Mob Beauty Introduces Biodegradable Packaging
TORONTO — Victor Casale, MAC’s former chief chemist since its inception in the mid-’80s, is staring at a generic lipstick tube that he’s holding between his fingers and all he can see are problems.
“This is plastic, which already won’t break down. Now it’s metalized so chemicals are used to make it look like metal. This can’t be recycled,” said the longtime beauty executive, who was in his hometown of Toronto visiting one of his labs.
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More than three decades after introducing MAC’s innovative recycling program, Casale has come full circle, making sustainability his top priority at his new vegan and eco-minded beauty brand Mob Beauty that he cofounded with Alisha Gallagher, previously of Briogeo, Laura Mercier and Cover FX.
After three years of research and development, the color cosmetics brand is launching packaging that is durable enough to hold its high-performance formulas, but not so durable that it would remain on the Earth longer than its intended use.
That’s because Mob’s new biodegradable packaging, available Thursday, can be recycled or discarded after use and is made with mono-material fiber pulp that turns to dirt at the end of life. There are also no coatings or embellishments that create soil toxicity during decomposition.
“One of the challenges of the beauty industry is that we make product that you consume within a year at the longest, but the packaging lasts for around 500 years and generally it can’t be recycled for many reasons. One is that many are made of mixed materials such as plastic and metal or with other materials. Another is because the product is too small. A lot of the little things just don’t get recycled,” said Casale.
“In our industry we make packaging that’s way, way, way more durable than it needs to be. And in fact the more durable and heavier and intricate it is the more people add value to it,” he continued.
The biodegradable packaging will be available for compacts, lip, mascara and setting powder. At the same time, all Mob refills are made with 100 percent PET or PP and 50-100 percent post-consumer recycled material.
The brand is currently working on a biodegradable option for palettes and refills made with a plant-based material.
Mob was launched just over two years ago as a direct-to-consumer business. Since then, it has expanded into Credo, Beautylish and is about to enter The Detox Market.
Casale is also an investor in Pure Culture, a mass-market skin care brand offering customized skin care formulations via its test kits, founded by Joy Chen. He also cofounded Pact Collective, a recycling coalition service for the beauty industry to help reduce toxic pollution in the environment. It was piloted with Credo in the U.S. and HBC in Canada, launching on Earth Day in April 2021. It currently has more than 170 members.
As for MAC, now owned by the Estée Lauder Cos., and an early adopter of recycling in beauty, the recycling initiatives continue, via a long-standing take-back program for customers to turn in empty products at stores.
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