Treatwell, Europe’s Leading Online Booking Platform, Starts Its Climate Action Program For A More Sustainable Beauty Industry

ForbesWomen Treatwell, Europe’s Leading Online Booking Platform, Starts Its Climate Action Program For A More Sustainable Beauty Industry Marija Butkovic Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. I write about health tech, women’s health and female entrepreneurship. Following New! Follow this author to stay notified about their latest stories.

Got it! Oct 17, 2022, 03:00am EDT | New! Click on the conversation bubble to join the conversation Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Treatwell is the European leader in online booking of beauty and wellness services Treatwell Recognizing the impact that the beauty industry has on the planet, Treatwell , the European leader in online booking of beauty and wellness services, today announces its new three-step sustainability commitment to play its part in the fight against climate change. As Europe’s leading marketplace and SaaS dedicated to the beauty and wellness world, Treatwell enables its users to book their beauty appointments in just a few clicks and at any time, and hairdressers, beauticians, and personal care professionals can manage their salon activities thanks to a digital diary and cloud-based management software. The company currently employs more than 750 people and has a widespread presence in 13 European countries where it manages around 100 million appointments each year and provides management software to more than 45,000 partner salons.

In partnership with the South Pole , the world’s leading climate solutions provider and carbon project developer, Treatwell’s long-term program starts with offsetting 1kg of CO₂ through high-quality carbon credits on behalf of their users per each online booking made via the App or the website as of October 17th, 2022, onwards. The three-step approach will engage with salon partners through educational activities to adopt sustainable practices and will also involve taking company-level actions to decarbonize Treatwell’s own operations, with the aim of offsetting at least 1/5 of the estimated carbon footprint of the treatments Treatwell users book online. South Pole, recognized by the World Economic Forum as a Social Enterprise, has been at the forefront of decarbonization since 2006.

With its global climate solutions platform, the company develops and implements comprehensive strategies that turn climate action into long-term business opportunities for companies, governments, and organizations around the world, and has provided nearly 1,000 projects in over 50 countries with climate finance to reduce over a gigaton of CO₂ emissions, and to provide social benefits to less privileged communities who are particularly vulnerable to climate change. On average, a beauty treatment accounts for roughly 5kg of CO₂ emissions released into the . .

. [+] atmosphere Treatwell MORE FOR YOU Patrick Byrne Of Overstock Fame Says He Was Involved In Monthslong Effort To Overturn 2020 Election How Italy Is Reviving Its Once-Famed Spa Town Of Porretta Terme CFOs, Are You Prepared To Respond Effectively To Compensation Conversations? But let’s explain first the size of the real problem here and why is this important. There is so much carbon emitted throughout the production of beauty products today, that we are not even aware of it.

The process already starts before we even start manufacturing the product itself, and continues through putting all components of the product together, including packaging, and shipping it to the end consumer. Every single beauty product you and I have ever used has contributed to the rise of global greenhouse gas emissions. Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels have significantly increased since 1900.

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, “since 1970, CO₂ emissions have increased by about 90% , with emissions from fossil fuel combustion and industrial processes contributing about 78% of the total greenhouse gas emissions increase from 1970 to 2011”. Agriculture, deforestation, and other land-use changes have been the second-largest contributors . The land itself can also remove CO₂ from the atmosphere through reforestation, improvement of soils, and other activities.

This is why the restoration of trees remains among the most effective strategies for climate change mitigation. It’s almost impossible to have a carbon-neutral beauty product because it would mean there was no release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Production of anything means you inevitably emit carbon dioxide, so that’s why removing it is so important – to at least reduce your carbon footprint, if not becoming completely carbon neutral (aiming to remove as much carbon dioxide as you put into it).

Apart from the carbon emissions, the beauty industry itself also creates more than 421,000 pounds of daily waste , including wastewater and packaging that ends up in a landfill. That’s over two million pounds a week. On average, a beauty treatment accounts for roughly 5kg of CO₂ emissions released into the atmosphere.

These estimates, provided by the South Pole, helped Treatwell start its climate journey and engage its users and salon partners toward more sustainable beauty experiences. Giampiero Marinò, CEO at Treatwell Treatwell “As a leading player of an industry where the impact on the planet, in terms of water, energy and waste is not negligible anymore, our commitment to take concrete action is our pledge to a sustainable future. We perceive this as a great responsibility and that is why we are happy to take this investment on behalf of our users and salon partners so that they can feel proud of being part of the change,” says Giampiero Marinò, CEO at Treatwell.

Treatwell’s journey to make the beauty experience more sustainable doesn’t stop at offsetting carbon emissions. In partnership with the South Pole, the company is founding its climate journey on three pillars: Firstly, they will engage their users, letting them know about the estimated CO₂ footprint of the treatments they are booking, while the company takes care of the offsetting of 1/5 of it. Secondly, they will engage their business partners, providing them with educational content on climate change, corporate sustainability, and Treatwell’s efforts to face those challenges.

They will also engage their whole company and internal stakeholders by measuring all their emission categories, as the first round of exercise in climate reporting. Scope 1 category will include the emissions such as fuel consumption for the production of heat, electricity, or steam and company vehicles, Scope 2 is ​​emissions from purchased electricity, steam, heat, and cooling while selected Scope 3 categories are other indirect emissions such as business travel and employee commuting. The compensation of emissions translates into the company’s purchase of high-quality carbon credits that will finance climate action through a sustainable development project.

By investing in South Pole’s Guinea Bissau REDD + project , Treatwell will not only contribute to actively mitigating CO2 emissions in the atmosphere but will also provide meaningful support to vulnerable communities, most impacted by the effects of climate change. For Treatwell as a company, South Pole will be calculating the operational carbon footprint across Treatwell offices in Europe. “This will bring the whole industry together in our ambitious plan to do more for the planet: from our users and own employees to beauty and wellness managers,” concludes Marinò.

Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn . Check out my website . Marija Butkovic Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions.