world refill day

World Refill Day on 16th June is a global public awareness campaign designed to accelerate the transition away from single-use plastic and towards reuse systems to prevent plastic pollution and help people live with less waste.

YouSay Agency was the retained PR agency for City to Sea from 2019-2023, working in partnership with the inhouse Head of Campaigns and Policy & PR Manager.

We advised on strategy, researched campaign ideas, created media packs, led on citizen research, liaised with partners and spokespeople and coordinated media outreach.

2023

  • 600+ pieces of media coverage with a potential, estimated reach of over 1 BILLION people around the world! A 50% increase on 2022 results.

  • Consumer: The Times, Naver (Korea), Associated Press, Bloomberg, BBC, Country Living, Evening Standard, Yahoo Taiwan, The Guardian & PA.

    • Trade/targeted local: Edie, Circular Online, Packaging Today and Packaging Europe, Bristol 24/7, Bristol Post/Live, BBC Bristol

courtauld 2030

milestone report

In late 2023 Emma was commissioned as copywriter and communications lead on statutory annual data reporting for WRAP.

The milestone report needed to effectively look back at data to 2018 whilst also communicating the ambition to 2030, simultaneously incorporating the findings from 12 different sub-reports covering food, GHG and water use in a challenging timeline and with changing datasets.

It was Emma’s role to work to find the strongest narrative, effectively communicate strategic messages and create a call to action in what was a potentially challenging story, with several partners including central government and retailers who all had different viewpoints.

Coverage was balanced, messages cut through and met KPIs.

This is one of several reports Emma has produced for WRAP.

Contactless Coffee

When lockdown was introduced in March 2020 our client City to Sea had to pivot their plans and fast. Key staff in the campaign team were furloughed. A planned World Oceans Day campaign needed to be postponed, but the CEO didn’t want to leave a void and there were concerns over misleading claims over contamination on plastic, leading to many food and drink businesses removing refills as an option.

Working directly with the CEO we created a campaign called Contactless Coffee to support, inform and reassure businesses that the pandemic didn’t need to mean a surge in single use cups and containers.

The campaign was backed with international evidence, the team worked with key national chains to get them onboard for launch and they created a simple step-by-step guide for businesses.

Launching less than two months later Contactless Coffee was a huge success getting traction in:

  • Sunday Times, BBC News, The Guardian, iNews, The Grocer, Packaging News, Resource Magazine, Bristol 247, Bristol Live, BBC Bristol.

get togethers

[Soil Association]

Working with the Get Togethers team, as a communications consultant from 2020-2023, Emma worked on three years of a lottery funded campaign called Get Togethers. In that time she:

The campaign smashed its KPIs.

  • 80,000 resource downloads - five times the benchmark.

  • organised 4,976 Get Togethers, reaching 145,310 people. Participation grew, from 747 events in the first year to 1,563 in the third – 289% over target.

  • Several elements, including the community campaigns were absorbed as legacy into Food for Life, post lottery funding to continue their success.

media relations

The common thread that runs throughout our agency is media relations. Our team works tirelessly, whether in bustling in-house press offices or assisting various charities, brands, and organizations in enhancing their visibility, connecting with fresh audiences, and influencing behaviours is a core offer from our agency.

Highlights include

  • Securing a cover and double page spread for School Food Matters in Waitrose Weekend to mark their 10th anniversary.

  • Placing the Refill x Chillys reusable water bottle on This Morning's coveted Christmas gift show, as well as Runners World, Real Homes, Psychologies, Guardian, Countryfile and more.

  • BBC Countryfile covering Innovative Farmers and featuring a unique on-farm trial.

  • Getting significant broadsheet and radio pick-up for an eco finance story for the Food, Farming & Countryside Commission.

  • Acquiring substantial coverage for eco cleaning brand Ocean Saver’s new supermarket ranges in the Grocer, Country Living, Country Townhouse, Woman & Home, Good Housekeeping, Independent, Metro, iPaper, Yours, My Weekly and Best.