Manchester skincare and haircare brand grüum launches range of wash bags made from ocean-bound plastic

The loop Wash Bag, which is available in three colours, is ethically sourced and 100% vegan.

Each bag is made from 100% recycled plastic pellets derived from ocean-bound plastic – such as plastic bottles, plastic fishing nets and flip flops – that has been rescued from the seas or intercepted before it reached the shoreline. Each contains the equivalent of up to 12 plastic bottles. 

The new range comes as non-profit organisation Plastic Oceans estimates that 10 million tonnes of plastic is dumped into our oceans every year, the equivalent of a truck-load every minute.

Sustainability is a key principle at grüum, which was launched by four friends from Manchester in 2016 and has doubled sales in the last year and grown to 20 staff.

Co-founder Andy Shaw said: “Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. From our ever expanding range of zero-plastic products to our packaging choices, it’s really important to us.”

Originally starting out as a shaving brand, grüum has now expanded into skincare, haircare and suncare products that, in its words, are “kind to skin and our planet”. 

Inspired by Scandinavian ideals, all grüum’s products – which are mostly manufactured in England – are free from chemical “nasties”, the company said, and packed with natural ingredients.

Shaw said he and his co-founders – Simon Leonard, Beth Sleigh and George Lagonikas – had given up their jobs and launched the company in a bid to challenge the status quo in the beauty industry.  

He added: “We only want to create products that serve a real purpose, with no gimmicks or labels. Sustainability and inclusivity are core pillars of everything we do, so we don’t make things ‘for him’ or ‘for her’; we make them for everyone, with one fair price for all.”

Media contact

Andy Shaw