Editor's note: While MAC is still accepting used beauty products for recycling in its "Back-To-MAC" program, the company stopped offering incentives in 2023.
If MAC is your brand, you know how easy it is to break the bank with its quality cosmetics. Fortunately, there's an easy way to get bonus products after a purchase — and it all comes down to recycling.
@ashleybrignolle I wish more makeup companies did this! @maccosmetics #fyp #nycmua #makeuphacks #recycle #makeupartist #mua ♬ original sound - ashleybrignolle
The scoop
When most people think of recycling, they think of metal cans and glass jars being melted down into completely different products. But there are other options — such as cleaning and reusing empty containers without breaking them down first.
This is what MAC does with its "Back-To-MAC" program. TikToker @ashleybrignolle explains the process in a recent video.
"If you save up to six canisters," she says while showing off a collection of empty MAC containers, "everything excluding pens and pencils, you're eligible for a free lipstick or gloss!"
MAC's website confirms the deal and adds that members of its loyalty program have an even larger selection of free products, including eyeshadow. Participants can turn in their empty packaging in-store or by mail.
🗣️ Which eco-friendly initiative would make you most likely to buy products from a clean beauty brand?
🔘 Using less plastic packaging 🗑️
🔘 Using more organic ingredients 🌿
🔘 Recycling empty containers 🫙
🔘 I don't buy clean beauty products 🚫
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
How it's helping
For those who use MAC makeup frequently, the program solves two problems.
First, it delivers free products to help save money. Second, it provides a safe, eco-friendly way to get rid of empty makeup canisters.
Normally, these are hard to recycle because they're made of two or more materials and would be very likely to end up in a landfill. But with Back-To-MAC, you can be sure each item will be reused, cutting down your environmental impact.
"I wish more makeup companies did this!" the TikToker writes.
And she's onto something — more and more companies are embracing "circular packaging," the practice of designing packaging to be reused or recycled instead of thrown away. It's a significant step toward cutting down the waste that enters our environment.
What everyone's saying
Other TikTokers are also getting in on the program, posting their experiences under the "#backtomac" and "#back2mac" hashtags.
But if you want to join in, your time is limited. MAC recently announced that it'll be discontinuing the program after March 2023, meaning this is the last opportunity to get a free lipstick. Even so, the company will continue accepting returns of empty packaging.
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