Our thinking

The Goods: Circla-rity

22 July, 2021

For the Goods this week, we looked at the winning brands from Marie Claire’s Sustainability awards and asked Giles, a judge, which one he was particularly impressed by. So, this week, we present: Circla, the winner of the ‘Best Progress Towards Circularity’ award. 

There are obvious reasons to love Circla, the online platform looking to cut the beauty industry’s obsession with plastic short. First, the carefully selected independent brands that are on the platform satisfy our need for more sustainable, vegan or organic beauty products as they have high ethical standards. Additionally, we loved their commitment to low-carbon delivery via bikes or electric vehicles. And, finally, their commitment to keeping the move away from plastic simple: think reusable bottles, delivered to your door. Just like the century-old milkman but for your beauty products!  

But what really got us excited about Circla was the thought process that went behind it. The milkman model is nothing very innovative; in fact, it is quite an old idea. And, although refill models like the ones found in Waitrose or reuse models like Loop have been growing, the main focus has been food and beverages. In Circla, we see the genius of using a successful model that has been tried and tested for years in one industry, and simply spreading it to other industries like beauty.   

So, if you are looking to reduce your waste but haven’t got behind the whole naked products or shampoo bars thing, perhaps Circla is the good for you!

By Marie Guérinet