Brands that target sustainability-minded consumers—ones who are less sensitive to price and more concerned about doing good—are landing on aluminium as an ‘infinitely’ recyclable plastic alternative.
Brands making a shift out of traditional high-density polyethylene or PET bottles and into aluminium bottles.
These are not the biggest-volume national brands or store brands; those making this switch have tended to be specialty brands meeting the needs of a specialty consumer. Product elements often include organic, vegan, animal cruelty-free, palm oil-free, and the like.
These brands were asking themselves how to extend this “better ingredients, better materials” image to the package itself, and help stand out on the shelf, and aluminium has turned out to be a favourite answer.
Nonetheless, we have seen more recently much bigger brands like Unilever disrupting the entire deodorant sector with Dove’s new refillable deodorant.
Our refillable deodorant represents a new, more sustainable way of consumption – reinventing the daily deodorant for a planet in crisis,” explains Augusto Garzon, Dove’s Global Vice President of Deodorants. “Thanks to this sleek, minimalist design, we’ve created something that’s more sustainable and more desirable.”
The refillable deo comes in a durable, precision-engineered stainless steel case that’s designed to last a lifetime. It’s so strong that it can withstand a force equivalent to being driven over by a car. Keeping raw materials to a minimum, the Dove logo is engraved onto the metal, so there’s no plastic or paper wrapping or branding.
The refill packaging still requires a small amount of plastic to keep the deodorant fresh and hygienic, but Dove has created a solution that uses 54% less plastic than its regular stick pack.
And while aluminium is more expensive, these brands’ consumers are far less price conscious than the typical person, not to mention the products themselves carry higher margins.
Finally, in food, glass is often another premium packaging go-to option for brands seeking to move away from plastics. But for slippery soaps in a barefoot-in-the-bathroom setting, aluminium’s shatter resistance is a must.
These factors combined into a perfect storm shift for specialty personal care products’ move toward aluminium.
