Key takeaways on Selfridges x MYGroup partnership
- Selfridges has launched a new Reselfridges Recycle scheme across all UK stores.
- Customers can return empty beauty items, including hard-to-recycle fragrance bottles.
- MYGroup will process the materials using its established take-back system.
- Participants receive an incentive for every five items recycled.
- The initiative supports growing extended producer responsibility requirements for brands and retailers.
UK luxury retailer Selfridges has partnered with waste management company MYGroup to launch a beauty and cosmetics recycling scheme, enabling customers to return their empty beauty products, including fragrance bottles, which are typically harder to recycle.
The new Reselfridges Recycle programme will be implemented in Selfridges Beauty Halls across Birmingham, Manchester and London’s Oxford Street.
Scheme tackles hard-to-recycle fragrance packaging
Customers will be incentivised by collecting a ‘Selfridges Unlocked Key’ for every five items recycled as part of the membership programme. The new recycling scheme enables customers to return used perfume, aftershave and other fragrance bottles in full – including those still containing fragrance.
Fragrance bottles are often excluded from both kerbside recycling and other in-store take-back schemes because of their mixed packaging materials and residual hazardous contents. MYGroup’s retail take-back schemes continue to play an important role nationwide in capturing materials that household recycling systems are not designed to handle, particularly as brands and retailers face new extended producer responsibility requirements.
Used fragrance bottles, along with other beauty and cosmetic items from any brand, can be deposited in Reselfridges collection boxes across all four Selfridges stores.
Steve Carrie, Group Director at MYGroup, said it has been working with retailers for many years to make beauty take-back possible and has now processed more than 40,000 tonnes of returned beauty and cosmetic packaging – success and experience that has helped shape this ambitious Reselfridges collaboration.
‘Fragrance recycling highlights why this experience matters,’ said Carrie. ‘These products are used at scale but are typically binned after use. Through Reselfridges, we’re applying our established take-back solution in a department store environment, where even the hardest-to-recycle items can be captured at scale in meaningful volumes and recovered safely.’
