• Background: Selfridges has banned all single-use, plastic-based beauty wipes from its Beauty Halls and is replacing them with recyclable or reusable alternatives in a bid to encourage sustainable purchases.
• Description: Beauty wipes are incredibly popular: researchers found that 20% of consumers use them at least once a day, and 35% consider single-use beauty wipes a beauty necessity. In addition, 13% flush single-use wipes down the toilet which can end up on the beaches and ocean if it doesn’t clog sewage and waterways first. Furthermore, a Middlesex University study estimates that plastic-based single-use wipes can take up to 100 years to fully degrade — but only 19% of consumers are aware of this. During a recent Selfridges team beach clean, the volunteers saw first-hand the impact wipes have on local waterways and beaches and the team felt even more motivated to remove them from the stores.
• Impact: Empowering customers with knowledge and choice of environmentally-friendly alternatives from the retailer including Face Halo, Sarah Chapman Professional Cleansing Mitts, and Clinique’s Take the Day Off Cleansing Cloths all reusable make-up removers that quickly removes makeup and can replace up to 500 single-use wipes.

Photos courtesy of Selfridges