Tradeprint + The Black Watch Castle and Museum Case Study

Museum of The Black Watch Chooses Sustainable Recycling with Tradeprint's Banner Return Scheme

Preserving history while protecting the future

As one of Scotland's most respected military museums, The Black Watch Castle and Museum in Perth is committed to preserving the past while helping build a more sustainable future. Temporary exhibitions, seasonal events and visitor campaigns all rely on high-quality printed display materials. Rather than sending used display graphics to landfill, the Museum wanted a solution that reflected its environmental values and demonstrated responsible stewardship of resources. That’s why the museum takes advantage of our Banner Return Scheme.

Like many museums and visitor attractions, The Black Watch Castle and Museum regularly refreshes its promotional displays to reflect changing exhibitions and events. Banners are built to be durable, but many still have a relatively short campaign life, and historically, disposing of large-format banners responsibly has been difficult. Traditional PVC materials are hard to recycle and often end up in landfill or energy recovery.

The Museum learnt of our Banner Return Scheme and decided it to be a practical alternative that would:

• Reduce the waste generated by temporary exhibitions.
• Support its wider sustainability ambitions.
• Demonstrate environmental leadership to visitors and stakeholders.
• Work without adding unnecessary complexity to day-to-day operations.

Supporting a Circular Economy

By choosing our PVC-Free Banners and enrolling in the Banner Return Scheme, the Museum ensures its banners keep working long after they've come down from display.

The scheme lets customers return eligible banners through a growing UK collection network operated in partnership with Antalis, using its depot network as regional drop-off points, removing one of the biggest practical barriers to banner recycling. Returned materials are responsibly processed and repurposed into durable products such as traffic cones and road barriers, keeping valuable materials in circulation rather than in landfill. Participants also receive a 15% discount on future PVC-Free banner orders, encouraging continued participation in the circular economy.

For The Black Watch Castle and Museum, this was about choosing a print partner that could support the product's complete lifecycle.

The Banner Return Scheme proved that sustainability doesn't end when a banner comes down. By providing a genuine end-of-life route, we have helped the Museum make a purchasing decision that reflected its commitment to responsible environmental management.

The Banner Return Scheme is part of our wider commitment to reducing the environmental impact of large format print by encouraging reuse, recycling and more sustainable material choices.

Instead of treating banners as single-use products, the scheme encourages organisations to think differently about printed media, designing for use, recovery and recycling from the outset. It forms part of Tradeprint's broader sustainability strategy and its commitment to achieving Net Zero by 2040.

The Black Watch Castle and Museum’s participation shows that organisations of any size can make practical sustainability improvements without compromising on quality or visual impact.

As more businesses, charities, museums and event organisers adopt circular procurement practices, initiatives like the Banner Return Scheme will help reduce waste, conserve resources and build a more responsible future for the print industry.

“Sustainability shouldn't stop when a banner comes down. By helping customers return and recycle their banners, we're making it much easier for organisations like The Black Watch Castle and Museum to reduce waste while maintaining exceptional print quality.”

— Anthony Rowell, Sales & Customer Success Director & Sustainability Lead, Tradeprint