M&S EXPANDS BEAUTY TAKEBACK SCHEME TO 100 STORES ACROSS THE UK

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Submitted by rnewson on 11 Nov 2024


  • M&S has doubled the store footprint of its Beauty Takeback Scheme to an additional 60 stores, bringing the total to 100 

  • As part of M&S’ ongoing partnership with HANDLE, it has also produced a wide-toothed hair comb, made from at least 98% recycled packaging from the beauty industry, that has been diverted from landfill as part of the Beauty Takeback Scheme. 

  • M&S’ Plan A approach to circularity focuses on the way it designs its products to ensure they are made well and made to last, and the services it offers customers to give their items Another life. 

Today, Marks & Spencer has announced it has expanded its Beauty Takeback Scheme, in partnership with HANDLE, to an additional 60 stores across the UK bringing the total number to 100. 

Dedicated beauty takeback scheme boxes are now available in new locations including Birmingham Bullring, Cardiff, and Inverness, making the scheme more accessible to more customers across the UK. 

Launched in June 2023 as part of the retailer’s Plan A roadmap to Net Zero, the scheme enables customers to recycle any form of plastic or aluminium beauty packaging - from bottles and tubes to caps, pumps, and tubs – from any retailer, by dropping their used beauty packaging into dedicated boxes located within the store’s beauty section.  

Since launching, the scheme has processed over 1.6 tonnes of beauty packaging – the equivalent of a small car - which otherwise might have ended up in landfill.  As part of M&S’ ongoing partnership with HANDLE, this year, the retailer has produced a wide-toothed hair comb, made from at least 98% of the recycled packaging collected by M&S as part of their scheme with HANDLE. The comb will be available to purchase online and in selected stores for £8.  

The partnership with HANDLE forms part of Plan A ‘Another life’, which brings together all the retailer’s circularity services into one place. From the Beauty Takeback Scheme with Handle, the new repair partnership with SOJO to its long-running clothes donation partnership with Oxfam, which was formerly known as ‘Shwopping’, all initiatives now sit together as part of Plan A - ‘Another Life’ to offer a more seamless experience for customers who are looking for ways they can support a shift to a more circular economy.   

Katharine Beacham, Head of Sustainability, Clothing & Home at M&S, said: “At M&S, we want to play our part in driving a more circular economy and the circularity services we offer are key to this. Since launching last year, our Beauty Takeback Scheme has proven hugely popular, providing a convenient option for customers to recycle their beauty products. We’re delighted to be able to introduce the scheme to even more of our stores across the UK this month, to enable them to give their empty beauty packaging Another life.” 

M&S’ Plan A approach to circularity is focused across two areas; in the way the retailer designs its products to ensure they are made well and made to last, and in the services it offers customers to give their items Another life.  

- ENDS -

The Beauty Takeback Scheme will be available in 100 M&S stores across the UK.  

The 60 new stores are: Aintree, Ashton Moss, Basingstoke, Bexhill, Brent Cross, Brotherhood Peterborough, Bullring, Bury The Rock, Canterbury, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chichester, Colliers Wood, Croydon, Deepdale Preston, Derby, Derbion, Durham Arnison, Ealing Broadway, Exeter, Fargate Sheffield, Finsbury Pavement, Gloucester, Guildford, Halifax, Havant, Inverness, Kensington, Kinnaird Edinburgh, Leamington, Middlebrook Bolton, Newport Rp, Norwich, Orbital, Swindon, Perth, Plymouth, Purley, Reading, Romford, Rushden Lakes, Scunthorpe Rp, Sevenoaks, Solihull Sears, Southampton West Quay, Stirling, Stane Park Colchester, Sutton, Tamworth, Taunton, Teeside, Torbay, Tunbridge Wells, Watford, Westwood Cross, Worcester, Worthing, Yeovil. 

The scheme continues to be available in: Argyle St Glasgow, Bath, Bluewater, Bromley, Brooklands, Camberley, Castlepoint, Cheltenham, Cheshire Oaks, Cheshunt, Cribbs Causeway, Culverhouse Cross, Fosse Park, Gyle, Gemini, Handforth, Harrogate, Hedge End, Kingston, Leeds, Leeds White Rose, Liverpool, London Colney, Longbridge, Manchester, Marble Arch, Meadowhall, Merryhill, Metro Centre, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Nottingham, Pantheon, Pudsey, Shoreham, Stratford City, Thurrock, White City, Wolstanton and Vangarde Monks Cross. 

For further information, please contact: 

M&S Corporate Press Office:    +44 (0)20 8718 1919 [email protected] 

2024 Sustainability Clothing, Home & Beauty