ABOUT

CONCEPT:

Renewi is a company that plays a vital role in the circular economy, recycling 11 million tonnes of materials each year, with a carbon avoidance of 2.5 million tonnes.

Wardour has produced annual reports for Renewi since 2014, and last year’s won six awards, with individual creative elements of the report winning more. Raising an already high bar for the 2023 Annual Report was a major challenge, but through even closer collaboration with the Renewi team from day one, we established a powerful theme and clear content plan, and delivered what we believe is their best annual report yet.

For the Renewi Annual Report and Accounts 2023 (from hereon referred to as the ARA), the brief was to position Renewi as more than just a waste-to-product company, but a truly innovative business at the cutting edge of the circular economy, with end products unparalled by others in the sector. We did this by making these secondary materials the hero, positioning them as the beautiful, environmentally significant materials they are – materials worthy of such a spotlight.

EXECUTION:

The climate emergency is creating and demanding major change and new ways of thinking globally. Now more than ever, Renewi’s unique waste-to-product strategy is at the forefront of recycling innovation. It focuses on secondary material production through cutting-edge technology and partnerships with universities and entrepreneurs, always looking for new and better solutions, with the end goal of no longer having to rely on primary raw materials.

Our aim was to build on the 2022 ARA by making the secondary materials and the end products they create the heroes of the Annual Report. But with the secondary materials mainly small pieces of glass, wood and pellets, this was going to be a big task.

An additional challenge – and one we’d come across in previous years – was establishing a consistent tone of voice. It was important that the tone of voice was that of Renewi, and not the many of its respective stakeholders who were providing input.

Renewi is a company with a firm focus on the future of sustainability. This was the story we needed to showcase in the 2023 Annual Report and the key objective was to focus on Renewi’s future-thinking secondary product creation.

The standout feature of this year’s Annual Report was the photography. Many people don’t know what Renewi’s products actually look like and that not only are they an environmentally friendly alternative to primary raw materials, but they’re beautiful too. Aligning with the title – ‘Putting secondary materials first’ – we wanted to make these materials the hero.

We were inspired by high-end photography used for make up and perfume bottles, but since Renewi’s materials are mainly small pieces of glass, wood and pellets, we had to work hard to turn these materials into eye-catching, beautiful images.

The photography is dispersed throughout the report and includes the variety of secondary materials Renewi creates. Each is clearly labelled, explaining what the material is and, most importantly, where it comes from.

RESULTS:

With a new Director of Communications at Renewi, and a Project Management Officer new to the Wardour-Renewi team, we had a lot to prove as a team. The report was a big success. The secondary materials photography is on the homepage of Renewi’s website and in a Full Year Results FY23 video featuring the CEO and CFO. And, pst importantly, the report has been very well received by Renewi, as the following comment from Project Management Officer
Jurgen Grein confirms:

“Our collaboration with Wardour is a remarkable journey, characterised by a strong
and fruitful partnership. Their ability to understand our brand and industry, combined
with their exceptional storytelling skills, has consistently delivered outstanding results that exceed our expectations, leaving us highly pleased with the outcome. Working with
Wardour on our annual report was a great experience. Their commitment to detail and constant availability for support made the process seamless. I am confident that the end
result will make a substantial impact on our stakeholders, effectively communicating our
message with clarity and precision.”