“IF YOU DON’T STAND FOR SOMETHING.
YOU’LL FALL FOR ANYTHING”
Summer always comes to an end. When you see the sad-faced Harvest Moon shining her magic beams across the land, that cycle is complete. For us, it means time to get busy making a stand for The Clean & Tidy Home Show. That’s been the Fill drill for the last three years now.
We dig cycles, so this year was no different. Back on tour once more, taking our battle-worn reusable stand, to stand out AND to take a stand against single use!
We also love meeting all kinds of people in the world of cleaning; influencers, declutterers, organazizers, folks who love cleaning… over two action-packed days in London. The good vibes, sense of fun and the supportive community surrounding the show have kept us coming back! Plus, we like to think we bring something different.
MAKING A STAND
We always set out to make something simple, soulful & self-explanatory. A stand that shows off Fill, refill, refills, refillers and refilleries! And, like always, we like to do it all ourselves.
I can always count on the Fill team to deliver the goods, wherever we go – especially when it comes to quick-turnaround avant-garde DIY projects! No disposable carpet tiles. No single use materials. Nothing unnecessary. Leave no trace. Usually, there’s no time to waste either! We wouldn’t have it any other way.
So, Eleonora paints the stand, by hand. Harriotte helps out on brushes. They turn the mezzanine into a makeshift paint studio, mixing paint and listening to music. Meanwhile, Chris goes into the nuts & bolts, working on how to put it all together, how we’re gonna move it to London and back, package free. Lucy manages all the backstage detail. Ask her anything! She makes sure we’ve got the goods we need & everyone knows where to be and when! Stay cool everybody.
The same frame has been used three times over. Each year we’ve tried to bring something different, to keep things fresh and build on what we learned before. Here’s how we’ve made sure our stand keeps making a stand against waste.
2022
A modern home for closed loop refills. We came to town with a hand painted home filled with MONO FILLVILLE illustrations. Painted wooden shelves floated around the illustrated backdrop, showing off Fill goods and home refills in places where you might keep them or need them. We even hung an old tin pendant light (from eBay) above our heads and put an OG Impressions record on the wall to bring it to life, inviting folks to come round to our place and check out the goods.
2023
We brought the FILLVILLE illustrated home back, but this time in full Fill TECHNICOLOUR. Firstly, to show that we could use the same frame again and still have a cool-looking stand. Secondly, this time we were bringing more colour to the refill scene; cobalt blue glass bottles (rose water and micellar water) and amber glass bottles (bath soak, body wash) plus a few new fragrances too! We made some friends and caught up with folks we’d made the year before!
2024
This year we wanted to turn up the dial. Same frame. Cardboard. Beastie boys heavy playlist. Hand painted artwork. But more direct. We wanted to step away from the wall. To interact more. To help folks find a local refill store, so that they go there more! We wanted to talk about loops. Bring people into them. We wanted to have fun too.
So, we introduced a massive wheel of fortune! Made of cardboard. Hand painted black and white so you couldn’t miss it. With a chance to spin and win refills at 11am and 2pm. Turned out to be the draw we needed to start conversations about responsible goods, cleaning, refilling and closed loops. Fill up Fill up! Spin the loop! Let’s get folks into the closed loop refill.
Also, we wanted to show what refilling looks like, to do some on the stand. So, we made sure to include 20L drums since we realised some folks might not know what to expect from a refill store. We brought down some heavy-duty shelves made from the recycled plastic that came from a clutch of unusable damaged returnable drums that we’d amassed over the years! We couldn’t use them again for refill but they still had a part to play as shelves!
THANKS
Thanks to everyone who dropped by to see the loop we put together and anyone who listened to what we had to say. Thanks for looking at the things we make & for taking the time to find your nearest stockist. We spoke to loads of great people, some already knew they had a store nearby but hadn’t been before. Hopefully we helped nudge a few more through the door. It’s clear that folks want to make good choices. It’s our job to make them better and easier to choose. That’s what we’ll keep working on.
LITTLE FILLERS
And, to help inspire a fresh batch of future FILL SEEKERS, Phill hosted an informal drawing session in the Kids Zone at the show. We made a cool drawing booklet to to encourage creativity, imagination, experimental play and having fun with drawing while thinking about environmental responsibility, reuse & refill. Designed by illustrator Eleonora Marton, each page has a funny prompt to get kids thinking about the world they want!
Want a copy? Download for free. Print at home. Fill with drawings.
