Decathlon Campaign Urges Festival-Goers Not To Abandon Their Tents

The outdoor retail giant launched its ‘No Tent Left Behind’ campaign, offering a full refund on used, working-order tents

Read time 3 mins

Published Jun 19, 2023

Base editorial team
BASE editorial team BASE writers and editors who live and breathe adventure every day. We love adventure storytelling as much as we love adventure itself.

Around 250,000 tents are left behind at festivals across the UK each year with most going to landfill. Leading outdoor retailers Decathlon are trialling a new campaign aimed at reducing the number of their entry-level tents that are abandoned at festivals during the summer. The first stage of the No Tent Left Behind campaign is a trial period for tents purchased in 2023, and returned before the 21st July. The trial is running to coincide with Glastonbury Festival in order to assess uptake before the campaign is evolved for future festivals. Chris Allen, Sustainability Leader at Decathlon UK, said:

‘Festival season is one of the busiest periods in our stores because of our wide camping offering. We know single-use tents are an environmental problem, and aim to reduce the amount left behind with our No Tent Left Behind campaign. We’re deeply committed to reducing our environmental impact, and will give a full refund in the form of a gift card on this tent to demonstrate our commitment to encouraging people to bring their tent home.’

As part of the campaign, customers are encouraged to make a ‘Festival Tent Pledge’, and upon doing so will be offered the chance to return the Quechua MH100 2 person tent (RRP £29.99) after use, providing it is complete and in working order. Customers that participate will be credited with a £29.99 gift card to spend in store or online. The price of the tent makes it one of the most likely tents to be left behind by festival-goers and the new cash back initiative hopes to incentivise customers to return the tent for it to be resold as part of the Second Life range, ultimately prolonging the lifespan of tents and reducing single-use consumption.

 

The campaign graphic, designed by with well-known music artist, Jack Teagle.

The scale of the ‘single-use’ tent issue was highlighted at last year’s Reading Festival, where drone footage captured gobsmacking scenes of the festival aftermath, with fields strewn with hundreds of discarded tents and camping gear. This happened despite festival organisers repeated pleas to attendees to clean up after themselves and adoption of the slogan ‘No Music On A Dead Planet’ in an effort to highlight the environmental impact of abandoned camping kit at festivals.

Decathlon worked with well-known music artist, Jack Teagle, to create in-store artwork that highlights the environmental impact of leaving a tent behind. The posters will be displayed at all Decathlon stores in the UK during this year’s festival season to remind customers that festival purchases should not be single-use.

Decathlon’s initiative has received public support from Glastonbury broadcaster Lauren Laverne, who said of the scheme:

‘It’s time for us to party responsibly at all festivals this year and show some love to the planet. Decathlon’s No Tent Left Behind campaign allows people to enjoy their festival experience in an eco-friendly way – and earn themselves a bit of cash back at the end of it all. Keep the tunes – and tents going, and let’s make a lasting impact, one tent at a time!’

The scheme is supported nationwide in Decathlon stores, and you can find full terms and conditions of the pledge here.

 

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