3 Ways to Reduce Plastic in Your Salon
Most everything is made of plastic and it can’t always be helped. From your salon chairs, to your computer, salon tools, and even mannequin heads. Plastic is a cheap, lightweight, and durable material that we’ve become accustomed to. In 1950, the production of plastic was just two million tonnes, as the post-WW2 industrial boom and global trade growth expanded. In 2023, plastic production has reached to over 413 million tonnes.
But, not everything that glitters is gold.
There are a lot of reasons why only 9% of all plastic made has been recycled globally:
Lack of recycling infrastructure
There are many types of plastic, most of it is unable to be recycled
The plastic that is able to be recycled has a limit of how many times it can be recycled
A lot of items that plastic is involved is mixed with other materials, making it unrecyclable
Lack of end-markets for plastic material to be used for
And probably a lot more.
The best way to combat plastic pollution is to try to reduce your use of plastic at the start - finding new alternatives or practices that cut plastic usage.
For Plastic-Free July, we’re going over 3 different ways to reduce plastic in your salon - possibly to even get your salon to be completely plastic-free.
Here’s what we’ll be going through in this article:
Tool swapping/material alternatives
Revamping your retail
Replacing single-use to reusables
Tool Swap/Material Alternatives
When you’re looking at new items to replace (it’s best to use your tools until they are ready to be retired), look at different materials that are being used for salon tools instead of plastic.
These materials are great alternatives for salon tools:
Bamboo: It’s a great renewable resource that grows quickly and requires minimal water and pesticides. Plus, it’s compostable (but still takes time).
Metal: Known for its durability and strength, metal tools often last much longer than plastic counterparts. It’s also infinitely recyclable.
Carbon: Lightweight and highly durable, they resist wear and tear better than many plastic options. Carbon combs are my personal favorite.
Glass: Fully recyclable material that can be reused indefinitely without losing quality.
BioPlastic/Compostable Plastic: This is a good option if you have access to a commercial composting facility that accepts your type of compostable material. There’s still a lot to be researched on this material being used wide spread, but it has a better lifecycle analysis than average plastic.
PCR (post-consumer recycled) Plastic: While, yes, it’s still plastic but it is plastic that has been recycled into a new material, helping keep the use of “new” plastic made down. This definitely is a way to help conserve the environment by not mining for new resources (at least as much), PCR still usually requires some amount of virgin plastic.
Revamping Your Retail
Retail is an important part of a salon. It used to be harder to find salon-quality products that have alternative packaging options besides plastic, but now there are various products that you can personally align with.
Here are some retail alternatives:
The refill method: If you decide to carry products that offer refills, they usually have pouches available, it can reduce plastic use by 60%. However, some brands offer their refills in a large bulk container. This is also a great incentive to get clients to come back to the salon - continuing support for your small business (something Amazon can’t offer).
EX: Plaine Products, Hairstory, Oneka
Alternative to plastic packaging: Instead of plastic, brands are really branching into packaging alternatives such as glass, aluminum, and PCR plastic.
Packageless products: Or go the opposite route: no package! Condensed products that are in the shape of bars or dissolvable tablets,
EX: DIP, HiBars, Sudz Caludron, 2nd Ground
Nomad Beauty Therapy Salon (Rochester, MI) and their retail shelf that includes package-less products, locally made, refill items, and other offerings
Rethinking Single-Use
It’s estimated that 36% of plastic is created to be single-use, which means exactly what is said - created to be used one time and statistically likely to end up in a landfill or become litter pollution.
To bring up what we said earlier - you can help cut plastic pollution by cutting it out at the source. This means replacing single-use plastics for something that you can reuse again.
Examples include (but aren't limited to):
At your snack and drink bar offer mugs instead of disposable coffee cups or snacks in bulk form instead of single-use packaging
Having multiple high quality tools like metal cuticle pushers or makeup brushes that are easy to disinfect in-between multiple clients, plus having extra items on hand will make it easier for busy days
Pre-made makeup pallets end up becoming very wasteful due to using only a few colors - you can make your own with reusable tins and kits (if you’re having trouble with this one, Grishan Roof is an expert and offers 1-on-1 training)
Alongside that, buying product kits in general seem to usually have a few items that become unused and thrown away - try to refuse those when you can
Offer reusable tote bags or accept used paper bags for reuse for retail shoppers instead of plastic bags
If you’re receiving plastic bags in your product orders, consider using them as bin bags so they aren’t single-use
Recapping Reduction of Salon Plastic
Reducing plastic in your salon is a practice that takes time, conscious effort, and an open mind. The 3 options we provided are:
Tool Swapping/Material Alternatives
Revamping Your Retail
Replacing Single-Use to Reusables
And there are other ways to reduce plastic as well, but these are the main jumping off points to create a salon space that you can be proud of.
Now, true to our belief I’m going to post our disclaimer: if you’re going to adopt any (or all) of these practices - start small and grow from there. You will be more likely to succeed by making it as simple as possible.
How will you reduce plastic in your salon?
Let us know in our comments or send us an email - we’d love to update this article with new ways/ideas to do so from experts in the field!
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