An apparent industry-first initiative aims to help beauty influencers and media recycle empty packaging and containers produced every month from beauty samples and cosmetic tester pots.
SEEN AGAIN is the work of returns management platform ReBOUND Returns, working with beauty specalist agency SEEN Group and HANDLE Recycling. It encourages all promotional beauty products sent out by SEEN Group to be returned when empty in a specialist recycling bag, bearing the legend “SEEN X HANDLE”. Influencers and journalists simply need to create a free return label via ReBOUND’s online recycling portal and then send to the recycling centre.
The beauty industry alone produces more than 120 billion units of packaging globally (Zerowaste, 2020). The move to working from home has placed even greater pressure on beauty press and influencers to remove and recycle all the beauty empties from their homes, meaning that processing unwanted packaging can feel like a full-time job.
ReBOUND describes itself as a returns management solution that helps retailers achieve smarter, more sustainable returns, and the firm’s technology is being used by SEEN AGAIN to facilitate “seamless recycling at the touch of a button”. HANDLE Recycling is revolutionising the use of used beauty packaging, supplying this premium raw material to businesses and also creating their own beauty tools from the recycled waste. With SEEN’s working with some of the most important brands in beauty and personal care, all beauty products which SEEN distribute will now be sent with a clear sustainable message to encourage recycling.
Emily Cotterill, Head of Sustainability at ReBOUND said:
“The beauty industry relies on media and influencers to get its message out to consumers but until now hasn’t offered an easy way for them to dispose of the mountains of promotional products they receive each month. Journalists and influencers are just like the majority of shoppers who appreciate those brands that are doing their bit and working towards more sustainable practices. This is an industry-first solution and we hope it inspires others across the beauty sector to examine how they can progress towards a green and circular economy.”
ReBOUND’s own research found that since watching David Attenborough’s Netflix documentary ‘A Life On Our Planet’, 95% of shoppers confessed they are now more conscious of their environmental footprint. The trio of businesses behind the launch of the SEEN AGAIN solution hope this new initiative will encourage influencers to inspire more sustainable consumption from their followers.
Janes Walsh, SEEN Group CEO, said:
“Over-consumption is a global challenge. Until our business is fully circular and all our brands are responsible from cradle-to-cradle, at SEEN we believe we have a responsibility to offset the consumption trigger. SEEN Again is a way to serve our media collaborators with the opportunity to effortlessly do good and return their waste easily and responsibly.”
