With the beauty industry booming, it’s easy to see how quickly one can come to hoard a small (or big) collection of beauty products.
We talked to Marina Tatas from Finder to round up a list of beauty brands and stores that will happily accept your empty product containers and even reward you with some awesome goodies for doing so.
That means there’s really no excuse to not recycle your used beauty products anymore!
LUSH
LUSH is a UK-born cosmetics company that prides itself on being good to the environment and offering a plethora of vegan and cruelty-free options. Not only does it utilise packaging-free options, but all the plastic it does use is made from recycled and recyclable plastic.
Its recycling program is simple. Once you’ve emptied five of LUSH’s black product pots, you can exchange them for a free Fresh Face Mask.
Recently, LUSH has introduced a new bring-it-back scheme. From 10 May 2021, if you bring your empty LUSH pots and bottles back to the store, you’ll get $1 per empty to spend on your purchase that day.
MAC Cosmetics
If you’re obsessed with MAC Cosmetics and find yourself emptying a few of their products, we recommend keeping the empty containers aside.
By returning six MAC primary packaging containers, you’ll receive a free lipstick of your choice. Keep in mind that these are limited to those with a retail price of $36.
In addition to the Back to MAC program, the global brand also prioritises minimal packaging and recycled paper and paperboard packaging in its offices and manufacturing and distribution facilities.
The Body Shop
The Body Shop is dominating the beauty world with its commitment to the environment. Not only is it a certified B Corp, but it’s also got plans to develop zero-waste packaging.
The Body Shop has a Return.Recycle.Repeat scheme, which allows you to return all your empty tubs, tubes, jars and pots to the store for the team to recycle and repurpose.
Kiehl’s
Kiehl’s and TerraCycle are working together to encourage customers to recycle and get rewarded at the same time.
Simply return your empty bottles to any Kiehl’s store, and they’ll get sent to TerraCycle where they’ll be repurposed into something great.
If you return three bottles, you’ll receive a pouch, calendula seeds and a deluxe sample. Five bottles? You’ll score a pouch, two deluxe samples and a sachet sample. 10 bottles, and a handy sustainable tote is all yours for free.
Jurlique
Just finished your favourite bottle of Jurlique serum? Don’t throw it away. Put it aside until you get to your closest Jurlique standalone store.
Jurlique is partnered with TerraCycle and accepts all sorts of empty packing to be recycled. The best part? You’ll get a cheeky 10% off reward to spend in-store.
MECCA
MECCA is an Australian beauty superstore, housing over 150 global brands. It’s partnered with T erraCycle to make recycling your old products easy and fuss-free.
Next time you hit pan on your favourite powder, or scrape out every last bit of your moisturiser, you can take the empty packaging to your local MECCA store. There you can either pop them into a labelled bin or pass them onto a team member at the registers.
We love that this program isn’t limited to one single brand. TerraCycle accepts shampoo and conditioner bottles, lip gloss and mascara tubes, jars and tubs of lotion, and so much more.
David Jones
Australia’s favourite department store now allows you to return and recycle your empty beauty products. David Jones’s BeautyCycle program is also in partnership with TerraCycle.
The team has set up special drop-off boxes in store, where you can drop off your empties and then go about your shopping. Materials that are accepted include soft and rigid plastics, glass packaging, foundation bottles, lipsticks, compacts, mascaras and more.
