Impact

Personal Impact: Time & Money Savings

While specific studies on shower dispensers are rare, we can extrapolate cost and time benefits based on typical usage patterns:

Example Calculations:

• Money Saved

  • The average consumer replaces shampoo/body wash bottles every ~2 months. If each bottle costs ~$5, that’s ~$30 spent annually.

  • LatherLogic’s pouch refills are estimated at $4 each (assuming competitive pricing).

    1. With four refills a year, your cost drops to $16 per category—saving **$14 annually per product type**.

• Time Saved

  • Let’s say you spend 30 seconds each time you open and close different bottles and manage clutter.

    1. Over an estimated 300 uses/year, that’s 150 minutes saved—a full 2.5 hours back every year just in efficiency.

  • And you save on having to drive to the store and look for products, when could be delivered right to your door!

Environmental Impact

• Plastic pollution is massive and growing

  1. Only about 9% of plastic is actually recycled, meaning the overwhelming majority ends up in landfills or waterways.

• Plastic bottles pose serious environmental risks

  1. Globally, plastic production has surged from 1.5 million tons in the 1950s to over 300 million tons today, with vast amounts leaking into oceans and ecosystems.

• Refillable systems cut waste dramatically

  1. Switching to LatherLogic’s eco-friendly pouch system means reducing reliance on single-use plastic dispensers—helping break the cycle of low-recycling rates and persistent pollution.

LatherLogic’s quickswap eco pouches are made with 44% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content, reducing demand for virgin plastics and helping divert waste from landfills. Compared to traditional 16-oz shampoo or body wash bottles, our pouches use up to 70% less plastic by weight per refill.

While our pouches are not recyclable in most curbside programs, we are developing a return & recycle program to ensure they are processed responsibly. By combining durable, long-lasting hardware with reduced-plastic refills, LatherLogic offers a cleaner, more efficient way to keep your shower stocked without the waste of single-use bottles.

Source: U.S. EPA, “Advancing Sustainable Materials Management,” PlasticsEurope Life Cycle Inventory Data.

QuickSwap Eco Pouches

• What they are:

1. Lightweight, recyclable pouches with spouted fitments for fast, mess-free replacement in the LatherLogic system. Designed to use minimal plastic and streamline your shower routine.

2. QuickSwap Eco Pouches, made with 44% post-consumer recycled plastic, use up to 77% less plastic than bottles and cut fossil fuel use, emissions, water consumption, and landfill waste by more than half.

• How much plastic they save compared to bottles:

1. Standard rigid plastic bottles for personal care are heavy—500 ml bottles typically weigh 36–42 g, plus caps and labels. By contrast, flexible pouches require significantly less plastic and material overall.

2. Lifecycle analyses show that switching to inverted or flexible pouches can cut plastic use by up to 63%, reduce fossil fuel consumption by 61%, lower greenhouse gas emissions by 62%, and save 76% of water used in production—resulting in 52% less landfill waste, even after accounting for recycling. 

• Why it matters:

1. In the U.S. alone, only about 30–35% of high-density plastic bottles are recycled—and less than 50% globally 

2. That means the majority of single-use plastic bottles still end up in landfills or oceans. Using QuickSwap Eco Pouches significantly lowers that waste footprint.

• Closed-Loop Recycling:

  1. We are also in the process of developing a way to keep our pouches out of landfills with a closed-loop recycling procedure. Stay tuned...

Where LatherLogic Fits – Even Without Closed-Loop Recycling

LatherLogic does not claim to eliminate plastic or to be a zero-waste solution. Instead, it is designed to make meaningful, practical improvements within existing infrastructure, even before any dedicated closed-loop recycling program is implemented.

First, LatherLogic reduces the total amount of plastic associated with shower products over time. A single durable unit replaces a continuous stream of rigid bottles, while our use of compact post-consumer recycled (PCR) pouches lowers the volume of plastic required per shower compared to traditional packaging. Because these pouches are lighter and less bulky than bottles, they also have the potential to decrease the environmental impact associated with transporting shower products.

Second, LatherLogic improves how product is used. By delivering controlled, precise doses, the system is designed to minimize overuse and reduce the amount of shampoo or body wash that is wasted and rinsed away. Integrated ordering from the shower further reduces “emergency” purchases and excess stockpiling of bottles that often leads to additional waste.

At the same time, we are clear about our current limitations. LatherLogic still relies on plastic and still operates within existing municipal waste and recycling systems, which vary widely in effectiveness. The environmental benefits depend on responsible use of the device, thoughtful product formulations, and continued improvements in recycling and materials management.

Closed-loop collection and recycling of LatherLogic pouches would further strengthen this model, and we see it as an important future goal. Even without that system in place today, LatherLogic represents a shift away from single-use, rigid plastic bottles toward a more efficient, lower-impact hardware and packaging approach for everyday shower products.