FLOW

Printed on the ground, stepped on, walked over- Humble words promoting a conscious lifestyle. A way of life? Inspiration.

“Be best, not in, but for the world.”

The lighting is low and the setting familiar, if small; rows of stacked products, quietly forming the walls of the oh-so-familiar type. Water, milk, spray, cream, candy, pills, all calling out from neat labels printed on the perfectly positioned tins and plastics. Then you remember where these are, and you begin to notice that all these labels are too perfect, too plain, and the containers contain no product.

Deep in the basement of the Danish Design Center, the FLOW supermarket espouses a not so new idea: Sustainability. That over-used single word heard the world over connoting images of grass roofs, clean cities, happy people, and healthy societies. Here though, with a few Danish kroner, anyone can buy these things in the form of products printed with simple words: “Peace,” “Collective Conscience,” “100% Biodegradability,” “eating disorder killers,” “clean tap water,” “1/4 unconditional love,” “tolerance.” The format is different but the message is plain; they are selling change, consumer sustainability for a consumer society.

FLOW

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