Commune

Refillable aluminium bottles with an aluminium pump / Source: Commune

AluminiumBeautyEuropePackaging

6 MINUTE READ

Ella Pawlik

WHAT WE SAY:

The beauty and self-care industries often go for packaging that's both ugly and plastic intensive. Newcomer Commune, a self-care brand from the UK, stands out for its refusal to use single-use plastic, opting instead for beautifully crafted aluminium bottles and a one-of-a-kind aluminium pump.

Knowing as well as we do that plastic refills are not a panacea, Commune has applied its design background to sidestep the issue altogether, creating 'shelfie' worthy bottles that consumers will not only want to cherish, but use again and again. Taking production and shipping into account alongside the packaging itself, Commune is a self-care brand for the conscientious consumer.

KEY FACTS:

Commune is a kind-to-nature and environmentally conscious self-care brand based in Somerset, UK. It champions genuinely reusable and recyclable packaging and embraces essentialism: less about aesthetics and more about a way of life, where every feature of every product serves a purpose.
The first order of a Commune product is shipped in a cardboard box starter kit, which comprises a screw top Aluminium bottle containing the product, as well as a separate pump. Once empty, the bespoke, screen-printed aluminium bottle goes in local recycling along with other aluminium items like cans.
Commune’s unique pump is made predominantly from metal, but has a plastic base, and is durable enough to be consistently reused. The consumer holds onto it for the next bottle, omitting single-use plastic packaging from the design entirely.
The haircare and skincare products offered by the brand come in 750 millilitre bottles, a conscious choice and one that contrasts with the smaller industry standard. By supersizing its bottles and ensuring customers order new bottles less frequently, the brand aims to reduce its impact even further.
The brand's product offering includes body wash and body cream, shampoo and conditioner, and hand wash and hand soap, with prices starting at GBP 40 (USD 49). The brand's newly launched black marble trays for storing the bottles start at GBP 150 (USD 186).
Formulations are made in the UK from 99% naturally-derived ingredients, and are free from SLS, parabens, petroleum, and synthetic fragrances.
With a background in sustainable fashion and branding, Commune’s founders have big plans for expansion in the lifestyle arena. Launched in summer 2022 in Harrods, Commune products are now stocked in multiple locations in the UK and beyond, including Japan, Hong Kong, and the US.

Aluminium bottle and reusable pump / Source: Commune

DIVE DEEPER:

Commune is tackling two different aspects of the packaging waste created by the self-care and beauty industries: how products are contained, and how they’re dispensed. At mass market, both are currently hugely problematic - packaging forms 70% of the beauty industry’s waste, only 14% actually makes it to a recycling plant, and only 9% is recycled. The rest goes to landfill, where plastic can take up to 500 years to decompose - and even then it doesn’t actually disappear, it just gets smaller.
By opting for infinitely recyclable aluminium bottles - a material with global collection rates of over 95%, and a recycling rate of over 70% - Commune is reducing the impact of its packaging by ensuring the material will stay in circulation for many years to come.
From a dispensing point of view, the brand's design tackles the issue of the plastic pump. As an industry standard, pumps are often made from a combination of plastic and metal, unable to be separated from each other as well as the pack from which they pump. Non-recyclable in any kerbside recycling stream, these pumps - which are used on everything from hand wash to shampoo, body wash, skincare, and even food - are simply sent to landfill.
While other brands are pursuing monomaterial designs to make plastic pumps recyclable - despite plastic not being recycled at scale - Commune recognises that reuse is always optimal and has created pumps that can be used over and over again. While they do currently contain a small amount of plastic, the pumps are predominantly metal, and durable enough for consistent reuse. The brand is exploring ways to bypass plastic altogether and make the base uniformly metal too.
Commune made an active choice not to introduce refills for its products, despite the aluminium bottles being reusable. Most at-home refill options today involve the use of flexible plastic refill pouches, which cannot be recycled or repurposed, meaning their use would negate the positive impact of the brand's material choices.
The brand pays attention to the impact of its transportation too, opting to ship all goods by sea from its partners in Asia, while shipping boxes contain only cardboard dividers and no protective plastic.
Unfortunately, packaging isn’t the only issue created by the self-care and beauty industries: the products themselves can be problematic too. Many synthetic fragrances, for example, are made from petrochemical derivatives, which give off volatile organic compounds (VOCs). On a macro level, VOCs are considered greenhouse gases and therefore contribute to the climate emergency. On a micro level, VOCs have been linked to everything from headaches and sore eyes to cancer in humans.
Commune’s products are naturally formulated and break back down into the earth. They’re free from toxic chemicals like sodium lauryl sulphate; petroleum-based ingredients; and parabens, which disrupt the consumer’s endocrine system as well as larger ecosystems.
Commune works with a sustainability-certified distributor in the UK to source the ingredients for its products from around the world. The diversity and distance of its sources currently prevents Commune from collecting reliable information about each site’s environmental impact. But, as it’s in the process of applying for B Corp status, this information will need to be procured in due course.

“We did look into refills, but that’s just moulding plastic in a different way. We wanted to use a material that’s infinitely recyclable, and I feel the possibilities with aluminium are just endless.”

Kate Neal - co-founder, Commune

Key Design Considerations:

Mass market viability

Commune is a luxury brand that comes at a luxury price point. While developing a reusable pump is sorely needed to reduce packaging waste, Commune’s innovation isn't economically viable for mass market brands right now. If you’re looking to address the pump issue without the price point, you should reconsider its use entirely and investigate packaging design that uses gravity and air to dispense instead.

The in and outs of aluminium

Because local aluminium recycling provisions are more ubiquitous and effective than those for plastic, it’s relatively easy for consumers to enter Commune’s aluminium bottles into the recycling loop. But - with The World Economic Forum estimating that almost 30% of aluminium still ends up in landfill, and that by 2050 demand for the material will grow by 80% - designers must be cognisant of where aluminium comes from, and where it will end up. Over 90% of current aluminium emissions are associated with primary production, so seek recycled substrates over virgin to ensure the use of this metal isn't carbon intensive, and where possible, design aluminium products that are multi-use, not single-use.

Location, location, mitigation

Consideration should be given not just to what your packaging is made from, but also where and how it’s made. If bespoke designs necessitate production in distant locations, how can steps be taken to measure and mitigate the environmental and social impacts of onsite activity and shipping? Designers should also consider if the need for a bespoke design justifies a global footprint, or if locally designed and made products can deliver on the brief.