Did you know 50% of Brits don’t recycle bathroom waste such as shampoo and shower gel bottles, meaning over 2.7 billion plastic bottles hit landfill every year?
The UK beauty industry is worth billions of pounds but unfortunately it is also responsible for the creation of billions of non-recyclable packaging – think all of those little plastic pots and tubes that house your foundation, creams and deodorants.
All of these can take up to 1,000 years to decompose so we have to do something!
The beauty industry is slowly coming to realise that it’s customers want ethical change after it was reported that the global vegan and eco-friendly cosmetics market could reach $20.8 billion by 2025.
Brands such as L’Oreal are already introducing make-up recycling bins across 1,000 UK stores in an environmental push to change beauty habits but that won’t be enough if we don’t consider product packaging.
Through refillable beauty – i.e being able to refill empty cosmetics bottles once you are in need of a product top up – we can tackle plastic pollution and reduce waste significantly.
All we need to do is break the consumer to discard cycle – easy right?
Well it can be easy, there’s lots of benefits when it comes to refillable packaging so, here they are:
Refillable packaging can be the cost-effective alternative for consumers, with some brands like Kiehls and Body Shop offering rewards including a 20% to 50% reduction on the price of its products.
This is a great way to entice customers to start purchasing your cosmetics – they’re saving the planet whilst saving themselves money, win win! As a brand you will also benefit from an increase in buyers which in turn results in an increase in revenue.
By offering a service where consumers can either return their packaging to you or refill their empty products, you are protecting your brand from counterfeits being sold online.
In the US alone, fake cosmetics costs the industry $75 million annually so if you create a reputation for recycling your own packaging then people know to come to you for the real stuff.
If your business is manufacturing keep forever products then this allows you to get creative with your packaging to stand out in the market.
Like a treasured hand bag or purse, consumers can become invested in their ‘beauty swag’, wanting the most ‘Instagrammable’ beauty products to put on their bathroom shelf.
If something looks good then people are also more likely to keep it – just a thought!
Certified Sustainable was started by a small team of independent waste management experts, united by their belief that every business can operate in a truly sustainable manner without adverse effect on profit or shareholder value.
Having spent many years in the waste management industry, we created the Certified Sustainable brand in response to requests from large corporations for a means to demonstrate to the outside world that they are truly committed to sustainability.
The Certified Sustainable accreditation does just that. It also provides clear differentiation for businesses that have made a clear and demonstrable commitment to best-practice sustainability and waste management, as opposed to those for whom “sustainable initiatives” boil down to little more than a cynical PR exercise.
