Report

Is the reuse of cosmetic packaging technically feasible, economically viable and environmentally sound at scale? That is the question the ReCosm Coalition, led by Circul'R with the support of Citeo, has just answered in concrete terms. After more than two years of work and a pilot run in 45 retail outlets in France alongside 15 major players in the beauty industry, the results are published in a first-of-its-kind White Paper. Here is an overview of the key lessons.

Why test the reuse of cosmetic packaging?

The cosmetics industry is one of the largest consumers of single-use packaging in France. Faced with the growing requirements of the AGEC law (the anti-waste law for a circular economy) and the European PPWR regulation on packaging, brands are being encouraged to reduce their environmental impact. Container reuse is gradually emerging as a credible circularity lever for the beauty sector.

It is in this context that Circul'R launched the ReCosm Coalition: a first-of-its-kind collective, sector-wide initiative bringing together 15 companies around a real-world pilot. The objective: to test the actual conditions for deploying cosmetic packaging reuse before building a lasting value chain.

A collective pilot at sector scale

15 players, 45 retail outlets, more than 200 product lines

The ReCosm Coalition brought together 13 leading brands - Aroma-Zone, Chanel Beauté, Clarins, Estée Lauder, La Rosée, Melvita, L'Oréal, L'Oréal Luxe, Naos, Pierre Fabre, Sephora Collection, SVR and Yves Rocher - along with 2 major retailers, Nocibé and Sephora. In total, more than 200 product lines were included in the scheme, across three types of distribution: specialist chains, integrated chains and partner pharmacies.

The model tested rests on a simple closed loop: the consumer brings their empty container back to the store, where it is collected, sorted, industrially washed and then reintroduced into the filling circuit. This reverse logistics system is at the heart of the challenges of scaling up.

5 dimensions assessed simultaneously

The pilot, run between 2024 and 2025, set out to assess five key dimensions of packaging reuse:

• The consumer experience and in-store return behaviour.
• The performance of washing processes against cosmetic hygiene requirements.
• The logistics organisation and traceability of reusable packaging.
• Economic viability at different volume scales.
• Environmental impacts compared with single use (life cycle assessment).

The 4 main lessons from the ReCosm pilot

1. Strong consumer buy-in, but conditions to be met

Consumer research reveals marked interest in the reuse scheme: 95% of respondents say they are ready to take part in returning their empty packaging in store, and 90% say a brand's commitment to reuse strengthens their attachment to it. These figures confirm that the demand exists. However, the pilot underlines that converting that interest into an actual habit depends heavily on how visible the scheme is in store and how simple the customer journey is. Signage, staff training and in-store communications are decisive levers.

2. A proven environmental gain from the second cycle onwards

The life cycle assessments (LCAs) carried out as part of the project show that reusing cosmetic packaging outperforms single use from the second use of the container onwards. Depending on the scenarios studied, reductions in environmental impact can reach between 12% and 25%. This gain depends in particular on the materials, the transport distance for washing and the consumer return rate. These results confirm the environmental potential of the model, provided it is deployed with localised, optimised logistics.

3. A business model that breaks even at maturity

Packaging reuse currently carries a structural additional cost compared with the single-use model. The economic modelling carried out as part of ReCosm nevertheless indicates that break-even - and even value creation - is achievable in a mature market, thanks to three combined levers: scaling up the volumes handled, pooling washing and logistics infrastructure across several brands, and putting in place a suitable deposit-return system. The sector coalition appears here as the most effective structure for reaching that break-even point faster than isolated initiatives could.

4. Confirmed hygiene feasibility, subject to ecodesign conditions

Washing tests carried out on more than 120 product lines demonstrated that current industrial processes can meet the hygiene standards required in the cosmetics industry. One point to watch was nevertheless identified: how well packaging withstands repeated washing cycles depends heavily on its initial design characteristics. Ecodesign of containers - built in from the product design phase to account for the constraints of reuse - is therefore a prerequisite for success at scale. Materials, assemblies, inks and coatings must be selected with their suitability for reuse in mind.

What conditions are needed to scale up?

Beyond the results, the ReCosm Coalition identifies four structural conditions for accelerating the deployment of cosmetic packaging reuse in France:

• Develop pooled, localised infrastructure: the model's profitability rests on scale. That means creating washing and reverse logistics platforms shared between several brands and retailers, anchored in coherent geographical catchment areas to limit the carbon footprint of transport.
• Define common standards: the absence of shared standards is currently holding back scale-up. Ecodesign standards (materials, geometries, assemblies) and common washing protocols are needed to make packaging interoperable between brands.
• Structure traceability and reverse logistics: tracking packaging throughout its life cycle - from sale to in-store return and then refilling - requires suitable digital traceability tools. It is also a prerequisite for measuring the scheme's real environmental impact.
• Harmonise consumer communications: the multiplicity of schemes and in-store messages creates confusion. Unified, clear, nationwide communications are essential to embed the return habit in consumer routines.

Circul'R's role in building the cosmetics reuse value chain

For more than ten years, Circul'R has supported companies through their transition to a circular economy. The ReCosm Coalition is a concrete illustration of the collective approach Circul'R has developed: bringing together players from the same sector around a shared pilot, building on shared learnings and creating the conditions for a scale-up that no single player could achieve alone.

As Jules Coignard, co-founder of Circul'R, points out: "The challenge now is to turn these learnings into operational solutions in order to build a genuine reuse value chain in cosmetics."