We love sharing the science behind your skincare routine. With us, it’s always research over hype, so you can make informed choices that support both your skin and the planet.
Sustainability conversations in beauty tend to focus on ingredients, but packaging is one of the biggest, and most overlooked, levers a skincare brand has. It's also one of the simplest to get right. That's why every full-size product we make is available as a refill.
How our refill program actually works
Order a refill when you're ready to restock your routine. Every refill ships in the same glass bottle or jar, topped with a flat, recyclable aluminum cap, no plastic pump, dropper, or jar lid included.
Instead of getting a new dispenser every time, you simply swap your existing pump, dropper, or jar lid from your current bottle onto the new refill, and keep going. Once you've made the swap, recycle the empty glass and aluminum cap from the bottle you just finished. Refills cost $2 less than the original size, since you're not paying for a new pump, dropper, or lid each time.
Refills are available across our full-size lineup, from our Biobalance foaming gel and Dayglow vitamin C serum to our Habitual hydrator, Velvet vitashield, and Bloom facial oil. Order. Swap. Recycle. Repeat.
Why packaging is a bigger deal than it seems
Most plastic packaging never actually gets recycled. In the United States, only about 5–9% of plastic waste is recycled each year, the rest ends up in landfills, incinerated, or in the environment.[1] That gap between what's technically recyclable and what actually gets recycled is exactly why we chose not to build our packaging around single-use plastic in the first place.
Glass and aluminum are different. Both are infinitely recyclable, meaning they can be melted down and reformed without degrading in quality, and both already have well-established recycling infrastructure. Aluminum recycling in particular saves about 95% of the energy required to produce new aluminum from raw materials.[2]
Why this makes the whole system more circular
The pump, dropper, or lid that dispenses your product is usually the hardest part of skincare packaging to recycle, mixed materials and small moving parts make these components a poor fit for most municipal recycling programs. Our refill program keeps that exact piece out of the waste stream by putting it back into service with every refill, instead of packaging a brand-new one each time.
The glass bottle and aluminum cap, by contrast, are some of the most effectively recyclable materials available, which is exactly why those are the parts we route into recycling rather than asking you to hold onto indefinitely. Each part of the packaging goes where it's actually best suited: the hard-to-recycle plastic dispenser stays in continuous use, and the easily recyclable glass and aluminum move through recycling systems built to handle them well.
Small-batch formulation, applied to packaging too
We already formulate in small batches to keep our ingredients fresh and our formulas free of unnecessary synthetics. The refill program extends that same philosophy to packaging: keep the hardest-to-recycle piece in service for as long as possible, and let the easily recyclable materials do the cycling.
It also means every refill costs a little less than starting fresh, since you're only paying for the formula and a simple glass-and-aluminum vessel, not a new pump, dropper, or lid.
Sustainability as part of a bigger picture
For us, sustainable packaging isn't a separate initiative from skin health, it's part of the same philosophy. Positive aging is about supporting skin over the long term rather than chasing quick fixes, and we think about our environmental footprint the same way: small, consistent choices that add up, rather than short-term gestures.
Choosing refillable, plant-powered skincare is one small way to align your routine with that same long-term thinking.
The takeaway
Packaging is one of the most fixable parts of a sustainable skincare routine, and one of the easiest for you to participate in. By keeping the hardest-to-recycle piece, your pump, dropper, or lid, in continuous use, and routing the glass and aluminum through recycling systems built to handle them well, our refill program aims to make sustainable skincare simple rather than complicated.
Order your refill. Swap your lid. Recycle the rest. Save $2 along the way.
Frequently asked questions
How does the refill program work? Order the refill version of your favorite formula, it ships with a flat, recyclable aluminum cap and no pump, dropper, or lid included. Swap your existing pump, dropper, or lid from your empty bottle onto the new refill, then recycle the empty glass and aluminum cap. You'll save $2 per bottle or jar in the process.
Is reusing packaging really more sustainable than recycling it? It's most effective when each material gets the ending it's actually suited for. Recycling depends on packaging being collected and properly processed, which happens far less often than most people assume, especially with plastic.[1] That's why we keep the hardest-to-recycle piece, your pump, dropper, or lid, in reuse indefinitely, while routing the glass and aluminum, materials recycling systems already handle well, into recycling each cycle.
Which products offer a refill option? Refills are available for every full-size skincare product in our lineup. Look for the refill option on each product page.
Do refills really cost less? Yes, refills are $2 less than the original size, since you're not paying for a new pump, dropper, or lid.
References
- United States Environmental Protection Agency. Plastics: Material-Specific Data. https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/plastics-material-specific-data
- The Aluminum Association. Sustainability — Recycling. https://www.aluminum.org/Recycling