Please don't give me another plastic bag!

Ok so it's treated as being slightly odd - but that's precisely the issue.

Just nipped down to my local Sainsbury's for some consumables for my baking-fest that I'm about to embark on for the Hampstead Summer Fayre.

In a fit of greeness I did what I have wanted to do for a while and I asked to see the Manager to ask why, under the refitted store, the provision of plastic bags were so prominent, why the staff always asked me if I want bag (I DON'T!) and why the bag recycling point has gone.

I'm sure Darren (his name IIRC) didn't mean it but I felt like some kind of greeneyed monster asking a really silly thing - anyway we persisted with the conversation and I've asked him to:

• Consider changing the staff culture so the customer service line is - you don't need a bag do you, have you brought your own bags or can you carry this one item
• Make contact with the Kilburn Partnership and have the same dialogue with them
• Push for the restoration of the bag recycling point and
• Look again at what can be done here locally in Kilburn in hist store at his initiative.

I flagged up the existance of the I love Kilburn bags (I was using mine :-)) and he was interested in stocking them. So it's small dialogue and it was broadly positive.

But I was really struck at just how dififcult it was, from the point at which I made time, including the 'can I see the manager please' - WHY? - through to the can you change your culture, it won't lose you money or customers if you do.

And it saves the environement!