Unique bins make Potch less trashy

An estate agency in Potchefstroom has been contributing to a cleaner city by placing innovative trash bins in several suburbs, including the Bult area, since the beginning of 2021. 

The bins are decorated with puns such as “Every LITTER bit helps!”, and “You’re LITTER-ly the best!”  that aim to encourage North-West University students, as well as Potchefstroom citizens, to reduce litter, which is noticeable across the city.

According to Juanita Greyling, the Chief Executive Officer at Feisty Communications and Marketing Specialists, the marketing agency used by Century 21 Potchefstroom,  the decorated bins are aimed at attracting the attention of passersby. 

She stated that all the ‘puns’ on the bins were researched and used in an attempt to get people in Potchefstroom to throw their trash in the bins, instead of on the streets. 

“It is a form of alternative marketing,” said the marketing agency, and Century 21, which has its head office in Germiston, Gauteng, aspires to make the organisation more visible and create awareness about its brand among Potchefstroom residents in this way.  

The bins have already made a positive impact on the environment in Potchefstroom, and Chané van der Merwe (21), a BCom business science student at the North-West University (NWU) Potchefstroom campus said, “The Century 21 trash cans make me feel like a better citizen, as I can keep my environment clean…”

Further, Annare Spies (20), a BPharm student also from the NWU Potchefstroom campus, stated that she has noticed more Century 21 bins more around Potch and that the ‘puns’ will be in “the back of the mind” of Potchefstroom citizens, ensuring they will hopefully be more inclined to throw their trash in the bins instead of on the sidewalk. 

“It’s a unique and creative way to stop people from littering,” Spies added. 

According to Greyling, Kobus Mostert from Mega Signs, located in Potchefstroom, is responsible for collecting and removing the trash discarded in the Century 21 bins.

‘Mega Signs’ are involved with many littering campaigns and aspire to keep Potchefstroom clean, as seen on their YouTube video ‘Mega Signs Potchefstroom Dustbin Advertisements’. 

According to a blog by Zero Waste Scotland, called ‘9 cornerstones of a litter bin strategy’, trash bins play a very big role in preventing litter. – Anchen Coetzee, Chanté du Plessis, Stacey Swanepoel, Vasti van Staden