N.A.E. x Amazon on packaging: a not so good idea?
- Faïrouz
- 17 nov. 2020
- 3 min de lecture
Packaging is a crucial issue when it comes to sustainability. Since N.A.E. claims to be a committed and responsible brand, they must make ensure their packaging is recyclable at least, and made of recycled materials if possible.
There are of course sorting instructions on each of their packs, but it doesn’t stop there. Their packaging is actually made of sustainable material! For example, the tubes are made of plant-based plastic, a kind of plastic made of cane sugar. The bottles are made of PET plastic that is 100% recycled and recyclable. And the solid bars for face, hair and body care are packed in paper that is certified FSC, meaning that it was sourced in a sustainable manner and respectfully of men and nature. It is of course recyclable as well.
N.A.E. recently launched an e-commerce pilot project named zero plastic, in partnership with Amazon as part of their sustainability policy. The collaboration is available in France, Germany and Italy. They created a Solids Box with three solid bars, one for haircare, one for face and one for body care, plus a reusable soap pocket, all packed in a cardboard box that is labelled 100% FSC. With this box, no more useless packaging: the bars are available directly in the box and it doesn’t require any additional packaging from Amazon to ship it since there is room for the label to be stuck directly on the box. Sounds like a great idea, doesn’t it?
Although I am a huge fan of solid products and opt for recycled and recyclable packaging whenever I do my shopping, I have to admit that this partnership bothers me a little. Why would N.A.E. partner with Amazon as part of their sustainability policy?
Well, Amazon is not very well known for their sustainable and responsible choices: their environmental impact is huge. The success of Amazon is based on the plethora of items available on their platform but mainly on the fact that they can be delivered in a snap of fingers! Well not quite, but within 24 hours or less for the Prime subscribers. Some even get same-day delivery without asking for it! Therefore, Amazon is not very careful of their carbon emission and are, unfortunately, not really compatible with sustainability for now. At least as long as their business model remains the same and the race for faster delivery goes on.
Although I find N.A.E.’s initiative very interesting and quite great in an era where boxes of products are attractive (just look at the amount of box programs that exist: MyLittleBox, BirchBox…), I don’t think partnering with Amazon on this was the smartest move. There are many committed distributors that would probably have loved the opportunity to collaborate with an organic and sustainable beauty brand such as N.A.E. I’m thinking of all the organic physical retailers or even online platforms such as Mademoiselle Bio which is specialized in organic cosmetics.
So, here's my opinion on the N.A.E. x Amazon collaboration:
I think it is still important to underline Amazon’s efforts towards a more sustainable consumption when they are taking part in this kind of partnerships. But it is also important to remain critical and be aware of opportunism in the sustainable marketing area. As a consumer, I find this collaboration confusing, knowing the brand and its essence.
Partnerships and collaborations can be tricky, especially when there is a dissonance in the values of the two parties as it is the case between Amazon and N.A.E.! Nevertheless, the intent behind this Solids Box project is well-meaning and innovative, and we can applaud N.A.E. for the great initiative and their strong position on the packaging issue.
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