Lush Green Hub
Hi Ruth! For those readers who have been living under a rock, can you give us an introduction to LUSH?
Lush is a purveyor of fresh handmade cosmetics with an activist soul, born in Poole 27 years ago. We invent products, source the raw materials, manufacture in our 6 biggest markets and retail our products in nearly 50. We are one of the biggest employers in the Poole area, so nearly everyone will know someone who’s worked with Lush before. Lush invented the modern concept of “naked” or unpackaged cosmetics and were the original creators of products such as the bath bomb, and the shampoo bar. We are known for lending our stores around the world as a platform to shed light on little known social and environmental issues. We have also been pioneers of using regenerative agriculture in our supply chain and do cool things like buying materials directly from indigenous peoples or from communities protecting wildlife.
What work do you and the LUSH Green Hub team do?
I like to say I am an activist for the planet that happens to work in business. I help develop Lush’s strategies to leave the world Lusher than we found it and I am the lead for the Earthcare team, a collective of people embedded in different departments of the business that helps Lush to reduce our impact on the environment and indeed, drive us towards a positive impact. We work in the areas of waste, energy, water, materials, but also in engaging staff and bringing people along this journey.
The Green Hub is all about leading the way in how we can keep materials in circulation, whilst educating our staff and the public and collaborating with other businesses and institutions. The Green Hub carries out very hands-on work, collecting, sorting and processing waste from our Poole sites and making sure we can recover as many materials as possible. They also process product waste usually repurposed as donations to local charities and organisations supporting people, animals, and earth care. We have a laundry area that washes towels from spas and shops, and we have also set up a circular water treatment to minimise our use of water. Besides this operational side, the team also hosts educational tours, networking events, workshops and a shop of Lush’s own pre-loved items.
What was your most memorable moment during your career at LUSH?
I think it’s how I got this job! I actually started as a sales assistant in our Covent Garden shop in 2004, in London, after moving there to study English for 6 months. I was already vegan and interested in environmental issues back in Brazil and wanted a job with a business that shared my values. Becoming Lush’s first environmental officer happened almost by accident, after chatting to Lush’s founder Mark Constantine when he came into the shop one day about all the things that I thought we should be doing but weren’t. It was a case of “would you like to do them, then?” I said “yes” and fast forward nearly 19 years, I get to support one of the most exciting parts of the business.
Other than that, I would say it has been all the times we have met the amazing suppliers, NGOs and frontline communities that are doing the work of protecting life on the planet. The most memorable was a meeting with representatives of indigenous communities who came to the Lush office in London when they were doing a tour in Europe to highlight the damages caused by Bolsonaro’s government in Brazil. Sonia Guajajara, who came to visit us, has now been chosen to be the first Minister of the Indigenous Peoples under Lula’s government.
Going carbon positive is no longer a choice, it is an imperative. Do you have any advice for businesses wanting to become more sustainable?
Indeed, it is an imperative. It also means going beyond sustainable. We must do more than just doing no harm and instead use all the power that businesses have to start protecting, restoring and regenerating ecosystems. It is about choosing what you want to be complicit with, life or climate breakdown? The most important advice I can give is to start with what is most important for the business. Where is your biggest impact? Where are you most dependent on fossil fuel energy? Which materials do you use that are causing most degradation or pollution? What is your biggest risk because of the climate and ecological breakdowns? Where can you make a positive difference? Start where it matters most. Replacing plastic with paper straws can only go so far.
How can local people engage with Lush and the Green Hub?
Keep an eye out for our upcoming Green Hub launch in 2023, where we will be hosting a range of events and education opportunities for the local community. If you would like to find out more about getting involved you can contact Eloise Flinter, eloise.flinter@lush.co.uk, our Green Hub Business Development Manager. And of course, you can stop by one of our local stores in Poole or Bournemouth and ask our staff about our values, products, ingredients and how we're leaving the world Lusher than we found it.
Website → lush.com/uk/en
