Have you ever wondered if your salon is eco-friendly?
Hairdressing is not the greenest of industries, but you can care about the environment and your hair.
It’s possible to find a sustainable hair salon that is eco-friendly. I know, because the salon I go to has a minimal impact on the environment. They were the first salon in Sydney to off-set carbon emissions too. Big shout out to Stevie English Hair.
This isn’t an ad for them, but rather I wanted to open the conversation and raise awareness for sustainable practices in the industry. I’d love to see all salons be more mindful of the environment.
Why not ask the question next time you’re in the chair or when you’re choosing a new hair salon. If clients make it a priority, then salon owners will too.
You can send your salon a link to this post to help them find some resources and ideas for making their salon eco-friendly.
How to make your salon eco-friendly
Go paperless
A simple change to systems can keep all client records online and email receipts to clients too.
Save energy
Start by changing your light bulbs to a more energy efficient lighting system. Switch to green energy sources with your supplier. Make sure the salon hot water system is energy efficient too.
Save water
A busy salon will wash a lot of heads every week. Combined with washing towels, this can add up to a significant impact.
There are eco-friendly alternatives. Ecoheads basin taps use half the amount of water as standard basin taps. Easydry are disposable towels. Normally I don’t like single use products but overall these save water from washing and are energy efficient to produce. Plus they biodegrade in 12 weeks.
Recycle
You can recycle so much from the salon floor. Foil from highlights and colour tubes can be recycled by Refoil. You can also purchase recycled foil to complete the cycle.
Recycle hair
Did you know hair can be recycled? Ponytails can be made into wigs and you can find out how to donate your hair here. Cut hair from the floor can be put to an even better use. Hair absorbs oil so all those cuttings can be made into hair booms to help clean up oil spills.
Sustainable Salons Australia
An amazing recycling initiative has recently launched called Sustainable Salons Australia. I just happen to be friends with the owners, Paul and Ewelina, and I know how passionate they are about the environment. They are a fantastic resource if your salon is trying to become more eco-friendly.
Let me know in the comments below if this topic matters to you. I’d love to know if your salon is eco-friendly and other ways salons can be more mindful of the environment.
Great suggestions! I know of a lot of salons that recycle hair, but many still issue paper receipts and I’m not aware of too many water-saving sinks in use. Hopefully more salons will implement these tactics for a greener business. Thanks for sharing!
Congrats on finding a salon willing to off-set carbon emissions. Your tips on making salons eco-friendly could probably benefit business owners as well.
It’s really a great idea to have an eco friendly salon. We need to promote such appreciable ideas to other hairdressers and salon owners too. I am going to share this post on my twitter account to help other to find these tips. Thanks to share these useful ideas with us.
Love seeing the salon industry go green!
Thanks!
Whoa, I didn’t know hair cuttings could clean up oil spills! Very cool, and a great way to be eco friendly. I think that one is my favorite suggestion out of the list.
Thanks Veronika, it’s amazing what Sustainable Salons Australia are doing! x
Love it Chrissie! Will definitely be looking into that Sustainable Salons idea and promote it to my hairdresser. You’re right, it will always be a water-heavy industry but that doesn’t mean changes can’t be made to improve things! xx
Thanks Liz! Refoil and Sustainable Salons are just amazing. They are changing the industry. Those shower heads are also so much better. Imagine the difference if all salons upgraded and used 50% less water!