Complete elimination and upcycling of uniforms

Nippon Travel Agency (NTA) has completely eliminated the requirement for women to wear uniforms at storefront locations, from the perspective of respecting employee diversity and promote flexible work styles, and repurposed the collected staff uniforms through upcycling.

To promote diversity and inclusion, Nippon Travel Agency Group has been implementing initiatives aimed at achieving a "diversity working environment". As of the end of June of this year, NTA has completely eliminated the requirement for women staff to wear the uniforms that were previously utilized in our stores. Instead, we have introduced a "casual office wear" policy based on our established guidelines for personal appearance. We are pleased to announce that we have upcycled the uniforms that are not longer needed due to the ending of the uniform-wearing requirement. This initiative aims to help educate the public about a recycling-oriented society, rather than simply disposing of the uniforms. Through the process of upcycling, the staff uniforms have been transformed into original items that will decorate our stores. Starting this month, they will once again serve as a point of contact with customers across region that supports our group.

Through this initiative, we aim to promote respect for diversity and works towards establishing a recycling-oriented society.

▼Concerning Upcycling

Also know as creative reuse, it is the process of upgrading end-of-life products to new materials or products of better quality and environmental value.

At NTA, we recycle used uniforms into a new material called "PANECO®” and reuse them in sales activities as products such as coasters, welcome boards, and cash trays.

▼About「PANECO®」

"PANECO®" is a sustainable board made from waste clothing fibers developed by WORKSTUDIO Corporation (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Representative director: Kazuhiro Hara). It is an easy process like a wooden board and can be used to make a variety of products.

NTA will continue to propose this initiative to society so that upcycling activities can spread not only to us but to the many people and region we connect with.

▼Voices from NTA store sales staff

・"I'm happy that the uniforms we wore can be used as items to connect with customers, such as welcome boards and trays used when serving customers. It can also be a topic of conversation!"

・"For many year, it has been the norm to serve customers in uniform, but being able to choose the style of your pants and the color of your clothes depending on the day has expanded the range of work styles and feels refreshing."