Whether it’s a craving for simplicity or increasing environmental awareness, we seem to be heading back to the bar when it comes to our haircare.
UK consumer research by Kantar showed a 4% jump in solid soap sales in 2019, with Brits spending close to £70 million on bar formats. An intention to reduce plastic waste was cited as a reason to break up with the bottle – with 70% per cent of respondents saying that shopping more sustainably was a major consideration.
And more people – across a wide range of hair types – are championing haircare bars as great for hair as well as being good for the environment. So here are the 5 big benefits of haircare bars.
No plastic packaging
Here’s a scary fact: humans make 260 million tonnes of plastic every single year. As much of that plastic can’t be or isn’t recycled, it’s no surprise that plastic pollution has become one of the 21st century’s biggest environmental challenges. As consumers become more conscious of how their purchases impact the planet, switching to haircare bars is a simple change to reduce household waste.
Gentle ingredients
Quality shampoo bars are soap free, have a balanced (slightly acidic) pH, and leave out some of the harshest detergents used in mainstream liquid shampoos, such as sodium lauryl sulphate. These go beyond cleansing, and can strip the scalp’s natural oils, leaving it and hair dry and frizzy. Gentle solid shampoos will still get hair clean, but leave it feeling soft. Once hair adjusts to the product switch, many people find they need less conditioner after using a shampoo bar.
Easy to use
Although the technique is a little different to using liquid shampoos and conditioners, once you get used to washing your hair with haircare bars, they’re as easy to use as a bar of soap. And there’s no fiddling with a tricky bottle in the shower.
Travel friendly
Remember when we used to be able to travel? Well, we will again, and it’s good to be prepared, with solid haircare products that are light, portable and non-breakable. If you’re flying carry on only (a good idea for many reasons) solid haircare bars won’t use up any of your liquids allowance.
They go on, and on
Shampoo and conditioner bars tend to last longer than bottles, so you can go longer between restocking. Because the cleansing and nourishing ingredients in the ecostore range of shampoo and conditioner bars are super concentrated, you’ll get around 60 washes from one bar (depending on how you use them). And you may find that because they won’t strip your hair’s natural oils, they won’t cause your scalp to overreact by producing more oil. And you won’t need to wash quite as often.
Are you ready to break up with your shampoo bottle and try a bar? Some people will always prefer to use liquid products, but if you’re curious about haircare bars, it seems now is an excellent time to try them for yourself. Because, like most things in life, it’s good to have a ‘solid’ range of options.
