People. Planet. Profit.
Let’s get down to business.

Paul and Ewelina came up with the concept for Sustainable Salons while on a very long drive around Australia – which, by the way, took 4 months and $7000 in petrol! They both still swear it’s the best adventure we've ever had.

Paul & Ewelina created a plan to study the waste bins of 160 salons in the hope that we'd find the answer we needed lying in their rubbish. From our research, it was discovered that Australian hairdressers send one million kilos of aluminium foils to landfill every year.

This research was the catalyst to start Refoil, the industry's first sustainably-minded foiling concept and recycled foil product, right from Paul’s dad's garage! But their commitment to making salon waste history was only just beginning…

In 2015, Sustainable Salons, an innovative resource recovery program was launched. Designed especially for the salon environment, we collect up to 95% of the salon’s bin and repurpose it for environmental and community benefit while rewarding the salon.

Since 2015, we have been turning waste into food, donating 100% of our proceeds from recycling salon materials to OzHarvest & KiwiHarvest. These proceeds help divert tonnes of food waste from landfill and feed the hungry. So far, we've donated over 255,840 meals and counting!

By 2017, Sustainable Salons had reached metropolitan VIC, QLD & SA, with WA joining in 2018!

In 2017, we started working with University of Technology Sydney on the Hair Boom Project. The research found that 1kg of hair can remove 840g of spilled oil from seawater. We continued our research into hair and how it can be used for compost, solar, and more…

In 2018, we went international, expanding our program to New Zealand, with major hubs Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch all serviceable by our program.

In December 2018, Ewelina was chosen to be one of eight women featured in the Harper’s Bazaar Woman of the Year Collection, highlighting women who have placed themselves on the frontline of environmental defence.

We partnered with Dresden Vision to create the world’s first glasses made from plastic shampoo bottles collected from our Australian and New Zealand members. We have continued to work with local manufacturers to make a range of circular products in Australia, including coasters, pet leashes, combs, and more products from Sustainable Salons plastics!

Our ponytail donation program took off, and we now donate the most ponytails to charities & independent wigmakers to be made into charitable wigs.

We are focused on bringing more and more consumers to the green side with our Salon Directory. Many conscious consumers visit our directory each month, we're bringing new clients through our members' doors.

In 2020, we started expanding our program to reach regional & remote areas of Australia, starting with regional NSW (even Broken Hill!) In 2022, we now service salons from Cairns down to Tasmania and across to remote WA!

On July 30th, 2021, a tanker rolled on the Great Northern Highway in remote Western Australia, spilling 28,000L of used oil into the environment. This oil spill reached Kirkalocka Station, located 500km from Perth, spreading through their creek system.

Working with Blair Allan, the green warrior leading the charge at Kirkalocka Station, we shipped 1,000 Hair Booms to Kirkalocka. These hair booms included over 1,200 kilograms of hair clippings collected from our Sustainable Salons members.

We now work with six depots across Australia and New Zealand, with over 50% of our workforce made up of supported employees (people with disabilities). We work with organisations that are ‘for purpose’ and dedicated to helping people with disabilities live fulfilling lives.

With the catalyst of COVID-19, we are on a mission to transform into a digital-first customer-centric organisation. One of our projects was the launch of the Sustainable Salons app for our on-demand service. As our team grows, we are continuing to find new innovative ways to #makesustainabilityreality.

In 2022, we expanded our program to regional New Zealand, now servicing salons across the entire country.

Our goal has always been to work in rhythm with our members and their customers - to create a better, more sustainable future together. This was the guiding principle behind our brand refresh in 2023. The refresh reflects our values and mission, emphasising the importance of people, planet and profit.  By reimagining our imagery and language, we sought to promote inclusivity and accessibility. Additionally, we improved our website functionality and introduced a new e-commerce platform for members.