Since 2013, Oway, an Italian lifestyle brand, has employed glass and aluminum as primary packaging materials with a focus on options that simplify, inspire, and facilitate a change of mindset and habits. The plastic-free line can be found in a number of spas, salons, single-brand boutiques, selected concept stores, and also via the company’s website. For Oway, the challenge of plastic-free and carbon-neutral is more of a creative prompt, involving the whole team and lots of innovation.
“Oway offers, inspires and suggests practical solutions to bring individuals and professionals closer to a greater awareness of their choices in both work and consumption behavior. We design and manufacture only durable and timeless tools and furnishings, created to withstand the passage of time and adapt to different ways of use by incorporating natural materials such as terracotta, glass, metals, FSC-certified wood, cotton, natural stone, eco-certified paper and tree-free paper,” notes the brand. To bring this to life, Oway invests in in-house designers alongside skilled artisans, such as wood masters, ceramicists, potters, and glassmakers, who specialize in reclaiming and recovering materials. In this sense, recycling is just as important as upcycling.
“At Oway, we implement upcycling at various levels, including the incorporation of reclaimed ingredients in our formulations. As certified producers from Emilia Romagna, the Alps, Calabria, and Tuscany, we recover waste such as olive pits, wild apple seeds, orange pulp and grape pomace, which are typically discarded in food production. These waste materials contain key functional elements that we extract for use in our cosmetic formulations. By doing so, we reduce the need for new raw materials and promote responsible resource management by converting waste into valuable resources.”
Offering more than a label, like “bio” or “green,” is a core tenet of the work at Oway. Focusing on formulation and continuing to pursue less-impactful ways of packaging are front of mind. Honesty and transparency are important, but it’s coherence that the brand deems as crucial. “There is, in fact, a real correlation between what the brand develops—in terms of product, packaging, and lifestyle proposals—and what it communicates. To validate and certify the seriousness of its protocols and good manufacturing practices, Oway relies on the control of recognized and recognizable third-party entities, affirming the trustworthiness of its production and design choices.”
Starting with biodynamic, organic, and fair-trade crops, Oway creates what they’ve coined “Agricosmetic” treatments with a high concentration of botanical ingredients. “Agricosmetic” is another nod to the mindfulness in sourcing and manufacturing the brand prides itself in prioritizing. Farmers, hydrolate and essential oil distillers, small producers, artisans, and artists are all partners in this process.
Coming this May, the brand will relaunch its skincare collection—a collection of face and body treatments based on biodynamic active ingredients and essential oils, plus ritualistic tools for professional applications, as well. “The line is expanded with new products designed for resale and home skincare routines, focusing on essential agricultural products that, through a targeted and highly personalized combination, will satisfy the widest range of needs,” shares Oway.
In celebration of the relaunch, Oway debuted an exhibition at their booth at Cosmoprof and at their Bologna store. The immersive experience, meant to feel reflective and introspective, was created to raise awareness of plastic pollution. Oway displayed washed-up waste collected from the Mediterranean coasts, displayed in a museum-like setup, with each object dated with a period description.
