WASTE NOT WANT NOT

‘Underconsumption-core’ is a new online trend rejecting throwing away products before they’ve actually been used. However, Olivia Petter argues, celebrating something so ordinary only shows how excessive many of us have become

- Olivia Petter

Valeria, a popular TikTok influencer, uses her perfume until it runs out. She buys one candle at a time, and won’t replace it till it burns entirely. She has a single, small makeup bag that fits all of her products, and has been using the same water bottle since 2019. A video in which she explains all this has also been viewed more than 13,000 times. This is “underconsumption”, a new lifestyle trend that has encouraged thousands of people to show off their empty bottles – of everything from shampoo to face creams – in an effort to highlight their resistance to throwaway consumerism.

On TikTok, people are calling it “underconsumption-core” and there are umpteen videos explaining what it means and showing people how to practice it themselves. Clips show women flashing empty eyeshadow palettes to the camera and cutting open near-empty foundations to scoop out the remnants and dispense them into other, smaller pots. Then there are videos in which people line up empty bottles in their bathroom and brag about having used the same hair curler for a decade. But why is actually using all of the stuff we buy suddenly cool? More concerningly, what on earth was everyone doing before?

“This trend seems to stem from a combination of factors, all pointing towards a more mindful and deliberate approach to consumption,” says Sophie Attwood, founder and CEO of global communications agency SA Communications, which represents beauty and health clients. “It reflects a broader societal shift towards more responsible consumption patterns, where the value of a product is measured by its longevity and efficacy rather than the frequency of purchase.”