A year ago, global markets were roiled by the global economic shutdown. Unemployment soared, the stock market plummeted and retail sales plunged. Lockdowns wreaked havoc with fast-moving consumer goods sales. Demand jumped for household cleaners, slid for cosmetics, and everyone had an opinion about masks. The one thing most people agreed on? Environmental issues. Eighty percent of consumers said COVID-19 stay-at-home orders had a positive impact on the environment. Moreover, studies show that unlike the Great Recession, the pandemic didn’t slow consumer interest in sustainability across all product categories.

Accenture’s COVID-19 global research surveyed more than 9,650 people across 19 countries. Seventy-two percent of consumers reported shifting their priorities to tackling food waste and two-thirds said governments should introduce legislation that promotes this, such as charging for plastic bags or standards for labels. Around half of the respondents did not truly know which brands operated using more sustainable methods and those that did not. In addition, 69% answered that it should be in the consumer company’s best interest to relay this information in a bid toward transparency.

Some beauty executives agree with Accenture’s findings.

“Consumers really do want to be part of the change, but find it hard to change their daily habits,” says Mark Veeder, co-founder and CEO of Sk*p, a new beauty brand packaged in recyclable cartons. “(Sk*p) provides them a better option for their hair and body care packaging and formulas rather than asking them to stop consuming or change their ingrained behaviors. Our goal is not to shame people into being more eco-friendly, but rather give them an alternative to feel good about.”

Ace of Air is a new direct-to-consumer skin care and supplement brand that requires customers to “rent” the primary packaging for a non-refundable $2 per product. According to company Co-founder and CEO Stephanie Stahl, the brand is aimed at conscious humans who want to make mindful choices.

“Our research shows that consumers are eager to swap their current skin care and supplement products for alternatives that deliver desired results in packaging that does not create plastic waste,” she said.

Accenture’s latest research supports its previous findings that the shift in “conscious consumption” is likely to remain or accelerate further. As of April last year, 64% of consumers said they planned to focus more on limiting food waste and will likely continue to do so going forward. In December 2020, this number jumped to 72%. In addition, in April 2020, half (50%) of consumers said that they are shopping more health consciously, and will likely continue to do so in the future. This number increased to 68% of consumers as of December 2020.

“This is a trend that was very much in place before the pandemic, the metrics suggests these habits are here to stay,” said Kim De Maeseneer, the European lead of Accenture’s consumer goods and services industry group. “The pandemic has put the trend of consumer sustainability and conscious consumption on steroids. The effects—the silver lining—of the pandemic and its effects on this industry are completely unforeseen.” 

Those effects, which had been years in the making, were compressed into a matter of weeks and months.

“As a result, we can expect the trend of conscious consumption to outlast the pandemic,” adds De Maeseneer.

Therefore, companies must focus on consumer demands. She noted that consumers have become very vocal with what they expect and this push for transparency has become a real mantra for the industry.

“Increasing sustainability throughout the whole supply chain ecosystem is important. Streamlining processes is important at every step, from the farmer to the consumer and we’re seeing pushes towards these trends for the retail companies, the consumer goods companies, the logistics companies— we’re really seeing a need to act across these four dimensions. Interconnectivity is becoming a large part of ensuring supply chain resilience,” she said. “The different companies involved with the value chain are beginning to cooperate more and this could stand to alter and affect every aspect of the supply chain.”

In addition, two thirds of consumers (65%) believe that legislation should be introduced to promote conscious consumption, an example of which would be charging for plastic bags, while 69% of consumers believe brands should do more to make it easier to consume more consciously. Elsewhere, a third of respondents said that they don’t have a good understanding of what products they can and cannot recycle.

The end result is that CPG companies are under increased pressure to deliver targets in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, while also mitigating the long-term impact of COVID-19. Methods being employed by firms, according to Accenture, include reducing operational environmental footprint by adopting water recycling and grey water utilization; implementing net-zero goals; understanding product disposal impacts; implementing circular business models to reduce product and packaging waste and to promote responsible consumption; and building robust and inclusive value chains. Brands that recently launched lines with recycled material include Lazartigue, Tom's of Maine and Schick. 

Consumer Perceptions
According to a global consumer study conducted by McKinsey in December, for European and Japanese consumers, marine litter is top-of-mind, while pollution is more of a concern in other Asian countries and the Americas. But regardless of where they live, the vast majority of consumers claim to be willing to pay more for sustainable packaging.

Everyone wants it, but what is sustainable packaging? It really depends on whom you ask. US consumers say paper-based cartons are most sustainable, followed by glass bottles and jars, and plastic films made from renewable, compostable raw materials. Yet, Chinese and Brazilian consumers regard those same plastic films as most sustainable (see chart below). As McKinsey notes, every respondent agreed that packaging combining plastic, paper and aluminum foil as the least sustainable option.

Wherever companies are on their sustainable packaging journeys, McKinsey urges suppliers to take a strategic look at their portfolios and assess them with three key questions in mind:

• What are the substrate shifts you can foresee in your focus markets based on anticipated consumer perception and regulatory changes?
• What is the resulting value at stake; i.e., where are you most exposed given this and your market position?
• What are the potential growth opportunities for which you would be uniquely positioned to provide winning solutions?

Answering these questions helps create an actionable fact base, according to McKinsey.

Sustainable Answers

Some consumer product companies, of course, are further along in their sustainable packaging initiatives. In April, Birchbox launched Re.fil, an in-house brand that promises to reduce waste through refillable solutions for everyday essentials. Lip balm is the first Re.fil product offering. According to Birchbox, one billion lipstick tubes end up in landfills every year. Re.fil Beauty Balm is sold in a refillable case made from 100% recyclable post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic. When empty, the user removes the empty blue dish and pops in a refill into the case. Refillable balm pods are available on www.birchbox.com.

According to the company, the design means the Beauty Balm is 95% reusable. The clean and vegan formula leaves a soft, protective layer on skin to lock in moisture and block environmental aggressors. Key ingredients include a blend of natural oils, squalene, ceramides and chamomile.

Also in April, on Earth Day, in fact, Sk*p made its debut. The hair and body care brand is determined to break the beauty industry’s addiction to plastic. The proprietary BeautyCarton is a 100% recyclable paper-based carton that can hold up in the shower. The range includes body cleansers, face and body moisturizer, shampoo and conditioner. Consumer response to the launch has been overwhelmingly positive, says Veeder.

“It’s been hard to keep up with the orders. In fact, we were on Good Morning America just two weeks after our official launch, and received thousands of orders in eight hours.”

The products are currently available on the Sk*p website, www.skpgen.com, and at select pop ups at retailers across the country including Foundry 42 in Port Jervis, NY and Austin-metro; Salt in Shelter Island, NY; Naked Retail in New York City; and Wakeman Town Farm in Westport, CT. More Sk*p pop ups will be appearing this summer in Los Angeles, New Jersey and the Hamptons, too.

Sk*p cartons are made of more than 81% Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)-certified paper that comes from responsibly managed and certified forests both in the US and globally. The carton stands up perfectly in the shower, and Sk*p conducted extensive third-party testing to be sure. The carton has a water-resistant coating similar to the kind the beverage industry uses.

Veeder and Sk*p have pledged to break the industry’s addiction to plastic, but he realizes there is no single solution.

“We believe in harm reduction and not perfection,” he explained. “It’s important to highlight all the steps many brands are taking to reduce plastics in our environment. Our BeautyCarton is a big step forward in breaking the addiction since it’s 95% less plastic than traditional plastic bottles, fully recyclable and we continue to innovate to make it even more sustainable.”

Sk*p will launch a new version soon that further reduces the virgin plastic in the cap/spout system. Veeder maintains that the cartons are actually less expensive than plastic and that paper cartons are recyclable in 49 out of 50 US states.

“Recyclers are recycling paper more than any other material because it can be recycled up to seven times and is profitable for them,” said Veeder.

He told Happi that in 2018, 41,000 tons of paper board was produced and more than 33,000 tons were recycled. In contrast, less than 10% of all plastic actually gets recycled.

Rent Don’t Buy

Ace of Air takes a different approach to sustainability. The brand launched with eight products priced $35-$85. Products are shipped in a special box, referred to as a Boomerang Box, that can be used up to 100 times and includes a return label so customers can return the shipping package to Ace of Air through UPS. 

Stahl said the brand is designed to have a positive impact on the planet through “powerfully nourishing” skin care and supplement products.

“We did this not because we thought the world needed another beauty and wellness brand; we did this because the planet needs a beauty and wellness brand that fundamentally changes what and how we consume,” said Stahl.

Ace of Air soft launched on Jan. 28, 2021, which Stahl describes as “a special day in the cosmos with the Jupiter full moon in Leo meaning abundance, infinitely sustainable, a time when people will be open and ready to receive.”

And what, exactly, will customers receive? The Ace of Air lineup includes skin care and supplement products. Curated, synergistically formulated assortments include Illuminate Me (Sunrise Serum, Halo Moisturizer and Aurora Capsule) and Restore Me (Space Age Serum, Bounce Back Moisturizer and Time Capsule). Ace of Air also includes Balance Me Happy Gut PreProPostbiotic and Mega Me Vegan Omega Biocomplex.

Last month, Ace of Air launched a seasonal Cleanse Me collection, which consists of two supplements, the Cleanse Me Hello Summer Reset Capsule Supplement and Cleanse Me Goodbye Toxins Capsule Supplement, which are said to help bodies reset, nourish and detox from the inside out. Ace of Air is a Certified B Corporation and products are Leaping Bunny Certified, sustainably-farmed, and “free of harsh ingredients,” according to Stahl.

“From fair-trade Moringa farmed in Haiti to wild-harvested Kahai Oil from Colombia, we meticulously select the most ethical source for every ingredient—ensuring that both the environment and the people are treated with respect,” she said.

Formulas are housed in reusable packaging made of stainless steel, food-grade ceramic, using fair-trade FSC Certified natural rubber for the seals and other packaging elements that are normally made of plastic or silicone. Shipping packaging is made of 100% post-consumer recycled polypropylene, 30% of which is reclaimed ocean waste. The brand’s packaging partners are based in China and Denmark.

Ace of Air products are only available online at AceofAir.com. The circular, zero waste model is noble, but it does require the consumer to really be invested in the process.

“With the help of our customers, we will put an end to single use packaging—manufacturing less, reusing more and recycling the right way when it’s time to retire a package,” insists Stahl. “We believe consumers are looking for better options like Ace of Air and excited to make small behavioral changes that make a big difference.”

The company tries to keep it simple and reward returns of every packaging piece so it can continue to cycle on through Ace of Air’s circular business model.

“Our model includes an innovative design that lasts for 100+ cycles of use, integrated components to eliminate secondary packaging, a Boomerang Box to make it easier to return every piece of the package and state-of-the art environmentally safe cleaning process sterilizes everything in between uses,” explained Stahl.

What’s Next?

Sk*p plans to expand the collection this year with the addition of clean deodorants, a mini carton trial kit, powder cleanser and more. Furthermore, the company is already prototyping the next iteration of the carton that will feature a flip top made of PCW materials, to reduce the use of plastic even further.

To identify the next generation of environmentally-conscious consumers, last month, Sk*p launched BOSS (Board of Sk*p Stars), which it calls the beauty industry’s first all-youth board of teen activists who are passionate about helping the environment. Kids can apply online to join the board, requirements include community activism and leadership.

“They’ll be inputting on important brand decisions from product development, marketing and philanthropy programs,” insists Veeder.  “The goal of the program is really to mentor and grow the next generation of eco-entrepreneurs that will lead the Sk*p movement into a sustainable, hopeful and cleaner future.”

To ensure a sustainable future, it’s a good idea to convince tomorrow’s consumers today. Looking for a new packaging supplier? Get started here.