How to get the best from your bars
Switching to solid beauty bars may seem wild, but we promise, it’s easy! To help, we’ve made a quick how-to list for any first timers
Shampoo
A concentrated block of 100% naturally-derived ingredients equivalent to 3 bottles of liquid shampoo. These are soap free, pH balanced and foam just like your liquid one did.
How Do I Use It?
Wet your hair and the bar. Slide the bar from root to tip 3-4 times.
Put the bar down and lather shampoo into hair. It will foam!
Rinse and follow with conditioner if you need to.
Conditioner
These natural beauty blocks are magic! They’re highly concentrated, equivalent to 5 bottles of liquid conditioner.
How Do I Use It?
After shampooing, slide over the ends of your hair.
Put the bar down and massage the conditioner into your locks. Leave for 1-2 minutes.
It’ll feel super lightweight on your locks and even better once you rinse!
Foaming Cleanser
Our face cleansers (Bliss Bar & Deep Green) are perfectly blended to gently wash away impurities, leaving your skin feeling refreshed and ready to face the day.
How Do I Use It?
Wet the bar with warm water and rub between your hands to create a lather.
Apply to your face and massage in.
Rinse with warm water.
Oil Cleanser
(Superstar Cleansing Bar)
SuperStar is our answer to the oil cleansing balm craze. A solid block of butters and the magical ingredient castor oil, which easily removes makeup, leaving your face clean without feeling tight or dry.
How Do I Use It?
Wet one of the bars with warm water and rub between your hands to create a lotion in your palms.
Apply to your face, massaging it in where you want to concentrate the cleaning.
Rinse with warm water, or wipe with a wet face cloth.
Face Scrub
(Gingersnap Bar)
Small snaps of chocolate-looking goodness that exfoliate, buff and moisturise your skin in a mini facial.
How Do I Use It?
Break off a square, wet with warm water and massage the cube onto a shower-fresh face until some product is deposited on your skin.
Massage in once the sugar has dissolved and rinse.
Moisturiser Sticks
Formulated with delicious cocoa butter and babassu oil to create a solid body butter that is easy to use, supremely nourishing and fabulous for heels, elbows and anywhere else in need of a little extra TLC.
How Do I Use It?
Push up less than you think you will need – a little goes a long way!
Massage the product into your skin, focusing more on areas in need of a little extra TLC (such as elbows, knees and heels).
Face Scrub
Stay fresh and confident all day long, without baking soda or aluminium. Instead, our wonder ingredients keep sweat and smells away: magnesium hydroxide, zinc oxide and bamboo (which absorbs 200% its own weight in sweat and oil).
How Do I Use It?
Push up less than you think you will need – a little goes a long way!
Glide it on under your arms like a roll-on deodorant.
Replace lid. Reapply throughout the day as needed.
Average Shampoo Bottle vs. Ethique Shampoo Bar
Take a look at the ingredients listed on an Ethique shampoo bar. They’re made from the same ingredients that liquid, salon quality shampoos are made from. But unlike a bottled product, water isn’t the first one. We removed water and plastic bottles in favour of packaging functional ingredients in bar form. When only 0.3% of the water on earth is accessible or usable to us, why waste it when you’re already showering in water?
VS.
We’re here to put a bar in every shower and revolutionise the cosmetics industry
“I started Ethique out of frustration for the abhorrent amount of waste created by the cosmetics industry, and in particular, the amount of plastic and waste created by our bathroom essentials. I figured out that up to 95% of your bottle of conditioner is made up of water – which is just ridiculous considering you have water in your bathroom! I have always been deeply passionate about the environment and science and so I set about learning cosmetic chemistry (I was completing my Bachelor of Science at university at the time), and looked to formulate a solid shampoo. I figured that switching to a solid product would be the answer not only to the water waste issue, but also plastic waste”.
Ethique ingredients
We carefully select all of our ingredients to create bars that are safe for you, your family, pets and of course, the environment. Our ingredients must fit four criteria:
they must not have any health risks associated with their use*
they must be sustainably produced and biodegradable
they must be cruelty free and plant-based |
they must be free from palm oil and palm oil derivatives
Bars that pack a punch
Thanks to power-packed concentration, one clever little shampoo bar has the same hair cleaning capacity as three 350ml (11.83oz) bottles or more than a one litre (33.81oz) of salon quality liquid shampoo. Without water, you’re left with a super-concentrated bar packed with active ingredients. The bottle? Diluted. 70% of a typical bottle of shampoo is water. For conditioner, it’s around 90%.
Switching from bottle to bar also saves the water required to manufacture plastic – an average of 700ml demanded per 350ml bottle – and prevents it from clogging landfills and wreaking havoc in our oceans.
Super-concentration works for your wallet too. Add together the cost of buying three bottles of decent-ish shampoo from the supermarket, and it’s about equivalent to one Ethique bar.
Ethique is good for people and the planet
Everything we use is critically evaluated to minimise the impact we have on the environment. Our ingredients are sustainably produced, petrochemical & palm oil free and that’s non-negotiable.
Sustainably sourced ingredients (you will have probably heard the word renewable) are those that are harvested and then replaced at the same, or an even greater speed. We use only renewable ingredients and eliminate those that support industries driving the climate crisis, such as palm oil and animal agriculture. Our products are vegan, certified cruelty-free and guaranteed to be free from palm oil and its derivatives by the Orangutan Alliance.
In partnership with Offset Earth, we offset all our carbon emissions and are working towards climate positive status. So far, we’ve supported projects like landfill gas capture in Thailand, solar power in India and Mangrove planting in Madagascar.
Being petrochemical free means we don’t use ingredients derived from petroleum, such as mineral oil. Purple shampoo used to tone blonde hair is an example, where purple colourants used are typically derived from coal tar and thus sourced unsustainably. We prove the efficacy of alternatives with our Tone It Down range, using beetroot extract instead of petrochemical-derived dyes.
Direct Trading
At Ethique we advocate for direct trade. Direct trade is like fair trade, but instead of working through an intermediary, we hold these relationships ourselves so we can be truly confident that the prices we pay are fair and the communities working conditions safe. We strongly believe in paying a fair price for great products and partnerships with suppliers who share our commitment for environmental protection.
Local growers deserve stable prices, reliable income and good working conditions. This gives families stability to plan for their future, send their children to school and hire local people in their businesses.
Fairness and respect for people fosters the same considerations for the environment. In developing countries, when people are desperate to feed their families, sustainability isn’t a priority. Fair wages enable people to think long-term about minimising waste, utilising raw materials and ensuring low-to-no environmental harm.
Women in Business Development (WiBD), our coconut oil supplier, proves the benefit of direct trade relationships. This group of passionate women are dedicated to improving the lives of Samoans through strengthening village economies and promoting fair trade by bringing modern technology to indigenous traditions. Their product garners a fair price that is then distributed through the communities that need it.
More than environmental sustainability
To us, sustainability encompasses every aspect of what we do and that includes financial sustainability. It means caring for people, the planet – and staying in business while we’re at it. We weigh the pros and cons to uncover the kindest, most sustainable option, and only then find a way to make it profitable.
Paying a living wage rather than the minimum has been a huge part of that from day one and Ethique is proudly certified by Living Wage Aotearoa. We build value with values that we won’t compromise on – staff being paid fairly and treated well as a prime example. These values are fundamental to business success and research proves it. Earning a Living Wage improves morale and productivity, whilst reducing mental health issues and absenteeism.
As Team Ethique, we’re motivated to achieve something that’s bigger than ourselves. We come to work each day to create a positive impact for our environment and those we share it with.