Partners Needed: Accessible Recycling for Salon Professionals

Photography by Jeffrey Mullins

The people say that recycling is dead and that it never worked are usually the ones that don’t work in recycling. While recycling rates could be better, they are steadily rising. Recycling has become more than just a blue bin - it’s an opportunity for the artists to reclaim, businesses to make an ecological impact, and for local communities to grow their local economy.

The recycling rate for the US is currently 32% in 2025, but their goal for 2030 is 50%. There are two big issues/roadblocks that are keeping us from that: accessibility and education. Specifically - physical programs, finances, and learning how to recycle materials properly/what you’re actually able to recycle.

Salons and beauty in particular have a great opportunity for material collections, but don’t have a lot of support. Aluminum scrap, glass, cardboard, paper, hard plastic, and other materials are commonly found in salons - they can be recycled in some way, but just need to be easily found.

Are you a recycler, artist, retailer, or small business?

Let’s connect on how we can make an impact.