The Pre-Cycling Mindset: Why Our Salon’s Sustainability Starts Before the Bin

In an industry where disposables and fast trends are the norm, we’ve chosen a different rhythm—one that’s slower, kinder, and far more intentional.

We believe sustainability begins long before the product is used, let alone recycled. It begins with the why, the how, and the who behind every choice.

This is the essence of pre-cycling—a beautiful, mindful commitment to preventing waste before it even exists. And it’s a movement we’re honoured to be part of.

What Is Pre-Cycling?

Pre-cycling is a proactive sustainability practice. It invites us to look upstream—before purchasing, before packaging, before disposal. It asks us to:

• Question what we truly need

• Choose reusable, refillable, or long-lasting alternatives

• Consider the entire lifecycle of a product

• Reduce the need to recycle by eliminating waste at its root

This approach isn’t about eco-perfection—it’s about conscious living. Less waste. More meaning.

The Full Circle Approach: A Product’s Life, Reimagined

Through our alignment with Eco Salon Supplies, and our partnership with Oway and Sophic, we embrace the Full Circle System—a holistic model that honours every phase of a product’s life, from seed to salon, to home, and back to the earth.

1. Production: Nature-First Ingredients

Our chosen brands prioritise organic and biodynamic farming methods, growing plants in ways that nourish the soil, enhance biodiversity, and increase the natural potency of each ingredient. Oway harvests botanicals from their own farm in Italy, following lunar cycles and biodynamic traditions that protect both land and life force. Sophic is made with a minimum of 95% naturally derived ingredients, featuring several powerful Australian native botanicals including Kakadu Plum, Quandong, Kangaroo Apple, Lemon Myrtle, Lilly Pilly and Desert Lime. Sophic honours Australia’s culture and landscape and celebrate its flora and fauna.

2. Manufacturing: Thoughtful, Local, Low Impact

• Oway is one of the world’s few almost zero-waste manufacturers, operating with green energy and upcycled ingredients.

• Sophic was awarded a Lord Mayor’s grant to monitor and reduce its carbon emissions—a transparent commitment to sustainability. Their glass bottles are all uniform in size and shape, reducing emissions in production and shipping. Labels are printed locally, cutting transport pollution and supporting nearby jobs.

  
  

Every step is considered. Every detail has purpose.

3. Packaging: Protective, Reusable, Beautiful

We believe packaging should be as sustainable as the product itself. That’s why we choose products that have:

• Amber glass, which is infinitely recyclable, protects the product, and reduces the need for preservatives

• Aluminium, endlessly recyclable with minimal energy use

• FSC-certified labels printed with minimal ink, maintaining the recyclability of containers

And where possible, we offer refillable or compostable options—because packaging should never be more enduring than the product inside.

4. In the Salon: Sustainability in Every Corner

Our sustainability journey doesn’t stop at product shelves—it flows into every layer of our space and service:

• We offer a product refill initiative, welcoming clients to return and top up their favourites—cutting down on packaging and deepening their connection to the process.

• We repurpose used glass bottles in creative, beautiful ways:

  • Plant propagation gifts for clients

  • Mini handwash bottles to take home to their own basins

  • Donations to local sustainable candle makers

  • and more

• Our cleaning products, refreshments, stationery, and even salon furniture are selected with care—prioritising natural, refillable, compostable, or second-hand options wherever possible.

• We use Eco Heads to save up to 65% of water with every wash

• We maintain an in-salon worm farm and composting system, turning hair clippings, food scraps, and compostable materials into nourishment for the earth.

  
  

Sustainability for us is a full-sensory experience—it touches everything we touch.

5. At Home: Teaching Thoughtful Living

Through every conversation and product recommendation, we encourage our clients to:

• Refill instead of repurchase

• Use less, love more

• Choose quality over quantity

We invite them into the full-circle journey, empowering them to extend this intentional living into their homes and everyday rituals.

6. End of Life: Truly Closing the Loop

Through our partnership with Sustainable Salons, we divert nearly all our waste from landfill. Hair clippings become compost or even oil spill clean-up tools. Foils and packaging are recycled properly. Old tools are repurposed.

Our goal is moving further towards zero waste—and we’re getting closer every day.

This Is About Culture, Not Just Consumption

This journey is more than a set of sustainable practices—it’s a way of being. A belief in wholeness, circularity, and care.

We believe beauty should feel good for everyone involved—the earth, the maker, the stylist, the client. That’s why we slow down, choose with care, and create an environment that feels nourishing on every level.

The Quiet Power of Pre-Cycling

By embracing pre-cycling, we reduce demand, protect resources, and become part of a gentler, regenerative future.

We aren’t chasing eco-trends—we’re building a culture of consciousness, one refill, one repurposed jar, one mindful moment at a time.

Because when we care deeply, create slowly, and live intentionally—that’s when true beauty is born.

Words by Blair Lewis @holistichaircoach