Sustainability is becoming non-negotiable in the cosmetics industry.
Beauty and personal care consumers consistently say they want their products to be more sustainable – made with greener formulations and eco-friendly packaging.
Meanwhile government regulations are also pushing manufacturers and ingredients suppliers in this direction.
The market for these products is also expanding. According to the data insights firm Euromonitor International, its AI-based Passport Sustainability platform revealed a 10% CAGR between 2020 to 2023 for sustainable products.
In a report released in July 2024, the firm’s Senior insights consultant for sustainability, Jorge Zuniga, also pointed to data that showed that “the trend towards sustainable packaging is also growing, with a significant 62% of beauty companies investing in this area.”
“The popularity of compostable and FSC-certified packaging demonstrates the industry’s pledge to reduce single-use plastics, further strengthening consumer trust,” he shared.
So why are beauty advent calendars still so popular?
Therefore, knowing that the industry is supposed to be cleaning up its act and becoming more sustainable, how can we still create extravagant advent calendars that waste both product and packaging?
And why are consumers still lining up to buy these products?
This was a question on the mind of Matthew Kay, who is head of design and marketing at UK-based sustainable packaging company Greyhound Box.
“Miniature cosmetics tucked away behind glittery doors were in more shop windows and sponsored Instagram posts than ever during December 2024,” he said.
“They promised consumers the ‘glow’ while promising value – though they set us back fifty quid, at least. Yet during a year where we were under the impression the golden quarter would transition to a greener one, you can’t help but feel there was quite the juxtaposition.”
Kay drew attention to figures from the British Beauty Council that revealed:
- 95% of cosmetics packaging is thrown away.
- Only 14% of packaging makes it to a recycling plant..
- ...where just 9% is recycled – the rest goes to landfill.
“These stats haven’t fallen on deaf ears and consumers are embracing products that boast organic, non-toxic ingredients with cruelty-free testing, ready to be packaged in recyclable or reusable materials,” said Kay.
“And that’s why it’s so interesting how beauty advent calendars seemingly bucked the ‘all eyes on sustainability’ trend.”
Cardboard is associated with sustainability
Kay noted that advent calendars rely on cardboard as the structure’s base, which could make them look more favourable in terms of eco-friendliness.
“When consumers see cardboard (or similar materials, like paper), they tend to associate it with sustainability – consciously or not,” he shared.
“In its natural form, cardboard is recyclable. It’s often made from recycled fibres, too.”
However, Kay also wondered whether consumers are naive to all of the other unsustainable materials that also make up luxury advent calendars?
“Be that the plastic cosmetics containers behind each window or the toxic inks used to coat a brand’s colours onto the outside of the calendar,” he said.
“Maybe it’s as simple as being swept up in the magic of Christmas and how beauty advent calendars have transitioned to a must-have rather than a want.”
Beauty advent calendars become more popular each year
From the perspective of beauty brands, while most do want to be more sustainable, and know that their customers want them to be more sustainable, they still need to sell products and make money. And these luxury advent calendars are extremely popular with shoppers...
In September 2024, research from global digital agency SAMY Alliance found a 368% YoY rise in engagement (likes, reposts, comments, shares etc) with advent calendar themed posts, compared to Christmas 2023. When it came to brand mentions, beauty brands dominated the online conversation
In the run up to Christmas 2024, big-name brands like Jo Malone, Liberty London, Space NK, Charlotte Tilbury and Bobbi Brown were all selling calendars and the prices ranged from £160 to £360.
Charlotte Tilbury’s offering was the most talked about advent calendar in both 2024 and 2023.
The agency also pointed to stats from Clearpay research that said those advent calendars “aimed at women” were seeing an increase of 240%YoY.
According to Saffron Vandenburg, who is research and insights manager at SAMY Alliance, beauty advent calendars are “a catalyst to ongoing social media chatter.”
“For brands and retailers, they are a great way to get talked about as well as to sample products in the hope of bringing in new consumers,” said Vandenberg.
“When it comes to social media, advent calendars make for rich conversations and engagement; speculation over release dates, format, content and whether or not you’ll be one of the lucky individuals to bag one of the more popular calendars before they sell out.”
Clean beauty can promote ‘clean advent calendars’
“Encouraging consumers to celebrate advent is certainly a money maker for the industry,” Kay agreed.
“But if UK cosmetics wants to ride the clean beauty trend throughout 2025 and beyond, a makeover’s needed. Starting with sustainable beauty advent calendars.”
He highlighted that psychologically, we associate earthy tones and materials with nature and that sustainable packaging designs tend to veer towards these colours, if not fully embracing the natural colour of a material itself.
His proposed solution is for brands to choose more sustainable and recyclable materials when creating these advent calendars.
“Clean beauty can be reflected in ‘clean’ advent calendars that are made from responsibly sourced materials; prioritise recyclable, reusable, or biodegradable packaging; reflect the brand’s sustainability agenda and values,” he said.
“Sustainable beauty calendars couldn’t be timelier, either. We need more cosmetics brands to commit to 100% recyclable packaging this year in line with the UK Plastics Pact which is pushing sustainable change forwards,” continued Kay.
“Though it’s too premature to start counting down the days until we can open the first window of our next advent calendar, it’s certainly time we open the windows to greener festivities for 2025.”
