Luxury skincare brand Emma Lewisham has paved the way for the future of sustainable beauty by launching the world’a first carbon positive and 100% circular-designed beauty brand.
Fully open and ready for scrutiny, Emma Lewisham’s business blueprint sets the benchmark for other ‘sustainable’ brands. It’s an important move as it has been estimated that it’s possible for the beauty industry to reduce carbon emissions by up to 70%. It’s an industry that was built with economic thinking, without consideration of waste or other crucial elements that are harming our planet. Emma’s research shows that the beauty industry is responsible for 120 billion units of waste every year. In weight terms, that’s a whopping 843,000 elephants… and 95% of it is thrown out after just a single use. With the recycling that does take place, it amounts to only 14% of beauty product plastic. It’s clear something needs to be done.
In simple terms, the problem lies with packaging. In a circular beauty business model like Emma’s, refills are what drives it. Emma says that “reusing a bottle or jar over and over again, instead of creating a new vessel, is single-handedly the most influential change we can make in reducing the beauty industry’s carbon emissions“. If we started reusing and refilling just a small amount of the 120 billion units of beauty that’s created every year, we could make a real impact.
The circular economy is something that all brands can start moving towards. It’s about reducing what’s produced, resusing what is produced and recycling what cannot be reused. We need to keep packaging in circulation to create a waste-free beauty industry.
Emma Lewisham is a luxury, 100% natural skincare brand from New Zealand. Founded in 2019, her science-led products are free from fillers, artificial colours, synthetic fragrances and synthetic preservatives. They are formulated with cutting-edge natural ingredients, that are garnered with advanced extraction techniques and distilled, to make sure that they maintain their full nutrient profile and potency. Her hero product is the Skin Reset (£80 from Emma Lewisham). This phytonutrient serum is designed to even skin tone and reduce hyperpigmentation, whilst also refining texture and the visible signs of ageing. Their Skin Reset box is 100% recyclable and printed on environmentally responsible PEFC certified paper and printed using oil-free, vegetable based inks with water based coatings. Their boxes will biodegrade and leave no nasty chemicals behind. Once you’ve finished a pot of this serum, you purchase a refil of the serum but reuse the container. By doing so, you’ll reduce your carbon emissions by 71% and prevent around 0.6 litres of Arctic sea ice loss.
When it comes to the environment as consumers, we can only take baby steps, that collectively will make a significant impact. By making your own small changes in how you buy and consume, you join a collective effort that is making huge strides in saving the planet.
You can see more of what Laura is loving, over on her Instagram @lpearsonsmith.
