On 04/11/2009, at 9:09 PM, Stevie English wrote:

I’m becoming known as the “green hairdresser”- I’m a colourist and green is not a great colour for hair , but when it comes to business, green is the new black. I believe it’s important that hairdressers and salon owners realise that being green can save them money, and save the environment.
A government grant or rebate has just become available for business owners to install solar panels on their building. You need the landlord’s permission and for a lot of people it can can be a very expensive exercise. We have researched it, and for our building it will cost us about $6000 for six panels and thats after the rebate. We would really like to make use of this technology but that’s still a substantial cost. I’m hoping to put them on about the middle of next year. Now if you own your building or you know your boss does then its definitely worth it. The savings on the salon energy bill would cover the cost of the solar panels in 3 years. The more panels you have, the more electricity is saved and if its not used it can go back to the grid and they buy it back for more than we pay for it. Snap!

If your Solar panels are shaded at all, the panels will work at the efficiency of the weakest panel so rather than covering your whole roof with solar panels, just do enough to get direct sunlight on all of them. Some companies might not tell you this, but there are some great companies out there and the technology is getting cheaper and cheaper.

If you haven’t heard already, the British Council are making five $10,000 grants available to emerging social entrepreneurs with great ideas that deal with climate change mitigation and adaptation in urban areas. In particular grants will be awarded to individuals with an ideas that deal with issues of:

- Recycling and waste reduction
- Efficient transport and travel
- Water wastage and efficiency
- Energy efficiency; and
- Sustainable design (architecture, fashion, film, urban planning, landscaping etc.).

You don’t necessarily have to be working in a ‘green’ profession, but if you or someone you know has been talking about a great green idea and needs a bit of cash to make it happen this is for you. Now we are pretty green but i would love to see more salons so please apply here $10,000 is a BIG help!

Entries close on December 4th and applications can be made online at www.biggreenidea.com.au

On another topic, I caught up with Gavin from Easy Dry last week, he is a great guy and his product seems good. After seeing the product from the Big Towel Company I was a skeptictal about single-use disposable towels, but I was very impressed with Gavin and he seems to really care about the environment. He knows his stuff too, the product does seem to be “green”, or at least greener than the other products I have seen. I had a few questions about the “eco friendliness” of a disposable product and he showed me his accreditation- and it does not appear to be “green wash ” which is when companies try to make their product look green to get into the market. Easy Dry have spent a long time researching their product- where its sourced, how its made and how it gets here. They have Eco Label of the European Commission , European Award for the Environment , and won a Panda Award from the WWF. These awards can’t be bought, and it shows how dedicated the company is to being environmentally friendly.

Easy Dry manufacture all their own product, and have control over every aspect from where it is sourced (sustainable forests) to how it leaves their factory (wrapped up in their own bio-degradable bags). And it is transported only comes by sea to lower the carbon footprint.
Easy Dry towels come in two colours- white and black, they look good and feel good.

I still would argue that a disposable product is the most environmentally friendly option, but cotton towels are not perfect either. They are made in third world countries, where slave labour is rife, and they pillage natural resources throughout the production process. I don’t claim to have the answers, but I urge all hairdressers to consider different options in their salons. A little bit of time and effort sourcing the right product can have a big impact on the environment, and on your bottom line.
Stevie