Why go the bulk route for your cosmetics brand? At Mustela, the commitment does not date from yesterday. After working on product composition and eco-design, bulk was the logical next step in their efforts to reduce their waste. Their team therefore asked for help from our Bulk for Brands service. The challenge was threefold : new environment, new types of products, new distribution channel. Mathilde de Montgolfier, the brand's open innovation manager, talks about the project in this interview:
Mathilde de Montgolfier: For more than 15 years, our brand has been committed to a militant and ambitious approach aimed at minimising its impact on Man and the Planet. Among the many avenues of improvement already explored, the priority has been naturalness, with formulas that now contain an average of 96% ingredients of natural origin, as well as the creation of an organic range in 2019. In addition to working on the composition of products, we have started an eco-design approach since 2010. There are several reasons to have made the shift to bulk:
Finally, this project was an integral part of our reflection on how to reduce our waste production. It was a way to go further and rethink our use of packaging.
In addition, liquid bulk players like you were at that time more mature on the market, and ready to accompany brands in this type of project.
"We also wanted to work with pharmacies, which were not yet the preferred place for organic and bulk products. This is our historical channel and we wanted to bring them on board with us towards more sustainable consumption. We wanted to take up the challenge of launching a new offer in a new channel.
Finally, it was of course also a consumer demand.
Mathilde de Montgolfier: Our imperatives were to guarantee the same level of hygiene, safety and traceability for the products as for the pre-packaged products. We also had expectations regarding theexperience of users and operators in pharmacies. The system had to be practical and above all easy to use in order to be able to put the reuse loops into practice. We chose to team up with you because we had the same timings and you offered a customer experience in line with our expectations.
Mathilde de Montgolfier: There were regular weekly meetings to allow for custom developments. Despite the hazards and difficulties, we were able to progress together. There was a good understanding of our needs and requests. We have learned to adapt to each other' s operating methods and to get to know each other.
To start with, we've come up with two bestsellers: the gentle cleansing gel and the organic cleansing gel. Because washing products are well suited to refilling. We are very attentive to the environmental part, we want to favour products that make the most sense, that correspond to the technical issues and that flow perfectly to avoid any waste. We are looking at the possibility of extending the range but we need to check that our future offer can be used and has a positive environmental impact.
Mathilde de Montgolfier: Our Mustela® "REVIENS" refillable glass bottleis currently available in 21 pharmacies in France. We have to select pharmacies with sufficient volumes for there to be re-use. The offer is not adapted, for example, to places where people pass through but rather to living areas. For the international market, this remains to be studied in order to remain virtuous in the deployment.
Mathilde de Montgolfier: The pharmacies have been very happy to offer this service. We looked for real partners who were ready to enter into a logic of continuous improvement, to give us feedback, and to invest. In addition, we did not want to be only in the largest cities, in order to be able to reach all types of public in the process thanks to a balanced network.
"We wanted to bring on board committed pharmacies that wanted to change the world with us, by proposing more virtuous consumption!"
The parents were also very enthusiastic about "finally"finding this type of alternative for their babies.
Following the feedback, there was again this real logic of continuous improvement: a study is underway on the fountain décor, merchandising, screens and the evolution of the route. We have since worked on how to facilitate home washing. And the project continues to be evaluated, we want to measure the impact first, before deploying even more.
Carried out over a period of 12 months, this initial experiment is part of a broader approach to theeco-design of products and, more specifically, the reduction of packaging. Its objective: to validate the environmental interest of the refill system compared to the disposable offer.
We rely on the expertise of Coopérative Mu, an eco-design agency, which carried out a life cycle analysis (LCA). The analysis concluded that the choice of a glass refill is more virtuous after three uses of the "REVIENS" bottle. Switching from the single-use plastic bottle to the refillable glass bottle reduces plastic consumption by 76% and C02 production by 220 grams*, the equivalent of a 5W LED light bulb turned on for 777 hours.
Comparison between a single-use plastic wash (400ml) and a refillable glass bottle (480ml) over a period of 1 year (based on 3 washes consumed). By switching from a plastic bottle to a glass bottle REVIENS.
Mathilde de Montgolfier: Since 2010, our brand has implemented an eco-design policy which has enabled us tosave 145 tonnes of plastic and 65 tonnes of cardboard and 100% of the bottles are recyclable. Mustela® is the first French dermo-cosmetic brand to be B Corp certified in 2018. We are thus committed to contributing to global carbon neutrality and achieving Net Zero by 2030 with several B Corp companies, 20 years before the objectives of theParis Agreement. We are starting to drastically reduce our impact before we even think about offsetting. This will be achieved through the following levers:
Mathilde de Montgolfier: This cannot be generalised at once for all brands. Nevertheless, this project is an essential first step in talking, convincing, raising awareness, rethinking, and moving forward little by little. Everyone is doing their part, and must move forward in this process of proposing ever more virtuous products and packaging. The notion of refill and deposit are real prospects for the future, but there is a need for synergy between the players, to pursue research and to structure the network on the territory.
"I can only encourage your company and other brands to get started: it's a real opportunity to move forward and progress together!"
Jean Bouteille: Thank you to the whole team for your involvement and commitment! We hope that your example will be an inspiration for other cosmetic brands.
