Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 25th April 2024 Issue no. 1111
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New eco and bee-friendly ethical luxury collection from The Soap Co.
Marking its second birthday, the award winning The Soap Co. has launched a new collection of luxury eco and bee-friendly hand and body products and cold processed soaps.
Created with eco-certified ingredients that aren't harmful to aquatic life, its vegan and biodegradable eco range is created by a workforce 80% of whom are blind, disabled or otherwise disadvantaged.
Handcrafted using eco-certified, organic or plant derived ingredients, the new range - Geranium & Rhubarb and Wild Nettle & Sage made with 13 natural oils, is inspired by the British countryside.
Each bottle sold from the new range helps between 10 to 20 bees because they contain skin soothing calendula and borage botanicals from British farms. Borage and calendula provide a vital source of food for bees during the June nectar gap and enable last minute nectar to be collected before Winter.
"We firmly believe there should be no compromise when it comes to combining award winning design, responsible living and social purpose," says Camilla Marcus-Dew, co-founder of The Soap Co. "The idea for our eco collection came from a realisation that there wasn't a wide variety of great smelling truly eco-friendly products on the marketplace.
"The new collection feels wonderful on the skin, includes antioxidants and takes our eco commitment to the next level because they're vegan, biodegradable, free from SLS and not harmful to aquatic life."
As the first products from the company's new Eco & Bee-Friendly collection roll off the production line, orders are coming in thick and fast from the foodservice sector which sees The Soap Co. as a natural fit for its washrooms and clientele.
The Soap Co.'s social and environmental ethos work perfectly together. An impressive 93% of the ingredients from its eco and bee-friendly range are sourced from British companies and the manufacturer is a proud holder of The Planet Mark, an internationally recognised sustainability scheme in partnership with the Eden Project, which certifies organisations committed to year-on-year progress on sustainability and reduction of carbon emissions.
The charity, the EY Foundation, provides business expertise to The Soap Co. through its Accelerate programme, as it builds its luxury social enterprise brand and breaks into the high-end beauty and body care market. The EY Foundation's Jenny Freeman says: "The Soap Co.'s business model helps so many blind, disabled and other disadvantaged people overcome what are real barriers to getting a job. It is really transforming the lives of so many who might otherwise be struggling to find work and independence."
One such venue is the beautiful restaurant The Watch House at London's Tower Bridge. Laura Meotto, assistant house manager, comments: "We have recently purchased both the wonderful new Geranium & Rhubarb hand wash and lotion. Customers and staff love the fragrance... a perfect fit for Winter.
"We are careful to only select the highest quality products for our venue and it's really important for us to work with local companies like The Soap Co. - not least of course because they are a ground-breaking social enterprise.
"We see The Soap Co. as truly innovative and love the fact that the beautiful hand care collections are made with so much love and attention to detail. We have enjoyed the products ever since we opened - and it is a relationship we see as important to our success!"
In addition, the hit new networking app, Bumble Bizz, launched officially with The Soap Co. hand wash featuring in its event washrooms. The launch event was organised by global brand communications agency, Exposure. Harriet Jones, events manager at Exposure, writes: "As an environmental and bee-friendly brand, we at Exposure just had to feature The Soap Co. as the ultimate bathroom accessory at The Hive London when Bumble Bizz went public in late October.
"The Bumble Bizz app launch was aimed at empowering female-first business networks, which gave us a further reason to work with an East London based - and female co-founded, ground-breaking social enterprise. It is the small finishing touches such as The Soap Co.'s Geranium & Rhubarb and Black Poppy & Fig fragrance combinations that are key to providing an overall luxury feel at major events."
Camilla Marcus-Dew reveals that the company is seeing a natural synergy with so many forward-looking businesses, including many in the event, hospitality, restaurant and hotel sectors. "Our carefully designed collections are natural fits for these aspirational institutions," she explains.
"We're constantly trying to improve our products and we're proud that we didn't cut any corners in developing this new range. We're very passionate about being good to people and the planet and to extend our no compromise approach from hand into body care products."
The Soap Co. creates employment opportunities for those who are blind, disabled or otherwise disadvantaged. Some 80% of the staff in their semi-automated production line in East London and traditional workshop in Keswick have a long-term health problem and the company empowers them to build their skills, confidence and independence in a friendly and supportive work environment. Some 50% transition to new roles outside the organisation and all profits go back into providing jobs and training.
It is part of Clarity, the UK's oldest social enterprise (founded in 1854) which has produced soap for 80 years. 80% of its staff are visually impaired, disabled or otherwise disadvantaged. All the profit goes back into providing jobs and training. Over 10,000 hours of employment are created annually for its staff which has helped dozens transition into full time work elsewhere.
T: +44 (0)2030 788950
E: [email protected], [email protected]
W: www.thesoapco.org
30th November 2017