taker, and you may have to spend time building your reputation as a reliable house sitter.

More Ways to Pack Light

While renting is a tempting way to avoid checked-bag fees, it may take awhile to feel comfortable leaving home with only the bare necessities.

If the thought of renting items makes you hesitate, there are still ways for you to pack light and avoid checking baggage. MacIntosh says, "The key to travelling light is knowing oneself well and bringing what I call crossover items that can have multiple purposes." She suggests "taking the time to sit and write down each day of your trip and what you might want or need for each day" to figure out what's best to bring. Packing light is about "getting rid of excess, not going without."

Do you have a rental website or store you rely on? What kinds of items have successfully rented or would consider renting? Share your thoughts, experiences, and advice by submitting a comment below!

Czechoslovakian Articlel on zerobaggage: Cestování bez oblečení

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 04:10:00 +0000

Globální půjčovna šatů
Cestování bez obleče

Zerobaggage

Nebaví vás přenášet těžká zavazadla na letištích, v autobusech a vlacích po celém svět? Zdá se vám drahé s nimi létat?

Kanadská ponikatelka Catherine Macintoshová vám od toho odpomůže. Zřídila celosvětovou službu půjčování oblečení Zerobaggage.

Prostřednictvím jejích webových stránek si vyberete z katalogu, co chcete v cílové destinaci na sobě nosit, určíte termín a místo pobytu a oblečení na vás počká v hotelu.

TechVibes Inverview with Karim Kanji

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 22:25:00 +0000

Luggage-free travel with zerobaggage

Posted by Karim Kanji on Thu, November 26, 2009 2:41 PM · Filed under Denver-Boulder, Portland, Seattle, Calgary, Edmonton, Montréal, Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria, Kitchener-Waterloo, South-Florida, Atlantic-Canada , Web 2.0, Start-up, Social Media · 2 Comments

When I was first introduced to Catharine MacIntosh the first thing that came to me was how passionate she was about her business. Ms. MacIntosh is not a person who sees things as they are and complains. She takes action. And she took action. That action resulted in the idea for zerobaggage.

zerobaggage is not just another Web 2.0 company, but an idea that technology, innovation, and eco-consiousness can merge together to create a positive difference. zerobaggage offers travellers the opportunity to travel without the hassle of baggage. Imagine travelling with only your carry-on? This is the future that people like Ms. MacIntosh are working to make happen.

Here is my conversation with zerobaggage founder, Catharine MacIntosh.

Catharine, tell us a little bit about the reason you saw a need for an idea like zerobaggage?

Old business models are generally based on consumption with planned obsolescence ensuring the repurchase of items and continuation of the cycle. However, this is a closed cycle in which items are purchased, used and discarded. Currently the world is collectively coming to a point where the waste generated is becoming a monumental problem, resulting in a polluted environment and the depletion of essential resources.

Why specifically target the travel industry?

zerobaggage is an idea ignited by observing the waste and inefficiencies of travel as it is connected to checked passenger luggage. With the cost of fuel having decreased from its high a year ago the urgency of changing the way we travel has lessened in North America. In Europe and Australia environmental concerns have made the need for efficiency to remain in the foreground. Ryan Air (a British based airline) no longer allows passenger checked luggage on flights and in-cabin carry-on is limited to 8kg per passenger or charged at nine Euro per extra kilogram. In Australia many economy domestic flights do not allow checked passenger luggage. However, in both these cases there is no magic button you can press when ordering your ticket that presents a decent alternative. There are companies that will transport your luggage separately but this is costly and doubly inefficient as you fly two ways and your luggage also flys two ways on separate planes.

Where does technology and the idea for baggageless travel meet?

The idea of zerobaggage presumes that everything we have here, wherever we are, is also generally available where we are going in some like form. So why not simply be connected virtually to the local market to which you will be travelling so you can choose and select items, that are already there, for your own use upon arrival? This eliminates the need to buy new things and throw them away when you are done. The zerobaggage primary market allows you to hire items for a fee and once used, cleaned and returned to the system, others can rent them at lower cost.

Besides the need for less fuel, what other benefits do you see?

The benefits of this are multifold. The need for quality improves so that items can make it through a continued cycle of rental. Local economies are stimulated by the production and manufacture of items. Socially and culturally people travelling to the destination can take part in the artifacts produced in that place. And environmentally items gain from a cradle to cradle (not cradle to grave) cycle of production. Instead of making financial gains on the sale of an item smaller revenues are collected with each use and over time the financial gains have the potential to double what the initial sale price would have procured.

You propose to offer various services through zerobaggage that offers users the choice to be socially responsible. Can you expand on some of them?

So if it were possible to be connected to local items and simply order them online through your account, say through a company such as zerobaggage, then you could try out new things and play with the idea of who you are and what image you would like to project in the place you are travelling to. This is partly the idea of the Virtual Suitcase.

However, if you also wanted to do the same thing in the city in which you live you could try out the service of the City Wide Wardrobe which allows you to treat the items that are held with zerobaggage as an extension to the items in your own closet. We could say, "if it's not in your wardrobe it's probably in ours". So people could own a core set of clothing or items and then supplement as needed by using this zerobaggage service.

Let's explore this idea of zerobaggage and technology a little further.

zerobaggage presents a new business model. Technology has made it so that we do not have to own everything we use. Much of fashion is being shared through social networks online. Mainly twenty-something women are posting items they wear and are generating feedback from large numbers of people. One woman posted an outfit she wore during her trip to Madrid and 2000 people viewed it. A large number of those people clicked on the items to find out more about them and then ordered them, online, for themselves. It is the ways in which society is evolving via the internet that is creating the need for new business models that harness the power and knowledge that being connected via the web brings us.

I'm glad to have had this opportunity to listen to your ideas. Especially after U.S. Vice President Al Gore challenged Canada to explore how innovation could positivly impact the environment. Can you explain a litle more about how zerobaggage promotes sustainability?

zerobaggage is sustainable in that it promotes local products and services, demands quality from the items and services it provides and both reduces the energy required to travel while reducing the expenditure and waste incurred in the process of creating products. For example, comparing two items that appear to be the same but one has history of transport and waste generation from its manufacture and the other does not. Making this knowledge transparent will allow for a range of choices based on more than style and price alone. The zerobaggage environmental credit allows positive environmental choices to be accumulated and calculated so that a true measure of individual impact can be assessed.

In a zerobaggage world, how would your idea work?

In designated zerobaggage cities, members of zerobaggage would just log into their account, chose their destination and one of the services, and then start making choices. The zerobaggage service called the Virtual Suitcase would allow you to view and select available items in the destination you are travelling to. You define what you want to use while you are there and your request is sent to zerobaggage, fulfilled, and items are waiting for you in your hotel when you arrive. Further, imagine that packing for a family of four. What if four pre-packed virtual suitcase suggestions (based on your previous use of the system) predicted or suggested what you are most likely to want? You could just look it over, change what you desired and save yourself time and energy.

Wow. That's amazing. Thanks for this Catharine!

zerobaggage is currently generating funding, attracting suppliers and finalizing the first iterations of its new business model so that the first zerobaggage members can use the service beginning in November of 2010 in Toronto.

It is technology, a concern for the environment and timing that has birthed the nascent idea of zerobaggage.

Toronto Life Magazine idea # 19, zerobaggage

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:46:00 +0000

25 Ideas That Are Changing the World
Some have profound implications for our health and our social order. Others solve no-less-terrifying conundrums, such as where to find parking and how to kick the Facebook habit. The innovations and inventions that impressed us most this year.

Check out zb in Toronto Life magazine. It's here, idea #19.

October 2009 Globe and Mail Article by Bert Archer

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:33:00 +0000

Bert Archer

From Saturday's Globe and Mail Published on Tuesday, Oct. 06, 2009 5:05PM EDT Last updated on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009 2:31AM EDT

Last week, Ritz-Carlton hotels parted the veil on one of the best-kept secrets of the high-end hotel business: If you stay at a hotel often enough, you don't have to bring your luggage.

This perk, available to VIP guests at various high-end and business hotels, has long been under wraps. But the newest Ritz, in Charlotte, N.C., is offering this service to anyone who stays at the hotel for four days a month or more: You can leave clothing and personal effects in your room; hotel staff will pick them up, clean them and store them for you until you return.

That's a valuable addition to a traveller's arsenal of money- and time-saving tips as it becomes more difficult and expensive to check your bags. Britain's Ryanair is considering eliminating checked baggage entirely, and airlines across the industry are already tightening baggage rules and charges. Frequent fliers need all the help they can get to reduce baggage and navigate the maze of rules at the desk.

The Ritz's offer parallels a service available at many hotels, including several in Canada. The Wedgewood Hotel in Vancouver will keep your clothes for you, as will Calgary's Fairmont Palliser, as long as you pack them up and leave your bag with the concierge on your way out. And the Great George in Charlottetown will hang your clothes for you while you're gone. But none advertises the fact; you have to know to ask. And, of course, you still have to, eventually, bring it back with you.

But what about something easier – not taking luggage at all? This is the idea behind Zerobaggage, a company founded by Toronto designer Catharine MacIntosh set to launch in Toronto next year (with Berlin and Dubai to follow). MacIntosh's idea is to connect travellers with local shops where they can borrow outfits rather than pack a wardrobe to bring with them.

Though MacIntosh's model is still being refined, renting new clothes for a week will cost about 25 per cent of their full value; previously lent pieces will be less expensive. She is also planning to offer customers the use of lockers, allowing travellers to store clothes with Zerobaggage and arrange to have them cleaned, pressed and delivered to their hotel rooms – just like the hotels do.

Those who do plan to bring clothes and check their baggage may be in for a surprise. All the major American airlines changed their baggage policies last year, and are in the process of overhauling them again –generally adding and increasing fees for the second checked bag.

And as of today, British Airways is changing all its rules and fees as well (every bag over 23 kilograms now costs an extra $51). North American travellers will get one free checked bag instead of two, and will pay $68 for the second on a long-haul flight and $153 for the third. Sports equipment, which you were allowed to take for free without counting it as part of the baggage allowance, will now cost extra.

It's no wonder that even the most seasoned travellers find themselves at a loss at the check-in counter.

Luke Dudley found himself in such an embarrassing situation when he and his girlfriend, both frequent travellers, tried to check two heavy bags each for a flight from Sydney to London a few years ago. They were told it would cost $600 to bring their bags with them. They had to run to catch up with the friends who had just dropped them off and red-facedly ask them to ship their bags. “We just couldn't afford it,” he says.

Dudley didn't think much of it until last year when, while working as a teacher at a boarding school, he watched his students pack up computers, lacrosse sticks, golf clubs and other prep school staples to fly home at the end of term. Remembering his own embarrassing moment, he decided to put together a website to keep all the ever-changing baggage policies of airlines straight and in one place. The result is luggagelimits.com, which launched in August. It includes data for 70 airlines, including Air Canada and Porter. You just type in the flight info, and up come the limits and rates.

With the airline industry in flux, it's a good idea to check the site before booking your next trip. But as rates climb and more ideas like MacIntosh's spring up to meet them, it may soon be beside the point for serious travellers: The suit bag's days are probably numbered.

Do you have feedback or business travel questions? E-mail roadwork@globeandmail.com. Follow Road Work on Twitter @BertArcher .

Special to The Globe and Mail

Traveling with zerobaggage

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 20:51:00 +0000

----------

Catharine MacIntosh got stopped and pulled aside by airport security because she wasn't carrying enough luggage from her 10-day trip from Holland. "I had a large black purse for 10 days," says MacIntosh. "I was taken out of the line and they took my passport. They couldn't image travelling with such a small bag.

"I was travelling for business and meeting up with a colleague who was the same size. She said that she would lend me what I don't have." That offer led to MacIntosh thinking of ways to travel without minimal or ideally, zero baggage.

The concept behind the Zerobaggage start up is for travellers, frequent and otherwise, to be able to fly without having to burden themselves with checked luggage. MacIntosh says users of Zerobaggage fly to a destination any where in the world (and is part of the Zerobaggage network) and once there, can purchase everything they want and need from involved retailers (from the "marketplace." This includes clothes, shoes and toiletries. "The idea is to have low and high end goods, all made locally," says MacIntosh. "Not shipped in containers or driven across countries." MacIntosh calls the concept, "sustainable opulence." Travelers who participate with Zerobaggage will also receive points for carbon emissions reduction and could apply those points against dinners in their visited country.

Once you've chosen the clothes from the marketplace, they're made available in the hotel room. But what happens to them after they've been worn? They go into the "pre-loved" section of the marketplace, providing they are still in good shape.

If you're a more frequent traveller, MacIntosh says there's the locker option. You can store your favourite items there so you don't have to lug them with you. It does require buying double of everything, though.

Zerobaggage is expected to launch in fall/winter 2010.

Oh, and if you want to know what MacIntosh was carrying in her black bag when she was in Holland, she had:

Her MAC Book and adapter
A book
A black dress
Four t-shirts
Two pairs of pants
An extra pair of shoes
Toiletries

zerobaggage 5min talk at SproutUp Toronto

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:17:00 +0000

The Chief Baggage Handler for zerobaggage, Catharine MacIntosh, was invited by Erin Bury to speak at SproutUp in Toronto on September 9th, 2009.

To listen to the talk please click here.

zerobaggage Destination Cities

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:15:00 +0000

Talks moving ahead with interested parties in Dubai, Berlin, Sydney, London and now, Dublin for the preparation and creation of zb destination cities.

Stay tuned...

An environmental perspective on clothing

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:09:00 +0000

Borrow more...throw out less.. from Earth911

"... buying recycled clothes has an even smaller environmental footprint. The 12 to 15 percent of people who shopped at consignment and thrift stores in 2006 saved 2.5 billion pounds of clothes from re-entering the waste stream."

"Facts About Clothes

Most of us don’t fully understand the environmental impact of our clothes. From their production, to the materials that make them, all the way to transportation and washing, clothes can make quite a dent on the environment.

While more and more people seem to be recycling their old attire, according to the U.S. EPA Office of Solid Waste, Americans still throw away more than68 pounds of clothing and textiles per person per year. Clothing and other textiles represent about four percent of the municipal solid waste stream.

The materials used to make the clothes we buy also matter:

Polyester, the most commonly used manufactured fiber, is made from petroleum in an energy-intensive process that emits volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and acid gases into the air. The process also uses a large amount of water for cooling.
The manufacturing of nylon emits nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas with a carbon footprint 310 times that of carbon dioxide.
Rayon, derived from wood pulp, often relies on clearing old growth forests to make way for water-hungry eucalyptus trees, from which the fiber is derived.
Cotton, found in most clothing, is the most pesticide-dependent crop in the world. It takes one-third of a pound of pesticides to make one t-shirt.

When manufacturing clothes, dyeing requires a hefty amount of water, and its fixatives often flow into rivers and sewers. Also, all “easy care” and “permanent press” cottons are treated with formadehyde.

Why not reduce your environmental impact by buying recycled clothes and recycling your own? You can do your part to increase the current statistic that every American purchases an average of only 10 pounds of recycled clothing per year."

Czechoslovakian Articlel on zerobaggage: Cestování bez zavazadel? V Kanadě to vymysleli

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 23:19:00 +0000

Cestování

Přejít do diskuse
(7 příspěvků)Cestovani.iHNed.cz 28. 9. 2009 16:30 (aktualizováno: 28. 9. 2009 12:54)

Cestování bez zavazadel? V Kanadě to vymysleli

Kanadská podnikatelka Catharine MacIntosh hodlá lidem usnadnit cestování. Na cesty se budete moci vydat pouze s příručním zavazadlem a oblečení si pronajmout z on-line katalogu. Až dorazíte do cíle, objednané oblečení na vás bude už čekat v hotelu.

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(7 příspěvků)Cestovani.iHNed.cz 28. 9. 2009 16:30 (aktualizováno: 28. 9. 2009 12:54)

Mnoho z nás asi dobře zná ty stresové situace při balení zavazadel na dovolenou. Se značným úsilím dopravíme svá těžká zavazadla z domova na letiště a pomalu je suneme frontou v odbavovací hale. Když konečně přijdeme na řadu, tak se navíc někdy ještě ukáže, že náš kufr má pár kilo přes povolenou váhu a musíme zaplatit poplatek. Když v cíli vystoupíme, zjistíme, že náš kufr nedorazil. A právě těmto stresovým a nepohodlným situacím hodlá předcházet kanadská podnikatelka Catharine MacIntosh se svou novou firmou Zerobaggage ("nulová zavazadla").

Koncept je jednoduchý

Pokud bude vaše destinace na seznamu partnerských měst firmy Zerobaggage, budete moci cestovat pouze s příručním zavazadlem a oblečení si pronajmout z on-line katalogu. Až dorazíte do cíle, objednané oblečení na vás bude už čekat v hotelu. Pronajmout si můžete jak oblečení zcela nové - na týden za 25 % jeho kupní ceny, tak i oblečení obnošené, a to za 15 % jeho kupní ceny, rovněž za týden. Záleží zcela na vás, na jakou dobu si oblečení objednáte - od jednoho dne až po několik měsíců. Jak to bude s cenou při různých dobách pronájmu, ale společnost teprve dolaďuje.

Navíc, pokud do stejné destinace létáte třeba každý druhý týden, společnost Zerobaggage tam bude váš vlastní oblíbený oblek skladovat tak, abyste s ním nemuseli neustále létat sem a tam. Služba by se měla rozjet během příštího roku, a to nejprve v kanadském Torontu a na australském Zlatém pobřeží. Destinace v Evropě a Asii budou prý následovat.

Podle Asociace českých cestovních kanceláří a agentur jde o docela dobrý nápad v době, kdy chtějí některé nízkonákladové letecké společnosti začít účtovat každé kilo zavazadla, které vezeme s sebou.

Více informací zde

Upcoming service lets you travel without luggage

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 01:28:00 +0000

Mobile & wireless

Upcoming service lets you travel without luggage

1 comment | 4I like it!
Tags: digital nomad, location independent, Mobile

September 8, 2009, 02:42 PM —

A Toronto-based startup called Zero Baggage plans to offer a range of services that will enable you to travel without having to check luggage. The company is schedule to go online in November of 2010.

Zero Baggage Lets You Travel Light Even With A Full Suitcase Of Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 16:01:00 +0000

Zero Baggage Lets You Travel Light Even With A Full Suitcase Of Stuff

Luggage sucks. In fact, traveling is often a horrendous experience because of it. From the hassles of carrying heavy bags to losing them at some point during the trip, it makes way for plenty of less-than-ideal situations. That's where Zero Baggage wants to come in.

The upcoming service intends to revolutionize the travel experience by letting you fly without bringing anything along. Rather than pack two suitcases full of clothes before every trip, you can put your regular gear together once and leave them with the service. During each trip, simply notify Zero Baggage and have your stuff delivered directly at the hotel. When you're done, simply call the company again to have the same stuff picked up, cleaned and readied for the next time you need it. Basically, you travel both ways without carrying any luggage, yet having everything you require.

What if you need a pink power suit and your deposited luggage doesn't include any? No problem. Simply log on their online catalog, pick out what catches your fancy and rent it for the duration of your stay. It will be delivered, along with your own stuff, and picked up when you leave.

As you can surmise, the service is great when you drop down in a strange town and want to live a second life. Want to make people think you're a power player pissing cash through your ears? "Borrow" a couple of Armani suits, a Rolex and a thousand dollar pair of shoes for a couple days - who can tell it's not yours?

Zero Baggage is still in the development stages, with plans to launch in the Spring of 2010. It sounds like a crazy, cool idea - almost like a cloud storage for stuff. Expect it to be darn expensive, though, as convenience always comes at a price.

Bagagem zero - curso sem sua bagagem

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 22:36:00 +0000

7 setembro 2009

hmm. .interesting, idéia agradável…

Bagagem zero - curso sem sua bagagem

Encontrado sempre yourself embalagem por diversas estações em uma vez? Ou indo em algum lugar para o negócio com um desengate lateral rápido para o lazer também? As soluções da bagagem, ao frequentemente começar mais groovier e mais ergonomic, são costuradas na maior parte “cram mais material à filosofia de menos espaço”. Este faz para que sacos pesados, pontos de verificação lentos dos costumes, e tentar reembale seus sacos overstuffed quando você começa dirigir para o repouso.

Zerobaggage é uma tomada nova no curso que pretende ao revolutionise a maneira que nós vemos a embalagem para o curso. A idéia é que você pode alugar a roupa em todo o estilo em qualquer cidade suportada do destino, se você necessita o desgaste ou a roupa do negócio que cabem o costume local Zerobaggage fornecerá. Em vez de embalar um bikini dentro com seus ternos de negócio na bagagem verificada, no hire justo os ternos em seu destino e no throw justo o bikini no seu carreg-no saco. Para travellers freqüentes dizem também que prenderão (e para limpar) sua própria roupa para você de modo que você possa deixar seus ternos de linho em Casablanca para sua visita seguinte.

Não está ainda no estágio do conceito assim lá é nenhuma informação fixando o preço, mas é uma idéia interessante que nós pensamos valeremos a pena seguir. Estada ajustada!

O curso com uma luz continua o saco e não faz exame de nenhuma bagagem verificada. Tenha o que você quer quando você o quiser. Sinta bom sobre fazer isto sabendo que você está pedindo os artigos e os serviços locais que seguem um berço ao berço, modelo ecological. o zerobaggage é uma oportunidade para o curso sem emenda e a vida weightless. Permitindo o “direita viva da luz e do curso”.

[Foto de Flickr]

Tag: zero+baggage, luggage+free+travel, eco+travel

What, NO Baggage?

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:54:00 +0000

Airline a la Carte Articles

What, NO Baggage?

So, what if you didn't need to take any luggage with you on your travels? What if you could just pick up what you wanted to wear when you arrived at your destination?

Would you rent your clothes instead of lugging heavy bags through airports & hotels and paying the airlines to carry all of your belongings?

Would wearing a completely different wardrobe make your journey feel even more exotic and exciting?

Just think, a new you with every trip you take by ordering your new style...waiting for you upon your arrival!

Check out: zerobaggage "An opportunity for seamless travel and weightless living. Enabling you to "live light and travel right".

(The first "zerobaggage" cities will be in Toronto, Canada and Gold Coast, Australia beginning November 2010)

Last Updated on Thursday, 03 September 2009 11:58

Japan Airlines Article - (In Japanese)

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 23:03:00 +0000

手ぶら旅行が実現間近 2009.09.02

　荷物をほとんど持たずに旅行することを可能とさせるサービス（zerobaggage）の実現に向けて計画が進められている。

　 zerobaggageはオンラインで提供するサービスであり、一定期間だけ衣服や電気製品など旅で必要とする物を貸し出す。利用者がオンラインで仮想スーツケースにつめこんだ商品を旅行先のホテルに届け、使用後に回収する仕組みであり、レンタル品は返却、交換、購入が可能だ。新品の商品だけでなく、中古商品も揃えられ、高品質の商品を低価格で借りることが可能となる。

　荷造りの必要がなく身軽な移動が実現するというだけでなく、旅行時の荷物を大幅に削減することで、荷物を預ける必要がなくなることや商品が何度も利用される完全循環型のシステムは環境に配慮しているといえる。出張などで同一の滞在先を頻繁に利用する場合にはzerobaggageの保有するロッカーによく利用する私物を預け、旅行時に滞在先に運んでもらうことも可能だ。

　 2010年秋にトロント（カナダ）とゴールドコースト（オーストラリア）においてベータサービスの開始を予定している。（zerobaggage, Inc.リリース記事より）［No.20090818_02］

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comments

Moving Forward

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 04:49:00 +0000

Fabulous discussion today with Barry Haislah of e-rento. Great model and great company. The one hour tel-con from Berlin was worth every second.

Later I met with McLean. Oh, for McLean to become part of the zb team...he's perfect.. super intelligent, creative and amazing in general. Fingers crossed. It's rare to find such an extraordinary human being. Time will tell.

Catharine.

My Return from Australia

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 04:29:00 +0000

After a sleepless yet successful trip to Australia, I started the homeward journey on Monday August 24th by saying goodbye to Sydney and, after 14 hours in the air, saying hello to L.A. (well really just LAX).

Upon arriving at LAX I was more than dismayed to find that, although I had travelled with only one small carry-on and was the first to de-plane and enter U.S. Customs (all passengers have to wait for and collect their own checked luggage prior to lining up for security), there were still plane-loads-full of passengers from other flights with lots of baggage ahead of me! So I just entered the long, inevitable line of suitcase laden travellers with patience.

Surprisingly this process only lasted about 20 minutes. After exiting security I made it from Terminal 7 to Terminal 2, via the shuttle bus, very quickly. Then I went through security (again) so I could get to my connecting flight to Toronto. Fortunately security in Terminal 7 was unusually uncrowded and I was on the other side within another 15 minutes.

Upon reaching the other side, and knowing my flight was to leave at 3:30pm (it was 10 am), I heard, "...Toronto passengers boarding at gate 25..." so I went straight to the gate. I asked if there was a seat left on the plane. As it turned out there was ONE and only one! Then the steward said, "I'm sorry we can't change your flight because your baggage will be scheduled for your 3:30 pm flight". I replied, "...but I have no checked luggage". And he said, "Oh, well then, no problem."

And so, because I had no checked luggage, he ripped up my ticket, gave me the final seat, and I made it home without a long lay-over at LAX. I saved 8 hours of waiting at the airport and was happier for it. I also have a much improved opinion of Air Canada and United.

Ah......the gloriousness of travelling with zerobaggage prevailed.

Catharine

Travel to Oz with only a wallet, a passport and holiday insurance

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 03:48:00 +0000

Travel to Oz with only a wallet, a passport and holiday insurance

Imagine heading all the way to Australia and not having to pack a thing except the bare essentials, including your passports, your toothbrush, some cash and holiday insurance.

Very soon that will be possible thanks to a new company called Zerobaggage which will allow people to rent clothes in their destination. According to the company's website, it is offering 'an environmentally responsible, anxiety-free way of living and travelling'.

Subscribers go online to choose their garments, which will be waiting in their hotel room when they arrive. They can choose new or second-hand items and there's an option for them to buy them at the end of their stay. If they prefer, they can choose the rental clothes themselves when they arrive.

The cost for a family of 4 for 2 weeks would start at about £180. A backpacker

renting second-hand gear would pay about £60 for a month. Not bad when you think that you save on shopping, washing and there's no need to lug suitcases or backpacks around.

The service, available from zerobaggage.com, will start in spring next year and will cover Canada as well as Australia.

ZeroBaggage : c'est les vacances, oubliez vos bagages !

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 22:33:00 +0000

ZeroBaggage : c'est les vacances, oubliez vos bagages !

Le 20/08/2009 à 10:00

Vacances, j'oublie tout ! Et mêmes mes habits ! Non, le site Zerobaggage.com ne s'adresse pas aux naturistes. Plutôt aux touristes qui souhaitent partir en vacances en avion l'esprit léger !

Loue vêtements, neufs ou très peu portés
Le principe est simple et plutôt ingénieux : plutôt que de s'encombrer de moult vêtements à l'heure de partir en voyage, ZeroBaggage permettra aux touristes de louer en ligne des vêtements – neufs ou déjà portés – qu'ils récupèreront en arrivant à destination.

Faire des économies en vacances
Les avantages d'un tel service sont multiples. Au niveau des touristes, le gain pratique semble évident, surtout à l'heure où les compagnies aériennes – low-cost essentiellement – souhaitent facturer de plus en plus souvent les bagages en soute, n'autorisant gratuitement qu'un petit bagage à main dans l'avion.

Un service écologique
Malins, les responsables de Zerobaggage.com pointent également un avantage écologique dans leur service. Si l'argument peut paraître quelque peu tiré par les cheveux, il n'est pas totalement infondé. Si les touristes prennent l'avion sans bagages, le poids des avions s'en trouvera allégé. Et un avion plus léger, c'est un avion qui consomme moins de carburant. CQFD !

Bientôt en France ?
Tous les détails du fonctionnement de Zerobaggae.com – et notamment les tarifs ! – n'ont pas encore été communiqués. Seule certitude : le service sera disponible dès 2010… mais seulement en Australie et au Canada. Les responsables du site misent ensuite sur le bouche à oreille pour promouvoir leur système : les internautes ont en effet la possibilité de s'inscrire sur le site de la société pour marquer leur intérêt. Un bon moyen de lancer une campagne marketing à moindre coût

Plus d'informations sur le site de ZeroBaggage

Travel Light with online clothes rental

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 20:45:00 +0000

Missing your wardrobe? Try a rental

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 23:14:00 +0000

Forget luggage. A new Canadian company wants to rent you clothes at your destination

You're checking in for your flight to Madrid and the no-nonsense airline employee behind the counter says your bulging suitcase is seven pounds overweight. You grudgingly fork over the penalty. When you arrive in sun-drenched Spain, you discover the suitcase is still in Canada.

Suddenly, your vacation has turned into a stress-inducing nightmare.

Zerobaggage, a new Toronto start-up, wants to prevent this scenario. So long as your destination is one of the company's partner cities, you can travel with nothing but a carry-on and know that you'll be fully clothed when you arrive. The concept is simple: Instead of lugging your own clothes on business trips or vacations, choose articles of clothing from an online catalogue; a temporary wardrobe will be waiting for you at your hotel. Leave the clothes in your room when you head home.

Renting clothes for a week's vacation can cost thousands of dollars, but Catharine MacIntosh, the company's founder, insists that zerobaggage won't be just for the wealthy. She hopes to partner with both budget hotels and those with five-star ratings and offer clothing at various price points. Along with new Gucci dresses and Louboutin stilettos, you'll find already-worn sweaters and shorts in the catalogue.

The cost to rent a new item for a week is 25 per cent of its retail price, while a "pre-loved" garment is priced at 15 per cent.

Zerobaggage members will be able to rent clothes for just a day or up to several months, though the company is still working out pricing schemes for different rental periods. If you find yourself flying to the same destination every few weeks, zerobaggage can keep your favourite Hugo Boss suit and tie for you in a storage locker.

The service is set to launch in Toronto and Australia's Gold Coast in spring, 2010, with destinations across Europe, Asia and beyond to follow. With no-frills airline Ryanair set to roll out a no-checked-baggage policy next year - a move other airlines could soon follow - the timing couldn't be better.

-Dakshana Bascaramurty

From Wednesday's Globe and Mail
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/travel/missing-your-wardrobe-try-a-rental/article1256728/

Take no bags - rent your clothes on arrival

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 22:42:00 +0000

Zerobaggage is a new online service, promoting the concept of travelling without luggage. The idea is that you rent or borrow clothes at your destination from a network of zerobaggage suppliers and users.

If that sounds alarming at first, go for the 'rent' option. Select the clothes and sizes you want from the website and they will be waiting for you in your hotel room. When you leave, hand them back, or, buy them and have them stored in your zerobaggage locker for return visits.

The service is expecting to open in Canadian and Australian cities first.

Europe Backpacking

noreply@blogger.com (cmac) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 03:27:00 +0000

Zero Baggage, Clothing Rental Service

Tags: reduce weight, ultralight backpacking

Top Incoming Search Terms:
clothing rental for travelers

Everybody knows that airlines put more and more obstacles in your luggage. They reduce the size allowed for carry on baggage or take very expensive cost if the limit is exceeded. Learn from the obstacles, a group of Canadians decided to shape a project which called Zero Baggage. It is basically a travel clothes service rental.

With this way travelers can depart on your holiday destination without luggage. Just go to the site chosen and find everything you need to enjoy the journey.

How does this work? It is so easy! Tourists just make order over the Zero Baggage web and choose what clothes they are needed. Then there is the option of using new or used clothing.

Thus, a suitcase with everything that is elected online will be waiting for the traveler on arrival. Once the trip finished, just return all the clothes in third conditions and back home as light as when you arrived.

For now the project is in preparation and expected to start their operations by early next year in Toronto, Canada and the golden coast of Australia. It could be extended to other cities in the world.

Meanwhile, the creators of this service, explaining that traveling without luggage and save on baggage excess, is an excellent way to green tourism.

zerobaggage

Update and zerobaggage symbol

Reforma Newpaper Article - Mexico City (text below)

Pack Lighter and Save Money by Renting

Czechoslovakian Articlel on zerobaggage: Cestování bez oblečení

TechVibes Inverview with Karim Kanji

Luggage-free travel with zerobaggage

Toronto Life Magazine idea # 19, zerobaggage

October 2009 Globe and Mail Article by Bert Archer

Traveling with zerobaggage

zerobaggage 5min talk at SproutUp Toronto

zerobaggage Destination Cities

An environmental perspective on clothing

Borrow more...throw out less.. from Earth911

"Facts About Clothes

Czechoslovakian Articlel on zerobaggage: Cestování bez zavazadel? V Kanadě to vymysleli

Cestování bez zavazadel? V Kanadě to vymysleli

Koncept je jednoduchý

Upcoming service lets you travel without luggage

Upcoming service lets you travel without luggage

Zero Baggage Lets You Travel Light Even With A Full Suitcase Of Stuff

Zero Baggage Lets You Travel Light Even With A Full Suitcase Of Stuff

Bagagem zero - curso sem sua bagagem

Bagagem zero - curso sem sua bagagem

What, NO Baggage?

Airline a la Carte Articles

What, NO Baggage?

Japan Airlines Article - (In Japanese)

手ぶら旅行が実現間近 2009.09.02

関連記事

Moving Forward

My Return from Australia

Travel to Oz with only a wallet, a passport and holiday insurance

Travel to Oz with only a wallet, a passport and holiday insurance

ZeroBaggage : c'est les vacances, oubliez vos bagages !

ZeroBaggage : c'est les vacances, oubliez vos bagages !

Travel Light with online clothes rental

Missing your wardrobe? Try a rental

Take no bags - rent your clothes on arrival

Europe Backpacking

Zero Baggage, Clothing Rental Service