One trendy thing for brands is to give customers the occasion to recycle their products when possible. The latest ones I have observed were H&M and their Bring it on campaign and C&A with their Cradle to Cradle process, allowing their clients to exchange old clothes against a reduction voucher.
I was also aware of the same type of practice with Lush cosmetic products, with the idea to bring back to the shops the big black pots that can be cleaned and reused again.
So when the lady in Body Shop in Switzerland offered to me this recycling loyalty card, I was obviously very happy. The card is valid in all Swiss shops, and invites you to recycle all the empty products you have (except make-up items), and by the time you reach the tenth one, you will be offered a shower gel.
I have been a Body Shop customer for a while, and thus mainly because the creams and products I find there are the ones my skin tolerates best. I have already been happy to avoid products full of chemicals, but I haven't been at the same time brave enough to investigate the existing range of brands that are vegan/cruelty-free/chemical-free etc...although I am sure there are many around.
I haven't looked into doing products on my own either. The only time I actually put food in my hair, it was tomato sauce, with the hope to remove the green of a badly fading hair coloration (from a brand using a fair amount of chemicals...). I kept the green tips a few more weeks until it finally faded away for good, on its own.
So such a card is a great thing for me, and I hope the message will be shared around so that more customers bring their empty pots along.
PS/Nothing can be all perfect: as I was putting back the card in my wallet, I found the little sample of cream they gave me to test a new lotion. It's in plastic. Oh well, it will be perfect for my travel kit...