Hot on the High Street: Winter at The Body Shop

Let’s face it, we can’t ignore the closeness of December any longer. But one thing that is bound to brighten up the winter months is a cheerful beauty advent calendar. They are certainly hard to resist. There are provisos, however – we want items that we’ll really use, and packaging that is absolutely recyclable and reusable. The Body Shop is stepping up to the challenge with their trio of calendar choices.

Boxes of Wishes Advent Calendar (€85)

While this is the smallest of the calenders, it offers 24 treats, from face masks to beauty tools. You’ll find everything in here from Mini Mango Body Butter (which features the brand’s Community Fair Trade mango seed oil, supporting partners in India) and the Vitamin C Sheet Mask. There are plenty of delicious scents and ingredients here, from pink grapefruit to tea tree and almond milk. A great way to sample a wide range of skin and body care, and a guaranteed hit gift. 

The Box of Wonders Big Advent Calendar (€140)

This wonderful box features daily surprises worth over €230, including the delicious Avocado Body Scrub, and Shea Hand Balm (made with Community Fair Trade shea butter from Ghana).

The Box of Wishes & Wonders Ultimate Advent Calendar (€200)

This calendar is worth over €300 and features star items from the Sleep Pillow Mist to the new Edelweiss Sheet Mask and cult bestseller, Shea Body Butter.  

Fair Play 

Each Advent Calendar celebrates The Body Shop’s Community Fair Trade partners. Community Fair Trade is The Body Shop’s programme that helps its small-hold producers gain market access and invest in projects that benefit their communities. And over the festive period, The Body Shop will donate a minimum of £500,000 (up to £1,000,000) to organisations across the globe that lend young people a helping hand in getting a bigger voice; this year’s Body Shop activism campaign, Be Seen. Be Heard, aims to amplify young voices in the halls of power.  

 
Sustainability remains a key focus for The Body Shop, a certified B Corp. These three pop-up boxes of tricks are sturdy and reusable – you can refill them next year. The pop-ups themselves can be upcycled as gifts tags, decorations and more (head to www.thebodyshop.com for repurposing ideas). The design of the Big and Ultimate calendars, with their drawers, make them ideal for storing jewellery etc, so you can reuse them long after Christmas. 

You can now refill shampoos, conditioners, handwash, shower creams and more at the flagship store on Grafton Street, from €7; this scheme is rolling out globally. Look out too for the in-store recycling scheme, Return, Recycle and Repeat. There’s even a gift-wrap station where you can have your purchases wrapped using sustainable packaging. 

Aiming to be a globally recognised leader in sustainability within the beauty industry, The Body Shop plans to be a wholly vegan brand by the end of 2023, with all product formulas certified by The Vegan Society.