Inside Lush’s factory, where they make 40m bath bombs a year, use 1 tonne of blueberries & the smell makes you sneeze
THE first thing that hits you as you enter Lush’s bath bomb factory is the smell.
And forget what you have experienced walking into one of the British brand’s 919 worldwide stores, this is on a whole other scale.
Some of us immediately sneeze at the bubblegum aroma and one person needs to wear a mask.
Fabulous was invited to go behind the scenes at the Poole-based headquarters to see what really goes into Lush’s quirky products.
And of course checking out how bath bombs are made was top of our list.
“Lush made 40million bath bombs worldwide in 2021”, says manager Aiste, “and most of production is by hand.”
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Over 500 workers are dedicated to making the fizzing bath products in their Dorset base.
We walk past hundreds of gloved staff members moulding neon powder into weird and wonderful shapes at stations.
Typically Lush, who turned over £780m last year, make their bath bombs by mixing sodium bicarbonate and citric acid – along with an array of perfumes and fantastical colours.
Their best selling Intergalactic even has popping candy.
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You’d expect nothing less from one of Lush’s founders Mo Constantine, who claims to have invented the bath bomb itself from her shed in 1989.
When you think of a typical factory, images of a clinical, cold warehouse may spring to mind.
This is far from the case at Lush.
While some staff do work night shifts, and there are quotas to fill, they bop along to the likes of David Guetta pumping out over speakers and get breaks every two hours.
I speak to bath bomb maker Finley, 25, who has been hired to help with the Christmas boom.
She said: “It is fun working with everyone, our record as a group of five was making 2,500 bath bombs in one day together.”
I asked if she could still smell the factory’s overpowering aroma and she shook her head, adding: “No, you can’t smell it after a while.”
As well as their fun, wacky designs, what’s also good about the bath bombs is that they have no packaging.
LUSH IN NUMBERS
- £780m brand annual turnover in 2021
- 10% of the brand is employee-owned
- 919 stores around the globe
- Sold in 48 countries
- 12,000 Lush workers
- 118 million products made globally in 2021
- 100% fresh, handmade and cruelty free cosmetics
- There are 8 Lush spas with bespoke treatments
In fact, 66 per cent of Lush’s product range is “naked” (plastic packaging free).
And what about the rest?
Customers can return Lush’s iconic black pots and I’m told they are “cleaned thoroughly and shredded, before being made into pellets, heated and remoulded back into black pots.”
Christmas is certainly a huge operation, with products being signed off in Spring and production starting in July.
When I asked one staff member how long she’d worked there she replied “nine Christmases”, adding “we count our time here in Christmases”.
We headed to their huge “gifting” factory which employs 1,300 people, and saw how each festive gift box goes through around 20 staff along a conveyor belt.
One person may be tasked with a job such as tying the ribbon, while the next person adds a label.
Speaking to cheerful worker Amelia, 22, who is local to the area, I’m told they “come up with competitions” to keep energy high.
They also get to take home any “reject products” and get 50 per cent discount, which makes them “popular with friends and family.”
She enthusiastically points out their wrapping paper made from Zambian bananas, and their box “stuffing” which isn’t polystyrene.
Lush uses a cornstarch-based substance for packaging that can be tossed on your compost.
Sadly it used to be popcorn but they scrapped that idea.
Lastly it was time to get messy again as we stopped off in the “Fresh” factory, which was more like a kitchen full of food ingredients.
“Did you know that Lush goes through a tonne of blueberries a year?”, I’m asked by manager David.
They also source seaweed off a local man in Poole.
“Our compounders [higher-up staff members] are more like chefs”, he adds, as he puts me to work mixing their Nutkin face mask.
As I pour in ground nuts and nut butter inside a large bowl, it feels like I’m making a cake rather than a cosmetic product.
“Each compounder will make a tonne of face mask a day”, David notes, as I struggle to quickly mix the ingredients.
But while high volumes are met each day, Lush tries to keep a personal touch for each product.
Black tubs get stickers added showing the face of the person who made it.
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Lush was founded in 1995 by six co-founders; Mo Constantine, Mark Constantine, Rowena Bird, Helen Ambrosen, Liz Bennett and Paul Greeves.
They remain close friends and colleagues today.
Pink-haired founder and inventor Rowena tells me that “fun” is at the heart of everything they do.
As I head home, smelling like bubblegum and armed with bath bombs, sprays, wax melts, shampoo bars and more, I can safety say that I agree.
