The Body Shop 'Return Recycle Repeat' Event - AD Gifted

*I was invited to The Body Shop for a Blogger Event and was gifted a product afterwards. All views are my own though

If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you will probably be aware that I’m a big fan of The Body Shop. I’ve used their products since my pre-teens (does anyone else remember the bath pearls?! I used to absolutely love popping those!) and continue to enjoy their beauty items today. So when I saw that The Body Shop in Festival Place Basingstoke were having a blogger event a couple of weeks ago, I couldn’t resist going along to check out their new products. 

It was one of the hottest days of the year so far when my Mum and I made our way over to Basingstoke to see the team, and unfortunately it turned out that the air conditioning in the store had broken, so we were all rather sweaty! But it didn’t stop us from having a lovely evening hearing all about what The Body Shop are doing at the moment. My evening started with a relaxing hand and arm massage to test the moisture levels of my skin after using either Body Butter or Body Yogurt (spoiler – both did an amazing job and there really wasn’t much between them when it came to improving my skin’s moisture levels). Although I like both products, I feel like I sway more towards ‘Team Yogurt’ in the summer, simply because it is so cooling and absorbs really quickly. I could quite happily have sat there enjoying a massage all evening, but there were other products to check out and projects to hear about.

The staff were really excited, as they had just received a delivery of a brand new product, which even they hadn’t had a chance to try out yet! So I got to have a sneak peek at what it was and how it works, and let me tell you – it looks like it’s going to be good fun to use! I don’t want to give too much away, as I know there are some spoilers going up on Instagram over the next couple of weeks. So I thought I would just share a few pictures with you, and let you guess what you think it might be!

Moving on to the main reason for the event – we were there to hear all about The Body Shop’s brand new ‘Return Recycle Repeat’ scheme. They have realised that plastic pollution is a global crisis and have come up with a project to protect our planet and empower people to do the same. So, in a large selection of Body Shop stores, you will now find a box like the one in the picture, in which you can put ANY plastic beauty packaging from ANY brand to be recycled (there are a few things that cannot be recycled, such as products that may contain flammable liquids e.g. perfume bottles). It doesn’t have to be products you’ve bought in The Body Shop, which is amazing because so many beauty products cannot be recycled in our kerbside recycling bins. However, if you are a member of the Love Your Body Club (it’s easy to join here) and you bring back five empty Body Shop products to recycle, you will receive a £5 voucher! 

The Body Shop have teamed up with a company called Terracycle®, who will be helping them to make this scheme a success. They are global market leaders within the recycling industry and are present in 21 markets, looking to enhance brands through finding sustainable solutions to 21^st century issues with waste and packaging. They focus on the triple bottom line:

·     Planet – The Terracycle® primary objective is to recycle waste that is typically considered “non-recyclable”, diverting billions of pieces of waste from landfill and incineration since 2006

·     People –To date, Terracycle® has paid more than $10 million to schools and non-profit organisations in return for the waste collected through the programme

·     Profit –Terracycle® is structured as a for-profit social business, however maintains a small profit margin so that the rest can be reinvested to enhance the scheme and pursue further sustainability projects

If there is any packaging that cannot be recycled by Terracycle®, it is then made into post consumer goods such as benches and watering cans. One of my local schools even won a competition with Terracycle® recently, which will see the installation of a new playground made from recycled products! The Body Shop aims to collect 25% more packaging than they sell, and by 2030 they aim to have no single use products or packaging. 

As well as the Return Recycle Repeat scheme, The Body Shop are also committed to tackling the plastic crisis in a slightly different way. As well as plastic affecting marine and ocean life, it also affects people. In India, almost a third of waste is uncollected, which has given rise to 1.5 million people known as ‘waste pickers’ who collect this waste in the informal sector. The Body Shop have partnered up with an organisation in Bengaluru, India, who call themselves ‘Green Force.’ They work with ‘waste pickers’ who work tirelessly to clean up their city’s streets. 

These ‘waste pickers’ are mostly made up of what are known as ‘dalits,’ (formally known as ‘untouchables’) – the lowest social group in India’s caste system. This makes them extremely vulnerable to discrimination and poor working conditions. By working with Green Force, The Body Shop can help to provide access to more sanitary working conditions, a fair price and the respect and recognition they deserve. 

Not using plastic isn’t the only answer to dealing with the plastic crisis. If used responsibly, plastic can be sustainable, so The Body Shop are encouraging people to show love for the plastic we do use. This is why they have started using Community Trade recycled plastic from Bengaluru, India. It not only helps to tackle the existing problem, but it will also help to empower the ‘waste pickers’ that they support. Their Community Trade Partner, Plastics For Change, are a for-profit organisation that partners with local NGOs Hasiru Dala and Hasiru Dala Innovation (HDI) to provide Bengaluru’s waste pickers with a stable income and better opportunities, including boosting their skills and providing training for other areas such as urban gardening. 

So far, The Body Shop have started using their Community Trade recycled plastic in their 250ml Shampoo and Conditioner bottles. In the future, they want to buy even more Community Trade recycled plastics from their partners, so they can use it in more of their product packaging and strive to be even more sustainable, which definitely sounds like a step in the right direction.

After we’d heard all about what The Body Shop are doing to address the plastic crisis, we had a look at a few other new products that are currently out. They have a couple of new scents out for the summer, including Banana and Ginger. Both ranges are made from ‘Wonky Fruit and Veg,’ which is basically bananas and ginger that supermarkets won’t sell because they don’t look ‘perfect.’ So it’s great that these items aren’t going to waste and are instead making yummy smelling beauty products! The new products in the Banana range are also all now suitable for Vegans (and smell delicious – kind of like those foam banana sweets you can get!) I thought the Ginger range might smell a bit Christmassy, but it’s got citrus elements in it, which really gives it a summery vibe. 

They also have a few new biodegradable sheet masks for us to try out including Seaweed (for oily/combination skin), Vitamin C (for brightening sensitive skin), Aloe (for calming sensitive skin) and Vitamin E (for all skin types). At only £3.50 each and packed full of moisturising ingredients, these are perfect for some serious pampering. 

Also in the ‘Wonky Veg’ range are the Carrot Wash Energizing Face Cleanser and Carrot Cream Nature Rich Daily Moisturiser. Both are Vegan and made from 100% recyclable packaging, as well as being enriched with organic carrots and Community Trade organic Aloe Vera from Mexico. I’d never really thought of having carrot scented beauty products, but these are definitely worth a try!

The last thing I had a look at was some of the new make-up, as I always seem to forget about The Body Shop selling make-up! What really caught my eye were a couple of beautiful eyeshadow palettes – Paint in Colour and Own Your Naturals. The colours are perfect for the summer months, with a mixture of matte and shimmery shades. I particularly liked the range of colours in the Paint in Colour Palette, especially the glittery pink and gold! The other new make-up item that jumped out at me was the Happy Go Lash Mascara. It thickens and defines your lashes, and lasts all day without flaking, which is always a good thing! I particularly liked the pink packaging with green palm leaves on it – very summery!

Overall, we had a lovely time chatting to the staff from The Body Shop in Basingstoke, and I’m so pleased to hear the brand are making steps to start tackling the problems we have with plastic. I know I have watched and read a lot about the harm plastic is doing to our world and I do want to start making changes. But sometimes it feels so overwhelming when options to recycle, reuse and find more sustainable options are so hard to come by. So having a high street store offering this option to recycle plastic products and also supporting those who try to make plastic more sustainable is a brilliant thing to have. 

Are you a fan of The Body Shop? What do you think about their new schemes to help with the plastic crisis?

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The Body Shop Basingstoke Bloggers Evening - AD Gifted

If you’re a regular reader of my blog, then you might remember my post from last year about a Body Shop Event that I went to in Reading. As I mentioned in that post, I’ve been a fan of The Body Shop since childhood, and I feel like it’s a brand that has grown with me as the years have gone by. Last week, I was invited to another local Body Shop, this time at Festival Place in Basingstoke, for a Bloggers Evening to find out about a few new launches. As a long-time Body Shop fan, it’s always exciting to hear about new scents and products, and this time round there are certainly some gems!

When my Mum and I arrived at the store (after a slightly stressful journey over, getting stuck in the longest traffic jam in history!) we were given a friendly welcome by a couple of members of staff, before catching up with the other bloggers there. It’s always so nice to see other local bloggers at events, especially when it’s people I know quite well like Dawn from Dear Mummy Blog and Laura from Loopy Lou Laura. After a bit of chatting, we were offered a selection of drinks in the prettiest glittery glasses and told to help ourselves to various types of fresh fruit that had been laid on for us. 

Then we got down to business and the assistant manager talked us through a few of their new launches, which will be coming out over the next few weeks. First up were some new products in the Shea Butter range. The Body Shop are celebrating 25 Years of Community Trade Shea this February, and to mark the occasion they have brought out some exciting new Shea based products. First up is the Shea Butter Hair Mask for Dry Hair, Prone to Damage. This sounded right up my street, as although I wouldn’t say I have particularly damaged hair, I do think it could do with some moisture and nourishment. 

The second Shea based product we were shown was probably the one the team were most excited about – 100% Natural Ghanaian Shea Butter. This is multipurpose, and the idea is that customers will use it to create their very own products. That could mean mixing it with some sugar to create a lip scrub or adding a few drops of an essential oil to create a scented moisturiser, or even using some as a melt in the bath. The staff were full of ideas of different options to try, so if it’s something that appeals to you I would definitely get chatting to someone at The Body Shop to share ideas on the things you could use it for. I didn’t realise how many benefits Shea Butter has, but you can find out all about them here. These two products, along with many more, are available in-store and online now!

Another range, which will be coming out in time for Mother’s Day, is a brand new scent for The Body Shop – Cactus Blossom. The store had just managed to get their hands on the Body Yogurt and Body Butter to show us at the event, and I’m so glad they did! When they told us what the scent was, my first thought was ‘I wonder what Cactus Blossom smells like?!’ I kind of imagined it to be fairly boring if I’m completely honest, but when I rubbed a bit into my hands I was pleasantly surprised by how nice the scent is! Cactus Blossom smells very fresh and clean – perfect for moving into the spring and summer months. Dawn described it as smelling of a mixture of aloe vera and cucumber, and to me that pretty much hit the nail on the head (although I’m guessing the official scent description will be a lot more complex than that!) After thinking I probably wouldn’t like it, I left telling myself I would be keeping an eye on the website for when the range is released because I loved the smell so much!

I don’t know about you, but I love a good face mask – I think they’re the perfect way to set aside a bit of time to just relax and unwind, although I do find some can get a little messy! That’s why I really like the idea of using a sheet mask, and at the event we were told about the new Drops of Youth Youth Concentrate Sheet Mask, which definitely sounds like something I would like to try. I’ve already used a couple of products from the Drops of Youth range and found them really good, so I’ll be interested to see if the mask follows suit. It promises bouncier, healthier-looking skin in just 15 minutes, and, even more importantly, this mask is biodegradable. It is enriched with a concentrated dose of their Drops of Youth formula and includes edelweiss, criste marine and sea holly plant stem cells from the Italian Alps and Brittany Coast. It’s also 100% vegan, 99% of their ingredients are of natural origin and it won’t break the bank at a very affordable £5. 

There were quite a few other new (and old!) products that looked good, but there were a couple that really caught my eye. The first was the new Fresh Nude BB Cream, which sounds perfect for me, as I will often go for a lighter BB cream over a full coverage foundation. It’s suitable for sensitive skin, offers 24-hour hydration and is transfer and sweat resistant, so just what we need as the weather begins to get warmer. The downside is that there are only five shades, so I’m guessing the colours won’t suit every skin tone. But hopefully that’s something The Body Shop will be working on.

The other new product that jumped out at me was the Pink Grapefruit Body Yogurt. I loved the idea of the Body Yogurts when we were introduced to them at the event last summer, so I was excited to see that they’ve now brought one out in one of my favourite fragrances, Pink Grapefruit. It’s a deliciously citrusy scent and always brings back happy memories of summers gone by, as for years my Mum’s favourite tipple has been pink grapefruit squash mixed with sparkling water – a love she has passed on to me! It almost smells good enough to eat (although I wouldn’t recommend it!) The Body Yogurts are brilliant if you’re in a hurry but still want to moisturise, as they absorb a lot more quickly than Body Butter and can be applied directly to damp skin after showering. And they don’t leave a sticky residue either, which is always a plus in my eyes. 

In my previous Body Shop post, I mentioned that they were working with Cruelty Free International to take a stand against animal cruelty by asking their customers to sign a petition. If the petition reached 8 million signatures, they would present it to the UN. So I was pleased to see that they smashed their target and took an historic 8.3 million signatures to the United Nations calling for an end to animal testing in cosmetics worldwide – the biggest campaign against animal testing ever! If you want to find out more about their fight against animal testing, they have a whole page with information and ways to get involved.

The last part of our evening was spent finding out how hydrated our skin is. The Body Shop offer skincare consultations using a special moisture monitor, so, of course, each of us decided to have a go. Two out of three of us had pretty dehydrated skin (I won’t expose who was dehydrated, but let’s just say I didn’t come out of it very well!) But the good thing was, armed with this information; the staff were then able to talk us through some products that could help our dehydrated skin (alongside making sure we drink more water!) The first moisturiser we tried was the Vitamin E Moisture Cream for all skin types. It’s fairly lightweight and absorbed easily into my skin, leaving a matte but soft finish. 

We were then given the Vitamin E Gel Moisture Cream to try out, which is similar to the first cream but in a gel consistency. I was drawn more towards this one for two reasons – I really like the gel formula because it feels cooling and refreshing on the skin, and a bit lighter than the conventional cream. But also because it contains raspberry extract and smells amazing (I’m a sucker for a good smell!) The last moisturiser we were given to try was the Drops of Youth Youth Cream, which is a bit more expensive than the other two. It has an air-whipped texture and left my skin feeling soft and bouncy. Out of the ones we tried, all three of us seemed to sway more towards the Vitamin E Gel Cream, and I’m pretty sure it was the scent that swung it!  

After a lovely evening, we left the store with a bag of goodies kindly gifted to us by The Body Shop. It included a little tub of Shea Body Butter, a few samples of moisturisers, facemasks and hair products and a cute peppermint scented reindeer bath bomb, possibly from the Christmas range. I had a lovely evening with The Body Shop Basingstoke, Dawn and Laura and will definitely be keeping my eyes peeled for the Cactus Blossom range coming out soon!

Are you a fan of The Body Shop? What’s your favourite range? And what do you think about the new products coming out over the next couple of months?

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