EP135. Sustainable beauty alternatives to Black Friday

Only a week or so to go until we reach the yearly spectacle that is Black Friday, the day that encourages you to shop. And it is one of those topics that divides the crowd. So you might be listening to me right now thinking, I boycott Black Friday. I don't like it at all. Or you might be listening thinking, I always enjoy shopping on Black Friday. It means I can find the things I need at a decent price. But we can't deny the fact that this day, entirely dedicated to shopping, has grown in duration. First of all, it's now a week or a month long event for some businesses, and it's also grown in terms of its success. Black Friday generates billions in sales for companies and it's also grown in terms of its geographical spread, because while Black Friday originated as a US Annual event, it's now celebrated globally. One research agency found high numbers of online searches for Black Friday specific discounts coming from Germany, Brazil, the uk, Spain, Canada, France, Australia, India and many other countries. And precisely because this topic is so divisive, and because Formula Britannica represents many thousands of small indie beauty brands who deserve your support all year round, let's face it. Anna Green and I decided to look at the origins of Black Friday and challenge you to join us in thinking about four alternatives that might fit slightly better within the concept of sustainable beauty. So settle in to find out the alternative ways that you can support small businesses and the environment on the biggest shopping day of the year.

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Beauty Conversations, the podcast that challenges you to think about how you buy, use, make or sell your green beauty formulations. In my weekly episodes, I explore the sustainability of the beauty industry and encourage you to join me in changing the industry for the better. I'm your host, Lorraine Dallmeyer. I'm a chartered environmentalist, biologist and the CEO of award winning online organic cosmetic formulation school Formula Botanica. We have thousands and thousands of students in over 180 countries around the world who study with us to become organic beauty formulators and entrepreneurs. Visit our website@formulabotanica.com to try our free online formulation course. And if you want to be the first person to know what's happening in green beauty, make sure you subscribe to this podcast in your favorite podcast app. So in today's episode I'm joined by Anna Green, Education Manager at Formula Botanica, who heads up and runs our education team which delivers all of our courses as well as our membership site, the Lab at Formula Botanica. Now, Anna's been on the podcast with me many times before, has been in the green beauty space for well over a decade and knows a huge amount about the way that natural beauty brands position themselves within an industry that, let's face it, exists to drive rampant consumerism. Hi, Anna, welcome back to the podcast.

Hi, Lorraine, Lovely to be here.

It's always lovely to have you here. This is a really interesting conversation today because I know it's going to be one of those Marmite topics that people either love or hate, basically, because we're going to talk about Black Friday. So I thought before we delve into Black Friday, the controversy and, you know, potential alternatives, we should have a look at what Black Friday actually is and how it arose. I know you've done a little bit of reading on this. What have you found?

Yeah, so actually, Black Friday has quite a fascinating history and it refers to the day after Thanksgiving in the US and it has become a holiday in its own right now. And it kicks off the shopping season ahead of Christmas. It's become the biggest shopping day of the year, and that sort of happened round about the 2000s when it overtook the last Saturday of December. So people switched their shopping habits slightly to start shopping earlier, I suppose. In its earliest use, Black Friday actually referred to a market crash which happened in 1869 and has absolutely nothing to do with shopping or consumption. And the effects of this market crash were felt in the US economy for years and years afterwards. So the use of the term with regards to shopping was coined by the Philadelphia police who noticed an uptick in traffic and footfall in the lead up to the festive season. And obviously they weren't using it in a very positive light.

Doesn't sound like it.

Not at all.

No.

And it's really interesting because although Black Friday is very U.S. centric, like many U.S. customs, Halloween, other things, it has spread around the world quite, quite fast, led by global conglomerates and big business, which in turn has led to indie brands also sort of taking part. It's also now followed by Cyber Monday, which is the largest digital shopping day of the year for online sales. Again, because of the proximity to Christmas. You know, it's just that perfect time frame for getting your Christmas gifts in. Something else that's interesting about Black Friday is that there have been several efforts over the years to rename it to other things, but none of them have ever stuck. So Black Friday has remained Black Friday, even though people have tried to tweak the name to large Friday, Big Friday, all sorts of other things.

When I first started to look into it as well, I wondered if there were negative Connotations, because I know often people use the word black in a negative way. And obviously we've covered some of this on the podcast previously as well. So I was surprised to read that those connotations weren't necessarily there. And also, the thing that fascinated me as a business owner as well was that Black Friday is the day that typically businesses go into the black, I. E. They make a profit for the year. Now, whether that is the case in 2022 for many businesses who are obviously struggling in the cost of living crisis, I don't know. But I thought that was a really interesting terminology as well.

Yeah, it is. Like you said, usually the term black is used in a. In a negative way. And here it's. It's referring to being in profit, which is an interesting twist on it.

So let's talk a little bit about the controversy around Black Friday, because as I said, you know, this is one of those topics you either love it or hate it. And I know there are people at the moment list thinking, I don't like Black Friday. I try and boycott it whenever I can. And there are also people listening, thinking, I run my own brand and this is an opportunity for me to make sales. So there is some controversy around it. And when I started to look into it, I was a bit shocked to realize some of the things that have happened on Black Friday which have led to this controversy because obviously, you know, it encourages consumerism, in some case, rampant consumerism. I think we've seen the videos of people sort of storming into department stores. It encourages impulse buying. It encourages heightened emotions and stress. And because of that, there have been incidents of violence. And that was quite shocking to read, actually. And there have even been deaths as a result of Black Friday, with people getting crushed, people pulling out weapons to fight with other shoppers. I was quite taken aback by that. What did you find when you looked into it?

Every single year, when you sort of turn on the television around Black Friday, you see images that are quite shocking. And especially now with social media as well, we see these shocking images happening all the time. Time. As somebody who hates to queue, I find the idea of joining physical cues for Black Friday quite unthinkable, to be honest. But we know that people do. And it's quite upsetting to think that for the sake of an item of clothing or, you know, a discounted piece of technology that anybody would become violent. But we know it happens. And wherever you have large quantities of people, unfortunately you have these kind of incidents. You know, whether it's Black Friday or not.

What I found fascinating, though, is, of course, it's very easy for us to take the moral high ground and go, look at all these people queuing who would do such a thing. But we're in a position of privilege to do that, because I read that On Black Friday 2013 in the States, Walmart's best selling item was towels. So it's not just a case of people sort of queuing up for games, consoles and TVs. These are everyday items that people need. And I think it isn't as simple as saying you should resist this consumer culture, because ultimately, if you can't afford your towels unless they're cheap and on sale on Black Friday, it's not up to us, I suppose, to say that it's morally wrong to go and get them on that day. And I really want everyone to keep that in mind as well. There's something wrong with our culture if people can't afford towels all year round and they have to wait for this discounted day. It's a really difficult one to look at because on one hand you can say we're encouraging mass consumerism, but on the other hand, it's an opportunity for people to go and get items that they just can't afford, otherwise.

Yeah, absolutely. I totally agree with that, Lorraine, and I think you've hit the nail on the head there when you say there's something wrong with our culture. It's not just the culture. It's. We've touched on this before in the podcast. It's the entire economic system which sets people up to have to make these kinds of choices. And we've, we've discussed this before where we've covered it on other topics, and it's just not right, really.

No, it isn't. But Black Friday is here. It's imminent after the release of this podcast episode. So I'm sure everyone listening is already thinking about what they may or may not be buying. But what I wanted to do in this podcast today was to look at some alternatives, because I know many of the beauty brands in our world have embraced these alternatives. And I always find it fascinating to watch all the posts come past on social media on that day and see what every single beauty brand is doing. So I wanted to run through four of them. And I know that we've both done a little digging into these alternatives and just put them forward as an option for our listeners today. And I'd love to hear from our listeners afterwards on social media what you think and which one you may or may not be embracing. So alternative number one, which I've also seen from a couple of our graduate brands in the past, is not Black Friday, but Green Friday, which I believe has been around since about 2015, and it encourages shoppers to shop more mindfully and sustainably. So it's more about thinking, do you actually need this product? And if you are going to buy it, are you buying it in the most mindful and sustainable way possible? So what did you find about Green Friday?

Yeah, like you say, Lorraine, I've seen quite a few brands take part in Green Friday over the years, and it's a very interesting time to be able to support brands that perhaps are overall looking at sustainability in a different way, to have a think about what you actually want to purchase going forward. So it seems like a good time to investigate replacing disposable items, for example, for reusables, and to look at brands who are investing in things like the circular economy. Can you have refillables, for example, rather than single use? So lots of interesting brands taking part in this kind of initiative, and it's a good time for consumers to take stock of what they're purchasing and perhaps explore alternatives.

Yeah, and the thing I liked was when I was reading about Green Friday was this concept of always knowing exactly what you need before you enter an online or a physical brick and mortar store. And arguably that's a good way to go about shopping every day of the year, not just on Green Friday. And there have been quite a few retailers who've taken part. Like last year, Ikea offered to buy back furniture for 50% more than they would normally pay on Green Friday. I thought that was fantastic for our graduates, Bybee Beauty, who are amazing, by the way, go and buy from them. They planted 10 trees in the Amazon for every bundle that people purchase on that day. Well, Patagonia donated, I believe, US$10 million in global takings to a nonprofit a few years ago. I guess the. The main issue I have with this concept of Green Friday is that obviously it should be green every day and not just one day of the year. And obviously, as you said, you know, we've covered this many times on the podcast, but I like the idea of just shifting the narrative ever so slightly that if you are going to shop, you're just going to be a bit more mindful about it. So alternative two that we have on the list was, and I suppose still is Small Business Saturday, which is the day that I believe follows Black Friday in some countries, but not all. It's very confusing when I Looked into it. What did you find?

Yeah, so I have been watching for many years now, things like Twitter, and there's a lot of Small Business Saturday promotion that happens on there, not just on a set day of the year, but also for a long time it was a regular occurrence where small businesses would promote each other. They would do some cross promotion, they would use hashtags, they would do all of those things. I think it's used a little bit less now than it was, but there was certainly a culture of small businesses supporting each other and lifting each other up, which I really liked about Small Business Saturday. I always like to see a bit of camaraderie from people and helping each other out.

Yeah, it's fantastic to see, actually, and it's obviously something we stand for here, very much of Formula Botanica, given that we, all of our graduates, want to start these small brands as well. And the thing I found also really interesting, which I hadn't realized, is that Small Business Saturday is actually a term that's trademarked and held by American Express. So they created it in 2010 in the US, and then there was a UK version that started three years later, following the success of the one in the us. But bizarrely, and I just don't understand this, they're a week apart. It makes no sense at all. So in the us, it's the day immediately after Black Friday, and then in the uk, it's the first Saturday in December. And those two things don't necessarily fall together. But I love this idea of encouraging people to go and shop small and shop local. We should all be supporting small brands anyway. They're the backbone of our economy. But, of course, the campaign aims to just look beyond that one day of the year, extend beyond that one day, and really have a lasting impact on small businesses. And the great thing is that it's really gained traction, from what I can tell, because billions are spent with small businesses on this day, with the intention, hopefully, of forming more loyal habits, which I know we're going to talk about in a bit. So alternative number three, and this is maybe a very controversial one, particularly if you run a brand and you're listening to this, but alternative number three was Buy Nothing Day. So tell me what you found, Anna.

Yeah, I think this is a really interesting one because, like you say, it is a little bit controversial for brands, especially the thought of people buying nothing. But the reality of it is that most of us will buy nothing for many days a year, unless you are in the position of being able to purchase all the time. I have over the years seen several of these sort of not necessarily buying nothing day, but people sort of do no buys and have. Have periods of time where they're working through their stash. That was a big thing in sort of the makeup and skincare community for a while on Instagram, for example. Shop your stash, use what you already have, those kind of things. And it's very, very interesting to watch. Now again, these kind of schemes I think are really sort of good for getting people to take stock of what they already have. And it goes back to what we talked about previously about only purchasing when you actually need something, because how many of us have bought something only to find you have something in your wardrobe that is already very similar, or you know, you've already got that lipstick and you've bought another one. So I think there is an element of it's a day to reflect if you want to take part in it and to sort of think about your consumption habits more generally and take a pause. I think businesses should welcome people thinking about how they're going to spend their money because if you have a good product, people will come back to you. But I also acknowledge that we are in very, very difficult times at the moment. So any thought of people not buying will make businesses very nervous because we are in unprecedented times in terms of the economy. But overall, I think it is an interesting way to reflect on purchasing more generally. And I, I think we have to do that as consumers and also as brands.

Yeah. And it ties really together with Green Friday, I suppose, because Green Friday is all about being more mindful, more sustainable. And Buy Nothing Day, which I believe was started in the early 90s and is now celebrated in over 50 countries, is also just about getting people to take stock of how much they consume, but also getting them to think about the fact that recycling is good, but reduction or avoidance is always the best. And just trying to change attitud to things like single use products or excessive packaging. And one term that came back a lot in the articles I was reading was about fast fashion, which I just want to focus on for a minute because none of these websites ever mention fast beauty. I find it fascinating because this concept of fast fashion, you know, cheaply made, consume lots of it, we're very familiar with that. And yet, you know, you've got all these beauty bloggers talking about things like beauty snacking, where you consume lots of little products every so often throughout the day. So fast beauty is a topic that isn't really on the radar yet. For Buy Nothing Day. But I love this idea of just saying, just think about what you're doing and if you are going to buy, just be a bit more mindful about it. Which I suppose makes it the extreme version of Green Friday, perhaps. So the fourth alternative that we found was loyalty schemes. And I know that this is something you've got quite a lot to say on, isn't it, Anna?

Yeah, I think I really like the idea of brands encouraging loyalty rather than sort of having promotions that encourage you to shop a lot all at once and then not having recurring revenue think, to me, it makes sense for brands to be encouraging their customers back. And let's be honest, when there is a market that is quite saturated, then I think this is quite important. And as a consumer, I like these types of schemes as well. So some of the natural beauty retailers, for example, do this quite well. They offer loyalty points for everything from leaving a review to ongoing purchases. And they also offer things like special perks for your birthday, for example, to encourage you to come back. I've also seen some indie brands with some great loyalty schemes and they have systems set up where customers are rewarded for their loyalty in the way of points that can be redeemed money off vouchers or free shipping, for example. And the types of actions that are rewarded can also be really varied. So, for example, you can reward the number of purchases across the year, referring a friend or leaving a website review. So, yeah, there's some really great loyalty schemes out there by indie brands who really, really want to reward their customers for coming back to them. And I think that's quite a nice way, rather than focusing on just one day a year to keep your customers coming back for more.

Absolutely. And if you're a business owner, then obviously the holy grail is to get a customer in and then get them to return. It's always manageable to bring in an existing customer, a new customer, but then getting them to come back time and time again, that's the hard bit. And if you as a brand can achieve that, then you are absolutely winning. So I think absolutely turning that narrative from only consume on this day to stay loyal to us and we'll look after you and you're now in our ecosystem. That's a fantastic thing to do. And if brands can do that, they are absolutely winning. I also think it's great for customers because then you know where you stand. You might get some perks as a result of it. It's what everyone wants, really, isn't it? We all love a discount code when we get sent one. So we've run through four alternatives. There are many more out there. And I do encourage our listeners to go and dig around and see what you can find and come and tell us about them on social media because I would love to hear your thoughts. So let's finish off by asking Anna, and I'd love to hear your opinion on this. Should we boycott Black Friday altogether or not?

I think it's a really interesting question. I don't think there's a right or wrong answer here. I think it depends on our ethos, on our personal ethos as brands or consumers. And I think everybody has to do what they think is is right and they have to make their own decisions on this one. I don't think anybody should feel obligated to consume a specific time of year if they don't have a need for anything new. I really do feel that very strongly. But I also don't like taking part in other holidays. For example, I don't like shopping for Christmas just because I'm told I have to. I, you know, there's plenty of other times throughout the year that I could shop. So a rebel. I am a rebel like that, Lorraine. I really don't like it. I like it for the children and that's about it. But I think many people get into the habit of shopping on Black Friday because they get swept up in the hype and the marketing. And I would sort of encourage people to reflect on is it the right time for you to be buying or is there a different time because there are offers almost throughout the year now. You know, it used to be once upon a time that we only had the January sales and that was the only time of year where things were discounted. And now it seems to be that you can purchase things discounted almost continuously. And there's things like cashback websites, for example, where you know, any kind of purchase that you make, you can gain some cash back. So it's an interesting one to look at. I don't think if people want to take part that they should be sort of frowned upon for it. Like you said, many people are purchasing items that are essential for them and you know, that is something that they need at the time. But yeah, I think everybody should reflect on do you actually need something? Do you want to take part? Does this feel right for me?

Yes. And wise words there, Anna. And I would just add that I also think I personally don't boycott Black Friday because I see it as a wonderful opportunity to really support small brands and I think we should be supporting them all year round. We have hundreds of them listed on our website. Go and check out the Formula Botanica Graduate Gallery. If you haven't yet, just come to our website@formulabotanica.com if you click on Graduates at the top you'll see hundreds and hundreds of brands and you can filter them by region of the world as well. Those people deserve support all year round and I would be the first to say if you want to go and consume that day, then go and buy from one of them because they're amazing and they deserve lots of support rather than you going to spend your money with the big brands who are making megabucks anyway. That said, I have no plans to consume all that much for Black Friday this year, but who knows, I may get swayed in the sales. But I would love to hear what our listeners have to say because I think this is going to be one of those that divides the crowd. So let's see what comes back on social media. Thank you so much for joining me today Anna. It's been a really interesting chat.

Thanks Lorraine. I've really enjoyed it. And like you said, I think this is a topic that people will have opinions on so I can't wait to hear them.

Me too. I would love to hear your thoughts on this episode. Is Black Friday much of a thing in the country you're listening from? Because we have listeners all over the world. After all, how do you feel about the alternatives that we just ran through? And do you think we should boycott or replace Black Friday? Please do come and leave us a comment on our social channels as both the Formula Botanica team and I love hearing from you. And if you want to hear more about the topics we covered, please do delve back into the podcast archives. Go and listen to episode 61 in which Anna and I examine the topic of skinimalism. It's still one of the most popular podcast episodes we recorded. Or listen to episode 66 in which Anna and I uncover the topic of circular beauty and what it actually means. Or episode 73 in which I interview Jasmin Alvarez to ask whether beauty retailers should boycott unsustainable brands. There's a wealth of information in our old episodes and I do encourage you to go back and listen to them. Thank you for joining Anna and I for this latest episode of Green Beauty Conversations. I really hope you enjoyed it. If you did, please do leave us a five star review so that other people can enjoy these conversations too. Make sure you subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or whatever your favorite podcast app is, and stay tuned for the next episode. Follow Formula Botanica Formula Botanica on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Twitter, or LinkedIn and come and give me a Follow Lorraine Dalmayer on Instagram, visit our website@formulabotanica.com and sign up for our free online formulation course today.

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