Eco-conscious laundry products play a critical role in addressing both the longevity of our clothing and the growing fast fashion crisis. Charlee Singleton chats to The Lab Co. founder, Josh Gilbertson, to discuss how eco-friendly cleaning products are helping consumers approach fashion sustainably.
By now, many of us are becoming aware of how detrimental fast fashion is to our planet. It’s estimated that 85% of all textiles are thrown into landfills—many of which have never even been used. Synthetic fibres, used in over 60% of global apparel, further exacerbate the issue, as they release harmful microparticles into our planet while taking 80 to 800 times longer to decompose than their natural fibre equivalents.
“In the last 15 years the number of times an item of clothing has been worn before being discarded has fallen by 36%.”
Clothing production levels have increased significantly over the past few decades with 100 billion new garments produced each year around the globe. Shockingly, between 15 and 45 billion of these garments will never find a buyer in the first place. And for those that do get purchased, 60% will be discarded within just a year of production – partly due to ever changing trends and our throwaway culture, but also due to low quality and lack of consumer knowledge when it comes to caring for and repairing our garments.
In the last 15 years the number of times an item of clothing has been worn before being discarded has fallen by 36%. An average item of clothing should last between 100-200 wears, though most are thrown out before then, with an average lifespan of just over three years.
The Lab Co. is on a mission to change these statistics and get us to fall back in love with caring for our garments – for ourselves, our families, our wardrobes, and our planet. After all, using clothes for an extra nine months would save £5 billion in resources and reduce carbon, water, and waste footprints by 20 to 30%.
The Lab Co – ‘It’s like skincare for fashion’
Founded in 2020 during the pandemic, The Lab Co. (TLC) embarked on a mission to revolutionise the eco-living category, addressing waste and promoting the longevity of garments and household items. Initially part of the Selfridges Planet Earth project, TLC’s vision extends beyond luxury to create a bridge between everyday affordability and high-end performance through the powers of natural, plant-derived and biodegradable ingredients.
“We focused on creating high-performance and specialist care products that were better for people, using clean ingredients that were safe on skin and did not harm the environment. We also wanted our products to be joyful to use, with elevated fragrances that enhanced performance,” says Gilbertson.
“We discovered that many market solutions were chemically laden, with generic fragrances and excessive plastic use. We wanted to be the opposite. Our brand evolved to help people take better care of their items and homes with high-performance, clean-ingredient, luxury well-being-focused fragranced products that reduce waste, make garments last longer, and use zero plastic packaging with concentrated liquids. Ultimately, we wanted people to love the art and science of caring for their items, homes, themselves, and the planet.”
“The Lab Co. (TLC) aims to bridge the gap between every day and luxury affordability, focusing on wellness and eco-innovative products. Interestingly, according to Nielsen’s 2023 survey, 72% of consumers desire high-quality, luxurious, and eco-friendly home, laundry, and body care products, with 65% wanting luxury combined with everyday usability and environmental responsibility (McKinsey & Company 2023).”
“We use high-performing, clean ingredients and exquisitely fragranced products to scientifically craft formulations that deliver powerful results, transforming home care into a luxurious experience. TLC for you, your home, and the planet.”
Love your laundry
Traditional laundry detergents often contain harsh chemicals that can be detrimental to the delicate fibres of garments, causing them to wear out more quickly. This accelerated wear and tear leads to a cycle where clothes lose their quality and aesthetic appeal faster, prompting consumers to replace them more frequently. These nasty chemicals, such as surfactants and phosphates also pollute our water systems, and in the case of phosphates, can prevent algae from growing, depleting oxygen and starving fish.
Many people don’t realise that these chemicals are also dangerous to humans, as they release toxins that stay on your clothes, which are them absorbed into your skin when you sweat, leading to skin irritation.
“Ultimately, we wanted people to love the art and science of caring for their items, homes, themselves, and the planet.”
By contrast, the laundry products offered by The Lab Co. are formulated with gentle, plant-based ingredients that clean effectively without compromising fabric integrity. The nasty toxins, enzymes, parabens and silicones typically found in household laundry products have been stripped away, leaving natural plant and mineral derived ingredients which achieve powerful cleaning whilst ensuring that garments maintain their colour, texture, and strength for longer. As the ingredients are sourced from nature they naturally biodegrade, dissolving in our waterways and are kinder to our skin.
“We formulate our products with form in mind. By working with our expert chemists and perfumers, we have extensive knowledge of natural and clean ingredients, their purposes, and how to create formulations that care for specific fabrics.”
“From moth-repellent cedarwood that protects natural fibres like wool and cashmere to odour-neutralizing eucalyptus found in our Energising Fabric & Room Sprays, we harness the power of science-led technology to produce clean yet beautifully fragranced products.”
With approximately 25% of a garment’s carbon footprint comes from the way we wash and care for our clothing, it’s not just the ingredients that matter. Eco-laundry products tend to be more concentrated that their traditional counterparts, cutting down on packaging and allowing for more use out of less product.
People tend to overestimate how much product they need, but with laundry strips the ingredients are pre-measured, leading to less mess, less overuse and overall, less packaging in the long run. This means a lower environmental impact compared to conventional laundry products.
For those clothes that aren’t quite ready for a full wash, fabric fresheners are a great alternative to over-washing your clothes with unnecessary loads.
“TLC’s Fabric & Room Spray range utilises our core mood-boosting fragrances that elevate living spaces. They not only freshen fabrics and environments but also have natural anti-odour and antibacterial properties. This means they can help freshen items between washes and our rooms and upholstery! We like to help people lower the number of times they machine wash items, as frequent washing can degrade them.”
“Our Fabric & Room Sprays have zero parabens and zero SLS, and we ensured all ingredients are pet safe. The base formulation uses the natural disinfectant properties of isopropanol alcohol, which has been used for centuries to disinfect fibres and fabrics without causing any harm to them or those who touch and wear them.”
“We use our beautiful array of fragrances with essential oils and a natural anti-odourising ingredient known as the zinc salt of ricinoleic acid, a major fatty acid found in castor seed oil obtained from the seeds of the Ricinus communis plant. This clever ingredient absorbs odour molecules, naturally eliminating and neutralising them.”
“Nature’s cupboard is bountiful and beautiful, and it has been a joy to work with these ingredients.”
Happy home
Home hygiene is a central concern for most of us, with the search for a cleaner, greener home leading consumers to seek eco-friendly, high-performance cleaning products. The sustainable packaging and biodegradable ingredients used in TLC’s laundry range also extend to their home care products.
“We had a list of all the chemicals found in many household products that we absolutely did not want. We started by stripping those out to begin with a clean slate. For example, our All-Purpose Cleaners are chlorine-free, ammonia-free, and have zero parabens, phosphates, and silicones.”
“Our Fabric & Room Sprays also have zero parabens and zero SLS, and our washing-up liquid has no BPA or DEA. The list of what normally gets included in these types of products is extensive and shocking.”
“Once we cleaned the base formulations, we could work on achieving high performance with natural plant and mineral-derived ingredients such as citric acid, which is commonly found in citrus fruits but is industrially produced via the fermentation process of the Aspergillus niger fungus and sodium chloride (salt), which is a natural ingredient. We use natural antibacterial and bacteriostatic agents like lactic acid, which is mostly produced by a fermentation process using cornstarch or beet sugar, meaning it can be used in vegan products. Our fragrances include essential oils such as chamomile, eucalyptus, jasmine, lavender, lime, and peppermint, to name a few. We select each oil to create our stunning bespoke scents and in consideration of its properties for care and wellbeing. Nature’s cupboard is bountiful and beautiful, and it has been a joy to work with these ingredients.”
