Our Journey Towards a Greener Salon
Thinking differently about our carbon footprint
Historically, I’ve always been aware of my carbon footprint as a business, but for a long time it felt difficult to make real change. Over the past few months, however, I’ve been putting some meaningful changes into place throughout the studio.
As a hairdressing student at Norwich City College in the late 80s, no one really understood what our industry was doing to the planet – especially the impact of CFC gases in aerosols like hairspray on the ozone layer.
Let’s be honest, the 1980s meant BIG HAIR 🤦🏼♀️
So when a new generation quite rightly says “please help save our future planet”, you have to ask yourself: am I adding to the problem, or helping to make things better?
Schwarzkopf, Only Curls London and Olaplex are all highly conscious of their environmental impact, which is great news, because these are the main professional brands we use in the studio.
Creative & Green Salon Collective
Creative is a proud member of the Green Salon Collective (GSC).
Through GSC, we recycle the “unrecyclable” as much as possible – which is vital in an industry that generates a lot of waste in the form of hair, metals, plastics and chemical residues.
So what are we actually doing in the salon to reduce our impact and improve Creative’s carbon footprint?
Schwarzkopf
Schwarzkopf provide a very high level of sustainable packaging, which allows Creative to continue our recycling policy responsibly and efficiently.
Only Curls London
“All our bottles are made from BIO-PLASTIC, 100% recyclable, and made in the UK.”
We love working with Only Curls London, not just for the results on curly hair, but also for their commitment to more sustainable packaging and UK-based production.
Olaplex
“Are devoted to developing and maintaining sustainable products with environmental, social, and economic benefits while protecting public health & the environment over the entire lifecycle.”
We choose Olaplex not only for its incredible bond-building technology, but also because its values around sustainability and responsibility fit with our own.
How does Creative recycle these brands’ packaging?
Our Goal with Green Salon Collective
Creative’s goal whilst working with GSC is simple:
Keep plastic away from landfill.
“When salons and other businesses in the hair and beauty industry use Green Salon Collective to dispose of their plastic waste, they can be assured that all seven types will be recycled.”
Our recycled plastic helps create new products such as food and drink containers, fabrics and carpets, as well as salon items like tint bowls, tint brushes, combs and sustainable tinting aprons.
What about product waste?
Mixing Smarter & Managing Product Waste
We mix smaller amounts of colour to ensure we only prepare what’s truly needed for each technical service. This reduces waste from the outset.
If any colour product does need to be disposed of, we send it back to GSC so that unwanted chemicals do not enter the water system.
This waste is then:
“used to generate electricity for the UK National Grid. It is sent to a specialist facility that burns it to ash. The incineration process produces heat and electricity and all chemical waste is burned according to the Offensive Waste guidelines.”
Ok, but what about the hair we cut off?
Recycling Hair
“Did you know hair can be used to make booms which clean up oil spills?”
“Hair is rich in nitrogen, don’t you know, and so it’s an excellent addition to compost.”
Through GSC, hair clippings can be used in innovative ways, such as oil spill clean-up and composting. This means even the hair that would usually be swept into the bin is now helping the planet.
We also proudly support the Little Princess Trust, which provides real hair wigs, free of charge, to children and young people who have lost their hair through cancer treatment and other conditions.
Ok, you use aluminium strips when foiling – where does that go?
Recycling Foil & Metals
“Used foil and empty colour tubes have always been an item too contaminated to recycle until Green Salon Collective. Green Salon Collective can recycle 100% of all metals, no matter how dirty it is.”
It’s not just used foil we send to GSC. Hairspray cans, metal styling product cans, canned drinks at lunch and Schwarzkopf’s tubes of colour (already made from 100% recycled aluminium) all go into the recycling stream.
Ok, you have a printer in reception. What are you doing there to help?
HP Ink & Cartridge Recycling
We’ve been returning our used ink cartridges and plastic coverings for years.
More than 4.7 billion recycled plastic bottles have been used by HP to manufacture new Original HP Ink Cartridges.
More than 875 million Original HP Ink and Toner Cartridges have been recycled by customers with HP Planet Partners.
More than 114 million plastic hangers have been used by HP to manufacture new Original HP Ink and Toner Cartridges.
What’s Next? ECOHEADS™
As many of you know, I absolutely love the ocean, so reducing water usage has to be one of our next big steps.
By installing ECOHEADS™, we can:
- Reduce water usage by up to 390 litres per chair, per day.
- Remove sediment, dirt, chlorine, bacteria and other pathogens from the water we use.
- Improve the quality of water for better hair and scalp results.
Look out for ECOHEADS™ arriving in the salon this month.
Family Days
Once a month, on a Saturday, the salon will be closed so the team can enjoy a full weekend with their loved ones. This positive move helps us all maintain a healthier work/life balance.
May family day: Saturday 14th
Opening times
Monday: 09:00 – 17:00
Tuesday: 09:00 – 18:30
Wednesday: CLOSED
Thursday: 09:00 – 18:30
Friday: 09:00 – 17:00
Saturday: 08:30 – 14:00
