sustainability Archives

Sustainability in perfumery

Thursday August 8th, 2024

Younger consumers are demanding more sustainability in perfumery nowadays. This is pushing brands to innovate and adopt sustainable packaging. Most smaller brands have failed to rise to this challenge due to the increased cost and complexity of sourcing sustainable packaging. Some larger brands have now started to invest in sustainable perfumery packaging for some of their brands. So which big names have been leading the way in sustainable perfumery packaging? Chanel has introduced refillable options for some of its iconic perfumes. The Chanel No.5 L’Eau offers a refillable bottle option. Guerlain focuses on eco friendly packaging and refill stations. Guerlain’s iconic bee bottle , which is used for the Aqua Allegoria range, can be refilled at select boutiques. Lancôme launched Idôle fragrance in an ultra slim, refillable bottle. La vie est belle is also available in a refill option. Refill stations have been set up in various stores, encouraging clients to bring the empty bottles for a refill. Le labo. Customers can bring back their empty bottles for a refill to all le labo stores, ensuring the packaging is reused multiple times. Dior. The launch of Sauvage was with a refillable bottle. The bottle can be refilled with a specially designed refill canister, so it is not as sustainable as a refill in store, but more convenient for consumers. Hermes. There are refill options available for its popular fragrances such as Terre d’Hermes. Cartier. There are refill options for its high end fragrances. The brand manages to retain its luxury appeal while being environmentally friendly with its elegant refillable bottles. Maison Francis Kurkdjian. The brand offers various refillable options for its luxury fragrances. Thierry Mugler. It is possible to refill Mugler perfumes in store as well as with the use of a refill kit at home. Armani. My Way is now available in a refill bottle which can be used to refill the original bottle. Kilian. Various Kilian perfumes can be refilled at home using the bespoke refill kit. All of the big brands mentioned in this blog post are making serious steps towards sustainability in perfumery packaging. But they have still only managed to make a small percentage of their products sustainable. What are the obstacles to achieving full sustainability? What challenges does the perfumery industry face to achieve sustainability in perfumery packaging : Material limitations. It can be difficult to match the aesthetic and functional properties of traditional packaging materials. Glass is heavy and energy intensive to produce. It is also difficult to add a large percentage of recycled glass into virgin glass, as this affects its strength. Biodegradable plastics may not be as durable and have the same look and properties as non biodegradable versions. Cost implications. Sustainable materials often cost more. For many brands the cost can be prohibitive. Biodegradable plastics cost about 50% more than normal plastics, FSC paper is around 20 percent more. Consumer habits. Many consumers are not ready for sustainable options. They do not want the extra work to hunt out refill stations. They want ease of use rather than refillable options. Regulatory challenges. It can be difficult to adhere to changing legislation for packaging materials and waste management. Anisha International DMCC has a wide network of suppliers who are able to provide sustainable packaging. If you are interested in making small steps towards sustainability please email our team at info@anisha.agency. […]

What consumers need from our brands

Tuesday April 5th, 2022

consumers are more focused on their brands reflecting their own values of sustainability […]

Top 5 sustainable perfume brands

Monday October 21st, 2019

The threat of global warming has meant that many of us are rethinking the way we shop and what we buy. However, for cosmetics and perfumery brands how feasible is it to recycle perfume packaging? Which perfume brands are environmentally friendly? Most perfume sets are a combination of materials : glass, plastic, aluminum, zinc alloy or wood which makes it difficult to recycle packaging. Nearly all perfume bottles sold have crimp pumps on them which has made it impossible in the past to refill them. So which companies currently offer refill at home options for bottles? Eden Perfumes in the UK offer a refill option where you post the empty bottle back to their factory to be refilled and then sent back out to you. So is there a better alternative to refill packaging? Unfortunately refill packaging also requires additional packaging – new bottles, boxes and closures. So the most environmentally friendly option is the fragrance refill bar. Thierry Mugler has dispensers in store where consumers can refill their perfume bottles at a lower cost. Chic Shaik in the Middle East has had perfumery refill bars in its larger distribution outlets since their launch and offer a lifetime refill service for their bottles. They also will do refurbishment of their beautiful bottles (at a cost) to ensure that they last a lifetime. Other big brands have limited refill stations in select outlets and cities, largely in Europe. Such as Guerlain in their flagship store in Paris, Roja Dove offers a refill option in Harrods using Daum crystal dispensers. Le Labo offers refilling in France primarily and selected European outlets. Caron offers a refill station at Fortnum and Mason in London. In the past only bottles with removable screw pumps could be refilled. But now technology from French company Techniplast allows even bottles where you cannot remove the pump to be refilled. Hopefully this is the way forward and more companies will start to buy into this new technology to allow more recycling of bottles in the future. However, this requires not only investment from brand owners, but also cooperation from retail outlets. Until there is more pressure from consumers or penalties imposed by governments to encourage more recycling, this approach is unlikely to become available in your local perfume retail outlet. Probably pressure from younger consumers will have an effect on brands as time goes on so that more perfume brands are environmentally friendly. Let us hope for the sake of the planet that this time comes sooner rather than later. If you enjoyed this article, why not read the following article about further perfume packaging trends: https://anisha.agency/10-useful-hints-and-trends-for-your-new-perfume-brands/ […]