Sephora has hit a major milestone in its efforts to reduce beauty waste through its in-store recycling programme.
The beauty retailer’s Beauty (Re)Purposed programme lets shoppers return empties in stores in the US and Canada.
First launched in 2023, the programme has now collected more than 100,000lbs of empty beauty packaging and diverted it from landfills.
An estimated 95% of cosmetics packaging is typically thrown away as it’s not accepted in curbside recycling due to size and use of mixed materials.
Sephora’s programme, in partnership with Pact, accepts any beauty empties, not just from products bought in its stores.
Empties are then processed for reuse in a range of new materials, including carpet, pallets, asphalt, and new packaging, as well as energy.
Pact also works on recycling programmes with other retailers such as Ulta Beauty, Credo Beauty and L’Occitane en Provence.