LUSH LIFE
I took a tour of the UK’s biggest bath bomb factory – and it completely changed how I feel about the brand
I even discovered how its signature bath bombs are made
BEFORE I visited the Lush factory, I only ever associated the brand with glitter and strong fragrances.
Sure, I’d been loyal to some of its products over the years, but I never thought of Lush as anything more than a fun, novelty bath bomb brand - how wrong I was!
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I was lucky enough to take a tour of the factory's three main buildings at its site in Poole, Dorset.
And when I left, it had totally changed my perspective on the brand.
From bizarre testing processes to the truth about those signature "Made by" batch stickers, I experienced all of Lush’s inner workings.
Here’s everything I've learned...
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THE BALLISTICS FACTORY
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As a beauty journalist, I didn’t think I’d ever visit a ballistics factory - AKA where ammunition is made.
However, this lavender-scented, party-music-playing factory - which creates bombs that will only explode in your bathtub - is unlike any other armoury.
Here, Lush blends, constructs and bedazzles nearly 12 million bath bombs a year.
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Lush Twilight Bath Bomb, £5 -
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The bath bomb making begins by blending bicarbonate of soda with natural dye, popping candy, and plastic-free glitter.
The bicarb mixture is then combined with citric acid, which thickens it, before being scooped and packed into moulds, which are created and recycled onsite.
After trying my hand at assembling bath bombs, I discovered that it is, in fact, much harder than it looks - especially when completed at any sort of speed.
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Inside the ballistics factory, each pressing table works on a different type of bath bomb.
As I wandered through, I watched in awe as sky-blue bath bombs were adorned with clouds, while black roses were doused in glitter, and rainbow mixture tossed into moulds like a layer cake.
While I loved learning about how best to apply glitter, and how to ensure your bath bomb creates perfect fizz, the most interesting part was learning about Lush's very unusual testing process.
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Lush Atom Heart Mother Bath Bomb, £5.50 -
Each day, the most senior staff member on shift will randomly select products to quality check. Then, they'll fill up an (actual) bath, toss in the bomb and watch what happens.
Points are scored for the quality of its fizz, colour and "bath art", which is the pattern the product makes in your bath water.
It's very simple - if the bomb doesn’t pass the test, the product won’t go out to stores.
THE FRESH KITCHEN
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From eye pads to face masks, all of Lush’s "Fresh" products are blended, potted and packed by hand in the Fresh Kitchen.
In true Lush style, this building has a very memorable smell - much like a greengrocer's, thanks to its handling of fresh ingredients.
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Lush Rosy Cheeks Face Mask, £10 -
From blueberries to ground coffee, Lush sources ingredients from local businesses and nearby suppliers to build relationships and minimise carbon emissions.
These ingredients are blended into beauty products, packed and potted by hand, and then transported overnight so that they're on Lush store shelves by the next morning.
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On every packaged Lush product, you’ll find the brand's signature "Batch" stickers.
Social media has recently blown up with discussions on whether the cameos featured on these stickers are actually real people.
And I can confirm that they are.
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Lush Dream Cream Body Lotion, £6 -
These stickers depict the product's compounder - or, in other words, the person who blended the product.
In the Fresh Kitchen, you’ll find one of these sticker makers, which staff can use to stick their face on their handiwork.
THE GREEN HUB
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In 2015, Lush opened its Green Hub, which can only be described as a bit of a jumble sale.
Aisles of shelves stacked high with banners, Christmas trees and dilapidated furniture line this warehouse.
But this isn’t any old dumping ground.
The Green Hub recycles, remoulds and reassembles all of Lush’s unwanted paraphernalia, meaning nothing ends up in a skip.
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Lush Yummy Custard Body Wash, £9 -
You could probably spend a whole day gazing up at these towering shelves, but I was distracted by the sound of the hub’s granulators, which are lovingly named Gary and Gloria.
These machines shred Lush’s signature black tubs, alongside other plastics, into tiny pellets so that they can be remoulded and repurposed.
Among other uses, the hub transforms this plastic into up to 100,000 new bath bomb moulds during every single shift.
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Nearby are the dissolved air-flotation tanks, where the factory's waste water is filtered before being reintroduced into the water system.
Since the Green Hub opened, it's processed over 400,000 litres of waste water, and frankly, it’s a good job they have, with all that bath bomb testing that goes on.
THE LAUNDRY ROOM
The final area I visited was the laundry room, where uniforms and towels from Lush’s spa locations across the country are washed in bulk.
These freshly laundered items then hitch a ride with the same lorries that deliver lotions and bath bombs to these locations - meaning the laundry run isn’t guilty of causing any extra nasties to be emitted into the air.
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Lush Cookie Dough Lip Scrub, £7 -
By the time my tour had finished, I was not only left smelling "lush", but I also had a newfound respect for the brand.
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As a beauty writer, I’m forever hearing from brands who claim to be eco-conscious but have very little to back it up - thankfully, Lush isn’t one of those.
From recycling glittery bath water to giving an old chair a second life, Lush carefully considers each step of its production process. And that's enough to give me that fizzing feeling.
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