We’re full steam ahead with our Sustainable Holidays theme here at Botnia, and part of that means we’re looking at new ways we can reduce our impact on Mother Earth. Each holiday, we choose a theme for the season that inspires the work that we do at Botnia HQ. When you’re thinking about gifts under the tree this year, we want Botnia to be one less box you have to feel bad about! Read on to find out how Botnia is keeping it sustainable this year!

Sustainable options

Are you using refillable skincare? Start creating good habits for the new year and look for brands that offer refill options! Right now, we’re offering our face washes and toners in aluminum refillables to purchase. Want more to love? All our refills have a little more product than their original counterparts, as a little bonus for choosing them! It’s our thank you for being a conscious consumer. 

We’re excited to share that this collection is growing! In December, we’ll be launching a new refillable you won’t want to miss. (Hint hint: It’s in our top 5 bestseller list! We can’t wait to share!)

Our hope is that you buy only one of our beautiful milk glass bottles and refill them time and time again with our recyclable aluminum refills. 

Shop our refillable collection here.

Sustainable packaging

With gifting season comes packaging problems and more waste. Our shipping specialist and Chief Elf Jonathan has been sourcing the most sustainable shipping materials available. With the mindset of sustainability, the four things we look for are: recycled, recyclable, biodegradable, and renewable. All of our boxes and wrapping materials are recyclable or post-consumer recycled material. Our packing peanuts are made out of vegetable starch and are biodegradable in water. (Super fun for the kiddos!) We’re switching to labels that are made from paper or recycled paper with a recyclable liner. And our printed shipping labels are made from virgin paper with a release liner that is 100% recycled. 

The biggest hurdle has been finding shipping tape that fits our requirements. The best we’ve found so far is a kraft paper tape from Package Free Shop. While we LOVE using this tape, unfortunately, it’s not sold in bulk (yet), but it’s a great option for smaller businesses that ship on a smaller scale.

A great runner-up is water-activated tape from Ecoenclose that is curbside recyclable. What does that mean? Curbside-friendly products can be recycled right away and promote a circular economy. It fits all the criteria for sustainability and we use this tape as much as we can! We use this for our smaller orders. Because this tape doesn’t have fibers to reinforce it, we’ve found it doesn’t hold up well for packages over 10 lbs. 

If you’re looking to shop for sustainable shipping materials, we highly suggest shopping locally if you can, or supporting these amazing businesses:

Ecoenclose – Eco-Friendly packaging and shipping supplies

Package Free Shop – 100% zero-waste packaging and shipping

No Issue – Provide makers, brands, and businesses of all sizes access to custom, sustainable packaging.

If you have any tape suggestions, send them over! Anything is better than 3M tape.

Shop small, shop local

We’re big on shopping small! Small businesses have been hit the hardest during the pandemic and we’ve definitely seen it with our spa partners too. This year, we encourage you to shop locally. When you support locals, you’re putting money straight back into your community with your fellow neighbors. Stay tuned for our holiday gift guide dropping on the blog on 12/3!

Sign up for our newsletter to be the first to get exclusive need-to-have codes for holiday shopping, *wink wink* our latest product launches, and all updates about our mission to become a more sustainable company. 

Xo,
Botnia Team