new product line – comment to win pro chef!

whether you’re a serious cook or you think cooking involves a phone and a take-out menu our newest pro chef line will be sure to please you. kitchens tend to be the central gathering place in the home and pro chef is just the right line to get your kitchen ready to greet guests or make a sandwich.

the pro chef line is now available exclusively at Bed Bath and Beyond stores.

 

the line includes a stainless steel cleaner that is a whopping 28 oz. of superpowered formula to avoid  leaving any streaks behind. so not only can you purchase less often you can also finally wipe those nasty fingerprints off the fridge. 

also included is a 28 oz. spray bottle of granite cleaner, specially designed for granite, marble and other natural stone countertops and surfaces.  natural stone is classic and durable, but it needs special care to be sure you don’t strip the sealer and allow water to get in the stone.  

lastly, we have a special multi-surface cleaner to get rid of grease and food splatters while leaving behind a yummy citrus cilantro scent. it smells so good people will think you’ve been chopping fresh herbs and lemon wedges with a touch of lime.    

comment below about your love of a clean, green, kitchen and we will randomly choose a winner to receive our new pro chef line! contest ends 10.2.09 at noon pst.

"guest star" mandarin mango debuts

hi, i’m suzanne, and i develop method’s delicious product fragrances. i started my career at a global fragrance house and had the good fortune to be trained by perfumery experts in new york, geneva, and paris.  i’m excited to introduce you to the latest addition to the method fragrance family…. our very own “guest star,” mandarin mango. exclusively available at target.

when given the opportunity to create a new fragrance for our hand wash line, the fresh, fruity direction was a natural addition to the portfolio. a few of our existing fragrance categories are: 

• citrus – ex) pink grapefruit 
• herbaceous – ex) cucumber + lavender 
• watery – ex) sweet water 

the synergy between color + fragrance + name is essential to all product launches. we work with our creative team to select a color that will complement our line. then we select the fragrance that is appropriate for the color as well as a good fit with the rest of our portfolio.

then the fun part starts: choosing a name. our internal team agrees upon a list of finalists and we ask our “people against dirty” to help us choose the winning name.  **pssst…if you sign up to become a person against dirty, you get the chance to help us with the naming process. 

we worked closely with our fragrance partners, and the result is this fresh, fruity hand wash with top notes of vibrant mandarin, mid notes of ripe mango, and accents of white nectarine. sounds tasty, right? 

design profile: moving from Otter to Penguin

We've relaunched the packaging on our baby + kids products from an Otter to an adorable little Penguin. Check out some notes from Josh, head of form + function here at method, who talks through why we went from Otter to Penguin. 

Q: Why the change? 

A: Leaky Otters! We found that people were unable to resist taking the Otter's pants off (no joke!) to get a big whiff of the what the product smelled like. This more often than not loosened the cap underneath the Otter which in turn sometimes created a big mess either on a shelf in the store or all over your bathroom floor at home. 

Q: How was the Penguin born? 

A: We looked at all sorts of other animals that we knew from around Northern California (our very own backyard) including Sea Lions, Whales, Crabs, Starfish and Giant Squid, before settling on the Penguin for the next generation of the methodkids bottle. Designer Jeannie Choe worked to get the Penguin bottle to look as cute as the Otter and I think we succeeded. The Cap on the top means it's super easy to smell and no more leaky bottles!  

Thanks Josh! Check out some intial design work of both the little Penguin as well as another product design that didn't make the final cut (not this time at least). 

 

A talk with our own Drummond Lawson and GreenerDesign.com

So if you’ve been keeping up with us, you know we recently became certified as a Cradle to Cradle business. This morning, one of our very own Greenskeepers, Drummond Lawson, spoke to GreenerDesign.com on the process and what’s involved.

 In the article, Drummond shares how 20 of our products received silver certification and that we’re currently in the process of certifying another 20 more. The criteria for this certification involves examining our materials to see if they’re environmentally safe, designing for material reutilization, using renewable energy, water and energy efficiency, and company social responsibility practices. A few of our practices that comply with the certification standards include using label adhesives that don’t clog up recycling systems, utilizing bottles that are made from 100% recycled plastic, and purchasing carbon offsets to make up for emissions from manufacturing and employee corporate travel to name just a few.

If you’re interested in checking out the full article, be sure to check it out here.

honored by the EPA

We were recognized last week by the US EPA at the SDSI awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. Our Good Cop, Ryan, happened to be speaking at a green cleaning products conference in Alexandria, VA and swooped into the event to receive our plaque, commemorative pint glass, and cash in the two drink tickets!

The Safer Detergents Stewardship Initiative is a program through the EPA's Design for the Environment that recognizes industry leaders who voluntarily commit to the use of safer surfactants. That means they use ingredients that break down quickly to non-polluting compounds and help protect aquatic life in both fresh and salt water. We are honored to be recognized at the Champions level, the highest level for this award.

If you're looking for more info, be sure to check out the EPA website that also has a full list of DfE certified products.

Thanks Ryan!

Stopping to smell the new holiday fragrances with method fragrance expert, Suzanne McCormick

You may have noticed that we have a few new kids on the block when it comes to our new holiday fragrances. We sat down with Suzanne, our in-house "Scents & Scentsibility" expert (yes, that is her official title), to get a closer look at how the new fragrances came to be. 

What was the inspiration behind the new fragrances this season? 

Nostalgia - we wanted these fragrances to evoke happy memories of holidays gone by... and hopefully create new ones for our little consumers. 

What were the big challenges in creating these new holiday fragrances? 

Since it is all about tradition... there are particular fragrance notes that are meaningful for this season. We wanted each to be a winner in its olfactive family and, as always, we aim for a well balanced portfolio. 

How were the final fragrances picked? 

We worked with an internal panel made up of a cross-section of method employees (product development, creative, and brand experts). We go through multiple rounds of submissions starting with a broad range of fragrances and then narrow them down to the final ideas. We are always modifying the fragrances right up until the last minute to get them just right. 

C'mon, tell us - what fragrances didn't make the cut? 

I never kiss and tell... unless I am under the mistletoe 

What's your personal favorite? 

All our fragrances are like my little babies... you love each one for different reasons. I hope that there is something for everybody as people take the time to prepare their home to welcome family and friends during this special time of year. 

Okay, so even though Suzanne wouldn't tell, we'd love to hear what your favorite holiday scent is. And if you want to take a look at all our new holiday fragrances, you can check it out here.

What's so smart about Smarty Dish, anyway?

Here at Method there’s a bunch of stuff we like: happy hours, pretty colors and smells, innovative ideas … the list goes on. And as you know, there’s also stuff we don’t like.  Phosphates and chlorine bleach are two of those things. They are also two ingredients – especially phosphates – that a lot of other companies include in their dishwasher detergents.

When we introduced you to Lil’ Bowl Blu, our toilet bowl cleaner, back in February, we told you a little bit about phosphates.  Phosphates in our water supply contribute to algal blooms, which deprive fish and other water dwellers of needed oxygen. That’s dirty. Two counties in Washington banned the use of phosphates this year, with the rest to follow in 2010, and many other states are looking into the issue as well.

So to answer our own question, Smarty Dish is smart – no, brilliant! – because it gets the job done in your dishwasher without anything nasty you don’t want dirtying up our water supply.  It comes in pre-measured tablet doses that fit neatly in your dishwasher’s detergent compartment, so no more worrying about the dreaded “overpour.”

And speaking of smart, Smarty Dish passed quite a few tests before we decided that it made the grade: A third party confirmed for us that it cleans as effectively as, and sometimes even better than – the leading brands for many tough-to-crack stains. It’s also been approved by the EPA’s Design for the Environment program, which we told you about here. The container is made of 25% recycled content and is 100% recyclable. One test it didn’t pass, we have to admit, is animal testing.  But that’s because we just don’t think that’s nice.

And just in case you still don’t believe us, here’s what a couple of other people have said about Smarty Dish:

From Sustainable Is Good: http://www.sustainableisgood.com/products/2008/06/smartydish.html

From the Atlanta Journal & Constitution (scroll to the bottom of the article): http://www.ajc.com/search/content/living/personaltech/stories/2008/07/19/grabbag.html

Look for Smarty Dish at your local retailer (and available mid-September on methodhome.com), and let us know what you think!

congratulations - it's a baby ... and a kid!

We’re just tickled pink (and blue, and green, and orange!) to announce our new methodbaby + methodkids products to the world.  You may have seen these making their birthday-suit debut on store shelves over the last month or so, or you may have seen them on the Oprah® Earth Day show or the Ellen Mother’s Day show.  In fact, on the Ellen show the full set of baby products was given out to a lucky audience full of expectant mommies.  With all this great press, our cute little otters are going to need their own agents soon!  (Did we mention that we’ve also been recognized for our adorable – and functional – packaging?)

As any mom or dad knows, babies and kids have plenty of parts, and it’s our mission to keep them all squeaky clean.  That’s why we developed a full set of products devoted to creating soft, cuddly, great smelling tiny ones while also taking the utmost care with their delicate skin.  methodbaby + methodkids are made from 95%+ naturally derived ingredients, with no parabens, phthalates, SLS or SLES.  They also offer tears-free formulas without numbing agents.

Omop's New Look!

When we launched the omop last year, hundreds of you called and emailed us to tell us about your newfound floor love.  That’s right, mopping the floor was actually fun, thanks to the ergonomic design, compostable sweeper dusters that grabbed everything in sight, reusable microfiber cloths, and yummy-smelling non-toxic floor cleaners.  Some of you even said the omop was “sexy.”  Imagine our delight!

Introducing Lil' Bowl Blu & Le Scrub!

Here’s a quiz: What has historically been the top-requested new product among method advocates?

Wait for it … wait for it …

If you guessed “toilet bowl cleaner,” pat yourself on the back.  It was a tough one to crack, so we’re very excited to introduce you to Lil’ Bowl Blu.