Sustainability

Sustainable strides

This planet is a shared resource, and a shared responsibility. At Otter Products, we’ve taken concrete steps to reduce our impact, enhance our processes, and improve our stewardship. Not because we had to — because it’s the right thing to do.

In house

Our first efforts focused on the area where we have the most control — actions inside our own four walls. After an extensive internal assessment of our practices, we identified and eliminated waste, from the breakroom to the warehouse to the boardroom. For example, our distribution centers are now recycling more than 80% of the scrap they produce, diverting 500,000+ pounds from landfills in 2023.

Each year, we undergo a thorough assessment of our sustainability practices through EcoVadis, a global standard for business sustainability ratings. The assessment includes 21 criteria across four core themes: Environment, Labor & Human Rights, Ethics and Sustainable Procurement. In our latest rating, completed in February 2024, we earned a Committed Badge that demonstrates our progress and dedication toward advancing our sustainability efforts across the business.

We’ve also made moves to minimize our battery and eWaste footprint by joining the national Call2Recycle steward program. Stations in all our buildings take everything from our power products to a basic AA to an iPhone 15, which then get shipped out for reuse. It doesn’t end there. We’re also part of a nationwide effort to recycle batteries by supporting drop-off stations in retail locations around the United States.

In product

We earned our reputation building reliable, long-lasting mobile accessories that can take a thrashing — without ending up in the trashcan. Today, roughly 50% of the plastics used in our most popular designs are recycled.

We’re proud that certain products have earned Environmental Claim Validations for Recycled Content from UL, one of the most respected third-party testing and validation bodies. Products bearing UL Environmental Claim Validation Mark undergo routine audits and rigorous testing to prove they contain recycled content, further providing peace of mind to our customers.

By the end of 2023, we estimate that we will have repurposed more than 4.6 million pounds of recycled content.

By building an eco-friendly phone case using recycling, there’s a long-term impact of pulling existing materials out of the environment, giving them a second life.

In package

What’s inside our recycled phone cases is important. What they ship in is equally significant. That’s why we redesigned our retail packaging to replace nearly all plastic with materials that are fully recyclable and ready for your at-home blue bin.

How we get our products onto shelves has changed as well — our new packaging takes up a lot less space on a shipping pallet. That lets us stack more cases, screen protectors and power products into each load, which reduces delivery emissions.

On the horizon

There is no single end goal for making sustainable phone cases, no number we’re trying to hit because there are always ways to improve. And that’s our focus — continually questioning how we can build smarter, run leaner and be a greener brand. For us and for you.