CASE STUDY

RE-CO Recycling Cooperative

A logo with the text '00-4' inside an elliptical orbit outline.

2024

Driving Circular Change

Sector

Environmental Sustainability, Recycling

Impact

Recycling, reimagined for tomorrow; launching and positioning RE-CO, as Australia’s first technology-driven recycling hub, drives communities toward a circular economy and changes how people perceive, access, and engage in recycling.

Scope of Engagement 

Market Research and Behavioural Survey (20,000+ households)
Stakeholder Consultation, Government Relations, Naming, Trademarking, Brand Identity, Wayfinding Strategy, Website, Social Media, Official Launch.

  • Uncovering the Recycling Challenge

    Communities face a mounting problem: waste is increasing while recycling rates remain stagnant. Household participation in depots is declining, primarily due to confusion and inconvenience.

    To reimagine recycling, FEENEY immersed itself in desktop research and launched one of South Australia’s most extensive consumer studies, surveying over 20,000 households. Insights revealed a critical gap: people want to recycle but lack knowledge on how and where to do so.

    To address this, FEENEY facilitated extensive stakeholder consultation with local and state government agencies, environmental experts, and industry leaders, ensuring that the solution would align with regulations, community needs, and broader sustainability goals.

  • Turning Barriers into Opportunities

    Designing a next-generation recycling solution meant going beyond incremental improvements. It required a system that addressed consumer barriers, built trust through clarity, and provided convenience at every stage of the process.

    FEENEY used research insights to shape the service model, operating guidelines, brand identity, and communications strategy. What had long been a confusing and overlooked aspect of the waste journey was reframed as an accessible and empowering service.

    Through rigorous research, collaboration, and strategic branding, FEENEY transformed recycling from a frustrating chore into a positive, community-driven behaviour.

  • Launching RE-CO: A Cooperative for Circular Change

    To signal a clear break from traditional depots, FEENEY named and branded the new initiative RE-CO Recycling Cooperative, combining the spirit of recycling with the collaborative energy of a cooperative.

    Supported by a full suite of visual and verbal assets, RE-CO launched as Australia’s first technology-based drive-through recycling hub. Purpose-built for households and businesses seeking simple, responsible ways to contribute to the circular economy, RE-CO is redefining household recycling.

    By educating communities and reshaping behaviour, it is not only breaking ground physically, but also setting a new benchmark for what circular change can look like in practice

Dark navy blue background with faint diagonal lines and a centered white circular shape.
Logo for Recycling Co-op with a stylized 'RE-CO' in a rounded rectangle and a recycling symbol in the letter 'O', with the text 'Recycling Co-op' below.
Part of a sign with the words Re-Use in large white letters on a dark background.
Commercial building labeled RECO with signs for self-serve express and pre-counted trailer loads, blue sky with clouds, people standing outside, parking lot with designated zones.
Three men in bright yellow jackets and caps are standing and talking in an indoor setting, with a blue target and some stairs in the background.
People using self-serve recycling machines at a recycling center, with signs indicating sorting of batteries, e-waste, clothing, and other recyclables.
A woman in a red blazer is speaking at a podium in front of an audience at a recycling plant machine labeled 'RECO,' which processes and sorts recyclable materials in a large industrial warehouse.
Person holding a blue reusable bag with 'RE-CYCLE Recycling Co-Op' logo, standing near a round white table.

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