Week 2: June 1 - June 3, 2007

Metrotown Return-It Centre, Bill's Bottle Depot, Columbia Bottle Depot (Central)

June 1, 2007: Bill’s Bottle Depot

Return-It Man took some time to station near the Trans Canada Highway which is about a block from Bill's Bottle Depot and managed to get some great exposure to locals and passers by. The Depot Operator, Dianne Burke,  had an excellent set up to compliment Return-It Man and his Super Sidekick as she was giving away juice and donuts.

One photographer from the local newspaper appeared at the Depot and took pictures of Retrurn-It Man and some of the customers recycling at the Depot. He made sure to put in a good word for recycling beverage containers and the photographer took careful notes.

He also met the proud mother of a 10 year old who had recently won their local school's recycling award. Return-It Man was sure to provide her with some nifty giveaways as a reward for her great recycling habits.

June 2, 2007: Columbia Bottle Depot

Return-It Man spent some time on Kelowna’s main traffic artery, Harvey Street, which allowed for everyone who passed by looked over at him and see some of  his boisterous antics. Of course he was the official traffic director pointing everyone towards Columbia Bottle Depot on Kirschner. When we went back to the depot a couple of people said that they had remembered to come to the depot when they saw Return-It Man.

Columbia Bottle Depot had a very busy parking lot which allowed Return-It Man to go from vehicle to vehicle passing out tattoos, fridge magnets and other goodies. Several of the people that the Promotions Team spoke with already knew about the draw and had already entered. They made sure to inform people that for every time they came to the depot they got another chance to fill out a ballot to win the cool prizes. One woman said that it was the first time that she had been to the depot and that it was a big thrill to meet Return It Man. She said that she was inspired to come back again.

June 3, 2007: Metrotown Return-It Centre

The depot owner, Peter Xiong, had arranged several 'hot spots' for Return-It Man and his Super Sidekick to visit. This included Boundary Road and Imperial, Willingdon and Imperial and Royal Oak and Imperial. Return-It Man spent the first hour at the depot greeting customers and giving away Return-It branded swag and high fives, then spent each subsequent hour of the shift at the listed locations. While at the hot spots Return-It Man and his Super Sidekick directed traffic to the depot.

He also interacted with the spectators using big gestures while his Super Sidekick used the megaphone to be his voice. This worked especially well when there were vehicles stopped at the intersection. The customers then had the chance to hear what Return-It Man had to say. The Promotions Team found this to be the most effective method for reaching vehicle traffic.

Mr. Xiong was really excited to have the team come to his depot, after the shift he said "thank you, your event was really effective and I think that it has really helped us out".