This Black Friday, we will see fast fashion & beauty retailers selling products for the same price as burgers and fries. But cheap disposable products come at an environmental and social cost. Over the last few years, we’ve seen a growing pattern of overconsumption and increased wastefulness during this season which goes against everything we stand for at Beauty Cleanse Skincare.
This year, we want to replace Black Friday with “Green Friday” by focusing on changing the way we see this day & switching our mindset from “buy, buy, buy” to finding alternative ways to give gifts during the holiday season, so we don’t cause further damage to the Earth.
Instead of boycotting Black Friday, we want to encourage everyone to shop consciously regardless of needless sales & huge discounts.
We decided to do this as we think there are some benefits to the discounts & offers considering the current pandemic which has led to job losses & low household income overall.
We’re keeping it super simple at our end – no staggered price reduction ……. just an easy 15% off sitewide using discount code “GreenFriday”.
Made with sustainably sourced, vegan, microplastic free and cruelty free ingredients, our multiuse products are already created with the conscious consumption in mind – packaging that is biodegradable and recyclable, with low-waste alternatives. By offering this option, we are showing that you can make a conscious decision to shop sustainably, even during Black Friday!
Moreover, where Black Friday could offer an opportunity to purchase much wanted & needed items at a lower price, we ask all of you to approach it with mindful consumption in mind and a little planning first.
Therefore, we are sharing a few questions that we want you to ask yourself this Black Friday along with some tips to avoid impulse buying & fast consumption.
4 QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF THIS BLACK FRIDAY
In order to support a more sustainable shopping period, ask yourself these questions while preparing for the biggest shopping weekend of the year:
1. DO YOU NEED IT?
This is a question to be asked anytime you fancy shopping, but even more so on Black Friday. Don’t allow the time pressure and flashy deals to cloud your judgement.
2. CAN YOU BUY IT SECOND-HAND INSTEAD?
One of the easiest ways to shop more sustainably is to go for second-hand items instead. This reduces the demand for new labour, new materials, & shipping emissions too.
3. Could you SHOP ETHICAL instead?
If second-hand isn’t an option, can you consider buying from ethical & sustainable brands?
4. Is the retailor ETHICAL?
Finally, if you can’t live without it, or buy it second-hand, or buy it from an ethical/sustainable brand, at least consider buying your item from an ethical retailer. Never buy from retailors who have awful labour practices, business practices, and zero concern about their negative environmental impact.
4 tips to avoid impulse buying
1. Plan your shopping ahead – Just like with grocery shopping, when you make a list ahead of time of the gifts you want to buy for your friends and family, you think more about what you’re actually buying, so you don’t buy unnecessary things or buy too much.
2. Disconnect to reconnect – Today, more than half of the world’s population now lives in urban areas.
Sadly, our environment, work demands & lifestyle habits can easily leave us separated from the things we know make us happier & healthier.
But in a sense, this is nothing new: we know modern living can be stressful & unnatural. It is our hope that Green Friday can serve as another reminder to disconnect from our TVs, phones and other technology – and reconnect with all that makes us feel good!
3. Shop from Local & Small Businesses – Shop from small businesses in an attempt to support the local economy instead of soulless retailers. Buying your gifts from local businesses & designers or artists means less packaging, less transport involved, less driving around, and ultimately, a smaller carbon footprint.
4. Adopt Minimalist Approach – If we ask 100 people how we can save the planet, we’ll get a lot of the same answers: stop flying or become vegan. However, not a lot of people realize that stop buying more stuff is number one on the list. Easy as that. Just buy less & absolutely what’s needed.
Playing our Part to Make a Positive Impact – 2% to Plastic Soup Foundation during Black Friday Week
Do you agree that some of the most commonly bought goods during Black Friday and Cyber Monday are gadgets, beauty & personal care products, clothing and lots of plastic? Do you know all these products will eventually turn into waste after a few uses?
The microplastics in some of these products, hardly visible to the naked eye, flow straight from the bathroom drain into the sewer system. Wastewater treatment plants are not designed to filter them out and that is how microplastics contribute to the ‘Plastic Soup’ swirling around in our oceans. Sea animals absorb or eat microplastics; these particles can then be passed along the marine food chain. Since humans are ultimately at the top of this food chain, it is likely that we also ingest microplastics.
Microplastics are not biodegradable and once they enter the (marine) environment, they are almost impossible to remove.
Therefore, this Black Friday, we want to bring attention to one of the most sensitive topics of Microplastics inside our products. To play our part, and to raise awareness of this crucial topic, we are donating 2% of each sale made during Black Friday Week to Plastic Soup Foundation – an organisation who is fighting plastic waste in our oceans and making a positive impact in helping eliminate microplastics from our products.
‘This is our way of showing that Black Friday can be approached sustainability and ethically’.
As a business, this is the time to lead the way and show consumers, peers, and governments that it doesn’t have to be this way. Let’s encourage everyone to think Green on this Black Friday and tell the soulless retailors that fast consumption isn’t a sustainable way financially and environmentally to do business.
Our 15% OFF Coupon code (GreenFriday) is valid from 26th Nov – 2nd Dec at www.beautycleanseskincare.com
Remember we still contribute 1% of each sale to our chosen charity ‘The Felix Project’ all year round.