Returnable Shipper Program allows consumers to return their shipping box, which can be reused up to 20 times and will help to reduce corrugate packaging weight by 89%. (1)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Aveda, the high-performance, plant-based haircare brand with a mission of sustainability, has announced a Returnable Shipper Program that allows a test group of consumers to reduce their packaging waste by returning their shipping box. With a mission to set an example for environmental leadership, environmental sustainability guides every decision at Aveda—and their Returnable Shipper Program is the brand’s newest effort to minimize packaging and shipping materials.
According to a study by HarrisPoll, 68% of US consumers say they are more conscious of packaging materials and design today than they were five years ago. The Aveda consumer likely already incorporates recycling into their lifestyle, and with the Returnable Shipper Program, this is a new way to incorporate “reuse”.
“Consumers understand the impact of waste on the earth and expect brands to help them play an active role in helping reduce that waste,” says Edmond Irizarry, Aveda’s Executive Director, Global Packaging Development. “At Aveda, we are always focused on ‘thinking outside the box,’ literally, in this case, and we continuously challenge ourselves in all facets of our business. This packaging initiative is one of them—it is a starting point to assess demand and need.”
Invitations for the Aveda Returnable Shipper Program will be sent to select Aveda.com customers that are part of the brand’s Auto-Replenishment program, and who subscribe to liter bottles. By using this returnable shipping box up to 20 times or more, it will help to reduce the corrugate packaging weight by at least 89% (1).
How the Returnable Shipper Program Works
Step 1: When the order arrives, cut the box’s zip tie seals. Please help us recover these ties by sending your used ties with your shipper to be recycled.
Step 2: Unzip the box and remove the liter bottle and pump
Step 3: Collapse the empty shipper by lifting up the base, and folding in the shorter sides
Step 4: Zip the outer layers together, with the pre-paid return shipping label face-up
Step 5: Return the shipper at any UPS location or UPS Drop Box
Step 6: Return the cap protector and recycle the protective paper filler curbside
Aveda’s Returnable Shipper Program was created in partnership with Returnity, an award-winning company with a mission to tackle shipping and delivery packaging waste. Find out more about the program at https://www.aveda.com/returnable-shipper.
Environmental Criteria for the Returnable Shipper
In addition, each Returnable Shipper is:
- Produced with a minimum of 35% recycled content, including 25% Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) and 10% Post-Industrial Recycled (PIR) materials
- Covered with fabric made with 90% recycled polyester fibers consisting of 70% Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) and 20% Post-Industrial Recycled (PIR) materials
- Designed to be disassembled and fully recycled when no longer in use
- The ties used to secure the returnable shipper are made with 96% Post-Industrial Recycled (PIR) materials
A History of Packaging Innovation
As a company that leads with an environmental mission, Aveda has a history of responsible packaging innovation, including:
- Pioneered 100% post-consumer recycled (PCR) PET packaging in beauty
- The first prestige beauty company to combine PCR and bioplastic in a tube
- In 2020, introduced the brand’s first 100% PCR HDPE packaging in vibrant, on-trend coral
- Today, more than 85% of Aveda’s skincare and styling PET bottles and jars contain 100% post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials
About Aveda
Founded in 1978 in Minneapolis, MN, Aveda creates vegan, cruelty-free, high-performance hair, skin, and body products for beauty professionals and consumers. Aveda innovates in botanical technologies, combining the principles of modern science and Ayurveda, the ancient healing art of India, to develop performance-driven hair, skin, and body products—made with pure flower and plant essences—that are created with respect for the Earth, and a comprehensive menu of ritual-based treatments for holistic beauty.
Throughout the years, Aveda has pioneered new benchmarks of environmental responsibility in beauty. It was the first company to sign the Ceres Principles in 1989—a nonprofit organization mobilizing business leadership on climate change, water scarcity, and other sustainability challenges—and the first beauty company to manufacture products with 100 percent wind power through renewable energy credits and carbon offsets. In June 2020, Aveda unveiled a 3.6 acre, 900kW ground-mounted solar array at its primary facility, which provides up to 50% of the annual energy demand for manufacturing, with the remainder powered by wind. This array offsets more than 1,100 metric tons of CO2 annually.
Aveda was also the first beauty company to receive a Cradle to Cradle charter for its commitment to sustainable products, packaging, and production. In 2013, Aveda was honored with the first Legacy Leaders Award from Cradle to Cradle for its pioneering role in environmental leadership. Aveda received the Sustainability Leadership Award in 2017 during the Sustainable Beauty Awards organized by Ecovia Intelligence for its leadership in packaging, green formulations, and sustainable ingredients, and was a finalist for the same award in 2020. Since 1999, Aveda’s annual Earth Month campaign, held each April, has raised nearly $67 million to support environmental projects around the world.
Aveda products are available in Aveda Experience Centers and more than 9,000 professional hair salons and spas in more than 45 countries and at aveda.com.
*Based on a conservative estimate of supplier’s/ Returnity’s analysis of the expected usable life of the box
1Based on an empty Aveda corrugate shipping box and dunnage and an empty returnable shipper used 20 times.