An Ulta employee stunned the internet by posting a video of herself destroying numerous products — many with seemingly minimal defects.
What happened?
TikToker Liana (@lianafromomegle) shared a clip revealing what happens to items that end up in the "damages" bin at the beauty retailer. In the post, she scrapes and cuts products including eyeshadow, foundation, serums, and hair dryer cords to ensure they can't be used.
@lianafromomegle Asmr: 3 minutes of ulta makeup destruction🙈#ultaemployee #ulta #makeupdestruction #ultadamages #asmr ♬ original sound - Liana
"Where's the damage?" one person asked.
"I'll never understand this," another said.
"The hairdryer and curling iron made me cry," a third commented.
At the end of the clip, the employee is seen closing a cardboard box that appears to be destined for another location.
Why is this concerning?
As the old saying goes, beauty comes with a price. In this instance, that cost appears to be an astounding amount of plastic waste that harms our planet and generates pollution that may even increase the need for those serums and moisturizers. Multiple studies have found that air pollution can exacerbate skin conditions, including psoriasis and acne.
Sadly, the waste seen in Liana's clip doesn't appear to be far from the norm for the sector. Zero Waste Week found that more than 120 billion units of cosmetics packaging were manufactured worldwide in 2018, as reported by Forbes.
Why would Ulta destroy these items?
Several TikTokers speculated that some of the damaged items were returns, meaning selling or donating them would be unhygienic.
On its website, the retailer states that it doesn't sell used, damaged, or expired products. However, even if the goods themselves were unsafe for others to use, it is unclear what happened to the containers. The Cool Down couldn't find any specific policies on recycling practices for the packaging of damaged goods.
Others were curious as to why the employee had to cut the electric cords.
"Cords can be easily fixed," one commenter pointed out.
While holding companies accountable for actions and policies is crucial, it's also fair to wonder if irresponsible consumer behavior may have played a role here. In a separate post, another Ulta employee urged shoppers to stop creating their own testers by opening products because it made those goods unfit for sale.
As for Ulta, its 2023 environmental, social, and governance report stated the retailer is making strides toward adopting more sustainable packaging and reducing waste. It says at least half of items sold in stores come in recyclable or refillable containers or are made from recycled or bio-sourced materials.
In March, Ulta also began a Beauty Dropoff initiative for hard-to-recycle packaging. Program partner Pact Collective then finds the best solution to give the materials second lives.
What can be done to reduce beauty industry waste more broadly?
Recycling your empty beauty products, whether it's through Ulta's program, similar Pact Collective dropoffs, or other options, can help keep polluting plastics out of our landfills.
Additionally, saying goodbye to single-use beauty products can save you money in the long run. A durable metal razor is one example of a plastic-free alternative with a much longer life, meaning you won't be frequently shelling out cash for easily worn-down products.
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