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After more than two years of work and a pilot program conducted at 45 retail locations in France, the ReCosm Coalition—led by Circul’R, with operational and financial support from Citeo—has published a white paper outlining the findings of the first collective pilot program dedicated to the reuse of cosmetic containers.
Bringing together 15 leading companies in the beauty industry, this initiative demonstrates that the reuse of cosmetic packaging is technically feasible, environmentally sound, and economically promising—provided it is implemented on a large scale through a collaborative effort and that packaging is adapted to support reuse.
A FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND PILOT PROJECT ACROSS THE INDUSTRY
Launched to conduct a practical test of the conditions for implementing product reuse in the cosmetics industry, the ReCosm Coalition, led by Circul’R, has brought together 13 leading brands in the industry (Aroma-Zone, Chanel Beauté, Clarins, Estée Lauder, La Rosée, Melvita, L’Oréal, L’Oréal Luxe, Naos, Pierre Fabre, Sephora Collection, SVR, and Yves Rocher), as well as two retailers (Nocibé and Sephora).
The pilot program, which received operational and financial support from Citeo, was conducted between 2024 and 2025 at 45 retail locations across various retail formats: specialty stores (Sephora and Nocibé), integrated stores (Yves Rocher and Aroma-Zone), and partner pharmacies. In total, more than 200 product SKUs from 13 brands were included in the program.
The concept being tested: after using the product at home, the consumer returns the empty container to the store, where it is collected, sorted, washed, and then reintroduced into the packaging cycle to be put back on the market.
The goal of this pilot project was to simultaneously evaluate five key aspects of reuse: the consumer experience, cleaning performance, logistics, economic viability, and environmental impacts.
RESULTS THAT CONFIRM THE POTENTIAL OF REUSE
The findings presented in the White Paper highlight four key takeaways.
Strong support from consumers and store staff: Consumer surveys reveal a high level of interest in the initiative: 95% of respondents say they are willing to participate in the program, and 90% indicate that their loyalty to a brand committed to reuse is strengthened as a result. However, the pilot highlights the importance of in-store visibility and a simple customer journey to convert this support into actual returns.
Significant environmental potential: Life cycle assessments conducted as part of the project show that reuse outperforms single-use starting with the container’s second use, with reductions in environmental impacts ranging from 12% to 25% depending on the scenarios studied.
A viable business model in a mature market: Economic models indicate that reuse can achieve economic equilibrium—or even generate value—in a mature market, thanks to large-scale adoption, shared infrastructure, and the implementation of an appropriate deposit-return system.
Technical and sanitary feasibility confirmed: washing tests conducted on more than 120 products show that current industrial processes can meet the sanitary requirements of the cosmetics industry. However, the results underscore the importance of eco-design incorporated from the outset to ensure that packaging can withstand washing cycles.
WAYS TO ACCELERATE SCALING UP
Beyond these findings, the Coalition identifies several key conditions for accelerating the adoption of product reuse in the cosmetics industry:
- develop shared, regionally based washing and logistics infrastructure,
- establish common standards for eco-design and washing,
- organize packaging traceability and reverse logistics,
- standardize communication and in-store materials.
According to Jules Coignard, co-founder of Circul'R, “Launching a collective pilot project of this scale was a gamble for an industry where packaging models still rely heavily on single-use products. Circul'R’s role is precisely to create the conditions for collaboration among stakeholders who, on their own, would not be able to test these models on a large scale. By bringing together 15 brands and their partners around a common project, we were able to concretely explore the conditions for rolling out reuse and draw useful lessons for the entire industry. The challenge now is to transform these lessons into operational solutions to build a genuine reuse sector within the cosmetics industry."
Press contact
Sara Bonnet - sara.bonnet@circul-r.com - 06 08 68 56 83
Download the White Paper
Watch the recording of the webinar presenting the white paper
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