When you manage an eco-friendly hospitality, choosing the right products is one of the most difficult decisions. Nicoletta wrote us asking for a tip on how to find the right eco-friendly toiletries, the perfect ones to provide in her holiday house. Here are the three most important rules to keep in mind!
Dear Ecobnb,
I met you 2 years ago at the event Fa la Cosa Giusta in Milan.
I manage a holiday house in Milan and I would like to offer my guests eco-friendly toiletries, but while browsing I noticed how sustainability unfortunately is not usually a common goal! Plastic containers are even used for 30 ml only of product…Would you suggest some eco-friendly products?
Thank you so much,
Nicoletta
Dear Nicoletta, you’re definitely right: to find the right toiletries (shampoo, soaps, conditioners…) making guests, owners and the environment happy is a real challenge! So here you are 3 tips to help you make the right green choice caring for the environment.
1. Choose the dispenser to single-doses
Many people today suggest single-dose eco-friendly containers, with biological and 100% natural products: shampoo, shower gel, shower caps and soap refills…
But unfortunately the problem isn’t solved just doing so! Think about all the plastic needed to produce all these single-dose containers: if you want to really help the environment, going for natural products but in a single dose isn’t enough. Disposable plastic objects have become a fake luxury we’ve got used to, yet without knowing all the consequences plastic waste leads to. Only a minimum quantity of plastic gets to be recycled, but the rest of it risks ending up in water, polluting our seas and oceans to unbearable points. But change starts from our own everyday choices: every little gesture can help saving the Planet. Getting to the zero waste level it’s possible: with some tricks and much love for the environment it can be done!
This is why our first suggestion is: to choose dispensers instead of single-doses containers. Big or small, colorful or neutral, simple or with bizarre forms… it’s a unique and original way to customize the guests’ bathroom. But most of all, dispensers can be easily recharged and be used for all the toiletries you want to provide.
2. Pick ecological and natural detergents or toiletries
Of course, not only should be dispensers be eco-friendly, but the toiletries themselves should! And so our second tip is to use an eco-friendly soap. Non-sustainable soaps might contain dangerous substances for our health and for the environment’s one. Antibacterials or synthetic materials, once in the drains, do not only damage the water used for agriculture but also end up in the ocean, ruining the ocean and its habitats.
Natural soaps with shea butter, oils and some fragrance are instead the perfect solution both for you and for your guests – but, most of all, for the environment! Many of them are also DIY – why don’t you try these ones? This is without a doubt one way to make your guests’ stay even more unique.
There are many realities in Italy, as the one of Officina Naturae, producing ecological and natural soaps and cosmetics. If you would rather sustain your local economy when choosing the toiletries, you could look for producers from your region, sparing money and CO2 emissions for transport. Your guests will surely be glad to get to know local producers and the territory in an even more authentic way.
3. Do not forget to let your guests know all about it
Your green choice on eco-friendly toiletries is important and therefore must be valued as such. Whether you manage a small B&B or a big hotel, you should always remember to communicate it to your guests! Sustainability is a great added value and those who choose your structure will recognize it. Tell them where these products come from, which are their properties and benefits of the ingredients.
You can also prepare a customized card for these toiletries, so that they can find it in the room and read it in tranquility. Don’t forget to write in on your website as well!
And you? Do you have any other secret for you eco-friendly toiletries to provide your guests with?
Featured image: photo by Aaron Greenwood on Unsplash